ActuEating: Designing, studying and exploring actuating decorative artefacts

Sara Nabil, Aluna Everitt, Miriam Sturdee, Jason Alexander, Simon Bowen, Peter Wright, David Kirk

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingConference contribution

Abstract

Actuating, dynamic materials offer substantial potential to enhance interior designs but there are currently few examples of how they might be utilised or impact user experiences. As part of a design-led exploration, we have prototyped (Wizard-of-Oz) an actuating, dining table runner (ActuEater1), and then developed a fully-interactive fabric version that both changes shape and colour (ActuEater2). Four in-situ deployments of 'ActuEaters' in different dinner settings and subsequent 'design crits' showed insights into how people perceive, interpret and interact with such slow-technology in interesting (and often unexpected) ways. The results of our 'ActuEating' studies provide evidence for how an actuating artefact can be simultaneously a resource for social engagement and an interactive decorative. In response, we explore design opportunities for situating novel interactive materials in everyday settings, taking the leap into a new generation of interactive spaces, and critically considering new aesthetic possibilities.

Original languageEnglish
Title of host publicationDIS 2018 - Proceedings of the 2018 Designing Interactive Systems Conference
PublisherACM
Pages327-340
Number of pages14
ISBN (Print)9781450351980
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 8 Jun 2018
Event2018 Designing Interactive Systems Conference, DIS 2018 - Hong Kong, Hong Kong
Duration: 9 Jun 201813 Jun 2018

Publication series

NameDIS 2018 - Proceedings of the 2018 Designing Interactive Systems Conference

Conference

Conference2018 Designing Interactive Systems Conference, DIS 2018
Country/TerritoryHong Kong
CityHong Kong
Period9/06/1813/06/18

Keywords

  • Colour-changing
  • Interioraction
  • Multi-aesthetics
  • Organic user interfaces
  • Shape-changing interfaces

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