Filming Future

Abstract

Products become increasingly interactive. These intelligent objects respond to user activity, particularly in a visual way. This report presents a research trough design project, on how to use video to design the interactive behavior of highly innovative products. It focuses particularly on designing products with a ‘skin’ made from the Light.Touch.Matters material (LTM). LTM is an innovative material with the unique potential to cover products in a flexible ‘skin’ that has great sensitivity and that communicates back with local color changes (light). Through interviews, insights were gained on the problems that LTM developers encounter. The most important insight has been that it is hard for designers to see the full potential of LTM. A major problem is that they do not have the means to conceptualize and present their ideas: They cannot make quick prototypes with the complex material and ‘still’ design representations (i.e. images) do not make the interactive behavior experiential. As a result, the dynamic aesthetics are not fully explored and developers are not on the same page. Simultaneously, a literature study had been done to gain insights from the current practices for designing future interactions. The conclusions of this study clarify what can be learned from current design practices and what should be done differently. All insights have been used to define a design goal and an interaction vision. Via an iterative exploration, specifications are developed for a tool that simulates (in video) dynamic changes in light and color. Then, a design approach had been created to give form to the tool. A pilot test has led to the final format: Chameleon, a workshop for designers and material scientists. Its purpose is to support designing the interactive behavior of products made with LTM. Chameleon is your canvas, tool box and guide to visualize the interactive appearance of a concept. At its core there are three steps: MAKE, PLAY and AWAKE. The workshop is highly iterative, e.g. you can see directly how a certain idea plays out. It can be held spontaneously, preferably in early stages of product development. A user test with design students confirmed that a workshop alike Chameleon could be of great value within design projects. However, the workshop can only be of success of the video compositing tool at its core is well developed. Other researchers have recently started with building this tool.