As computing becomes more ubiquitous in our objects, designers need to be more aware of how to design meaningful interactions into electronically enhanced objects. At the University of Washington, a class of junior Interaction Design majors is exploring this question. These pages chronicle their efforts.

Thursday, October 11, 2018

Situation Experiment – Tim and Jacob

Backyard Table

Out of our original three directions, we have decided to create a backyard table to bring warmth to eating outdoors. The table would respond to interaction as people come to sit and eat. Specifically, as people come together, the eating experience would become physically more enjoyable as the lights become warmer and the heaters turn on. The more people sit down and interact with each other the more enjoyable the experience. Finally, when the experience reaches peak warmth and enjoyment, the table will take a picture so that everyone at the table can remember the moment.

We will be likely sensing two signals: pressure which would be transmitted through the benches around the dining table. As well as sound, as people come and eat together the table will complement their conversations, with more light and warmth. When a certain threshold is reached with both weight and sound, the table will respond by firing a Polaroid so that the moment at the table gets captured.

After some quick research into sensors, we have found a couple that would fit each of the signals we hope to detect. To detect how many people are sitting at the meal we will either use a robust button trigger or load sensor that will activate the lights. Alongside these sensors, we will use multiple microphones or vibration sensors to detect the varying amounts of interaction at the table. Finally, to trigger the camera we plan to set up a wireless receiver, for the Arduino to connect to, with the capability to fire the Polaroid’s shutter.

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