**5. The design of the Observational Instrument**

The physical setup of quadratic surfaces is constructed to reflect incoming daylight, has a clear readability of shadows and light, and enables compositions of artificial light from a subset of surfaces with integrated LEDs. The surfaces are made of semi-transparent acrylic with frosted surfaces, and they are in this way able to merge light from the LEDs emitting from the inside with daylight reflected on the surface from the outside. The aim is to have a structure for experiencing compositions of fluctuating artificial light integrated with natural variations of daylight. Each light-emitting surface is outfitted with a reflector and a piece of LED strip with high colour rendering indices (CRI) warm white and cold white LEDs. The embedded LED strips are driven from LED drivers that are capable of operating with a bit depth of 16, giving a fine-grained control of intensities with more than 65,000 digital steps, effectively making fine and slow intensity shifts almost imperceptible. With the usual bit depth of 8, we would have experienced discrete digital quantisation in slow intensity fluctuations, especially in the lower 10% range, where a range of 256 steps becomes very visible. Dimming curves are adjusted to perceptual dynamics, with much higher resolution in the darker range than in the brighter one and further adjusted to enable smooth transition through the Kelvin scale.

#### **5.1. Intensity and colour temperature**

The built-in luminaires have two variables, luminous intensity and colour temperature. These two variables can fluctuate completely independently, as our LED lights decouple the relationship between colour temperature and luminous intensity that was interlocked in incandescent bulbs. The variables form a two-dimensional space of possible light outputs. Any point in this space can describe the current state of a single light emitter. The lightness could be experienced as bright, dim, off, blinding, etc. The colour temperature could be warm, cold, etc.

#### **5.2. Time and durational composition**

Fluctuations occur over time, and we are interested how fluctuations affect our experience of artificial light. The fluctuations are our path through intensity and colour temperature. How does the experience of the fluctuations change with their speed and what is the relationship between speed of light fluctuations to its integration and adaption as artificial light to the daylight influx?

If colour temperature and intensity describes the 'what' of our light emitter, the fluctuations describe the 'how'. Fluctuations can have temporal qualities such as repetition, rhythm, syncopation, flicker, etc. We would like our light compositions to potentially exhibit all of these complex qualities, without having to expose a plethora of parameters and options in the software interface.

With LED lighting, any change in intensity or colour temperature can occur discretely or continuously, that is, at an instant or gradually over time. However, we are mostly interested in exploring artificial lighting fluctuations that are reminiscent of natural phenomena. As nothing moves physically in zero time, we want the fluctuations to appear continuous. We look for a simple function that allows us to generate fluctuations that are continuous at low frequencies and appear unpredictable yet subtle. The function should have sets of time variables, and the user should be able to control the speed of this time. The core driver of fluctuations over time is the Perlin Noise animations, which generate a form of pseudo-random coherent noise that has proven useful for procedural generation of seemingly natural structures. When interpreted as light fluctuations over time, the Perlin Noise exhibits qualities ranging from imperceptible, alive, over syncopated to noisy.

#### **5.3. Spatial composition of light fluctuations**

**5. The design of the Observational Instrument**

**5.1. Intensity and colour temperature**

**5.2. Time and durational composition**

daylight influx?

2017

366

ware interface.

The physical setup of quadratic surfaces is constructed to reflect incoming daylight, has a clear readability of shadows and light, and enables compositions of artificial light from a subset of surfaces with integrated LEDs. The surfaces are made of semi-transparent acrylic with frosted surfaces, and they are in this way able to merge light from the LEDs emitting from the inside with daylight reflected on the surface from the outside. The aim is to have a structure for experiencing compositions of fluctuating artificial light integrated with natural variations of daylight. Each light-emitting surface is outfitted with a reflector and a piece of LED strip with high colour rendering indices (CRI) warm white and cold white LEDs. The embedded LED strips are driven from LED drivers that are capable of operating with a bit depth of 16, giving a fine-grained control of intensities with more than 65,000 digital steps, effectively making fine and slow intensity shifts almost imperceptible. With the usual bit depth of 8, we would have experienced discrete digital quantisation in slow intensity fluctuations, especially in the lower 10% range, where a range of 256 steps becomes very visible. Dimming curves are adjusted to perceptual dynamics, with much higher resolution in the darker range than in the brighter one and further adjusted to enable smooth transition through the Kelvin scale.

Proceedings of the Conference on Design and Semantics of Form and Movement - Sense and Sensitivity, DeSForM

The built-in luminaires have two variables, luminous intensity and colour temperature. These two variables can fluctuate completely independently, as our LED lights decouple the relationship between colour temperature and luminous intensity that was interlocked in incandescent bulbs. The variables form a two-dimensional space of possible light outputs. Any point in this space can describe the current state of a single light emitter. The lightness could be experienced as bright, dim, off, blinding, etc. The colour temperature could be warm, cold, etc.

Fluctuations occur over time, and we are interested how fluctuations affect our experience of artificial light. The fluctuations are our path through intensity and colour temperature. How does the experience of the fluctuations change with their speed and what is the relationship between speed of light fluctuations to its integration and adaption as artificial light to the

If colour temperature and intensity describes the 'what' of our light emitter, the fluctuations describe the 'how'. Fluctuations can have temporal qualities such as repetition, rhythm, syncopation, flicker, etc. We would like our light compositions to potentially exhibit all of these complex qualities, without having to expose a plethora of parameters and options in the soft-

With LED lighting, any change in intensity or colour temperature can occur discretely or continuously, that is, at an instant or gradually over time. However, we are mostly interested in exploring artificial lighting fluctuations that are reminiscent of natural phenomena. As nothing moves physically in zero time, we want the fluctuations to appear continuous. We look for A major visual component of LED lighting is the possibility to individually control light emitters. Let us now look at a collective of lights. When more lights are arranged together, their fluctuations collectively assume relative spatial qualities such as dense, sparse, coarse, uniform, and individual. When taking part in such an arrangement, a light emitter can be interpreted as a pixel.

If the coherence takes the form of figurative representation, it is reminiscent of the effect of mapping the spatial relationships of the lights to a video input. However, our focus is on the experience on spatial and temporal qualities that lies beneath concretely representational uses of lights as pixels, towards signals that give our lights a spatial relationship. For this abstract spatial reference, we use Perlin Noise in two dimensions, which could look like the one in **Figure 9**:

**Figure 9.** The artificial lighting as it looks when the curtains are drawn excluding the daylight influx. **Figure 8** presents the instrument with both daylight and embedded artificial light.

#### **5.4. The control of adaptive lighting dynamics**

With an outset in the principles of using generatively animated two-dimensional Perlin Noise as a source for colour temperature and luminous intensity, a control software has been developed that enables the designers to generatively synthesise, study, and describe temporal and spatial qualities of fluctuating light compositions. This cloud of Perlin Noise would be animated over time, at a user-defined speed. The image at the top of the screen is a composite of the two animated Perlin clouds. This animation is sampled and mapped onto the individual light-emitting surfaces that are shown in the visualisation of the Observational Instrument. The mapping retains the spatial relationship from the image to the arrangement of lights. (**Figure 10**).

There are two similar-looking sections for 'Temperature' and 'Brightness' and a bottom section for loading and saving pre-sets. The two sections for Temperature and Brightness each have three parameters that control how their Perlin Noise animation behaves. The first parameter is manipulated with a Range slider that sets two values: the minimum and maximum for the fluctuation. This means the white portion of the slider can be dragged sideways at both ends, effectively contracting or expanding the possible range of intensities of temperatures. The range slider is linear.

The middle slider sets the Speed of the fluctuation. This slider is cubic, prioritising high resolution in the lower (slow) end of the scale. A cubic slider allows for finely tuning extreme slowness, an important prerequisite for composing fluctuations that are changing at an almost imperceptible pace. On the other hand, the slider will still allow extremely fast fluctuations at the higher end of the scale, allowing comparative experiential research of the extremes. When at zero, the animation is stopped.

The last slider sets the so-called Spread of the cloud. This is effectively a 'zoom' slider allowing scaling of the Perlin Noise. This can be understood as 'how far the lights are from each other' or 'a scale between uniformity and individuality'. When at zero, the Spread parameter generates an animation that is 1x1 pixel, rendering a uniform value across the noise field, in effect letting the lights behave in unison. When dialled all the way up, the Spread parameter generates an animation that is very fine-grained, in effect letting the lights behave totally individual without any apparent coherence (**Figure 12**).

**Figure 10.** A two-dimensional Perlin Noise field at a given frequency: spread or zoom-level.

#### The Experience of Dynamic Lighting http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.71176 369

**Figure 11.** Digital weather animation controls.

**5.4. The control of adaptive lighting dynamics**

(**Figure 10**).

2017

368

The range slider is linear.

at zero, the animation is stopped.

vidual without any apparent coherence (**Figure 12**).

**Figure 10.** A two-dimensional Perlin Noise field at a given frequency: spread or zoom-level.

With an outset in the principles of using generatively animated two-dimensional Perlin Noise as a source for colour temperature and luminous intensity, a control software has been developed that enables the designers to generatively synthesise, study, and describe temporal and spatial qualities of fluctuating light compositions. This cloud of Perlin Noise would be animated over time, at a user-defined speed. The image at the top of the screen is a composite of the two animated Perlin clouds. This animation is sampled and mapped onto the individual light-emitting surfaces that are shown in the visualisation of the Observational Instrument. The mapping retains the spatial relationship from the image to the arrangement of lights.

Proceedings of the Conference on Design and Semantics of Form and Movement - Sense and Sensitivity, DeSForM

There are two similar-looking sections for 'Temperature' and 'Brightness' and a bottom section for loading and saving pre-sets. The two sections for Temperature and Brightness each have three parameters that control how their Perlin Noise animation behaves. The first parameter is manipulated with a Range slider that sets two values: the minimum and maximum for the fluctuation. This means the white portion of the slider can be dragged sideways at both ends, effectively contracting or expanding the possible range of intensities of temperatures.

The middle slider sets the Speed of the fluctuation. This slider is cubic, prioritising high resolution in the lower (slow) end of the scale. A cubic slider allows for finely tuning extreme slowness, an important prerequisite for composing fluctuations that are changing at an almost imperceptible pace. On the other hand, the slider will still allow extremely fast fluctuations at the higher end of the scale, allowing comparative experiential research of the extremes. When

The last slider sets the so-called Spread of the cloud. This is effectively a 'zoom' slider allowing scaling of the Perlin Noise. This can be understood as 'how far the lights are from each other' or 'a scale between uniformity and individuality'. When at zero, the Spread parameter generates an animation that is 1x1 pixel, rendering a uniform value across the noise field, in effect letting the lights behave in unison. When dialled all the way up, the Spread parameter generates an animation that is very fine-grained, in effect letting the lights behave totally indi-

**Figure 12.** The digital weather animation and the mapping onto the Observational Instrument.

Remember that this is an animated noise: generative and continuous. When formatted as light output in the Observational Instrument, it is possible to synthesise abstract lighting fluctuations that are reminiscent of the fluctuations in natural daylight as weather fluctuations, reflected light from water surfaces, filtered light from the movement of leaves in trees, or modulated light variations by the passing of clouds (**Figure 11**). Other more extreme or 'unnatural' compositions are also possible, and allow for comparatively studying and qualifying the temporal aesthetics of dynamic artificial light interplaying with the always-dynamic daylight.

Engaging with the Observational Instrument and tuning between daylight and artificial lighting enables the development of enhanced sensibilities to minute nuances in the light fluctuation. The Observational Instrument stages an experiential situation where experience of delicate adaptive lighting dynamics can be rehearsed and tested, progressively building a refined capacity to understand and design with lighting dynamics.

### **6. Engagement with lighting design experts**

The integrated weather systems focus on change and variation and promote an expanded field of dynamic flux in the artificial lighting. The appearance of adaptive dynamics as ambient flux

might also allow a new form of entanglement of user experience, which involves a dynamic overlap between the dynamics of visual impressions and perceptual processes that emerge out of actions [9]. Ambience in this thinking is the experience of light fluctuations integrated as context, as an emergent material quality in-between several environmental influences [14, 15].

Fourteen architectural lighting design professionals have visited the installation in 2014 during the development phase and first iteration of the Observational Instrument, advising in the parameterisation and dynamics of the instrument. Each visitor spent 60 minutes closely observing the installation (**Figure 1**) guided through a pre-defined schedule of activities and engaged in continuous discussion as a semi-structured interview. The investigation followed three phases, where the visitors focused on: (1) the experience of lighting dynamics, (2) the integration with daylight dynamics, and (3) the perceptual experience of moving through the space themselves [16, 17]. The responses were rich and contextualised with in-depth expert knowledge on the challenges in the field, but a few significant positions can be extracted and synthesised.

The dual dynamics of the integrated daylighting and artificial lighting enables movement and changes the designers' focus from light as designed objects in space towards a form of ambient composition, which could be rehearsed in a range of variations through engagement with the instrument. The visitors noted the obvious capacity to enhance the daylight dynamics further into space, maintaining the textual and ambient qualities often missed in current system designs. The embedded Digital Weather algorithms seemed to show the ability to deliver daylighting qualities in spaces with no daylight access, enabling a relevant lighting design service in IoT infrastructures. The strategic move from lighting design as a configuration of luminaires that each contribute to the light in space, towards lighting as an embedded feature in the reflective materials of walls and objects, possibly with no primary light sources at all, would prioritise the architectural shapes as primary light givers rather than luminaires, and thus change the basic assumption on the elements that compose a lighting design.

The implications of the enhanced design capacities rehearsed by experiential engagement with the Observational Instrument have relevance in several contexts of lighting design. The possibility of adaptive lighting enables heightened focus on the need for daylight exposure when indoor facilitates enhanced relation between dynamic outdoor condition in the indoor environment and promotes energy saving by using more daylight and less artificial lighting. The delicate adaptive artificial lighting allows architectural designs beyond the current constraints, where the design solution facilitates a common average of daylight influx, often leading to measures of shading to keep the daylighting dynamics in control. With a dynamic integration of daylight and artificial lighting, more daylight can be allowed to enter indoor, delicately controlled by adaption of lighting conditions across the day, and weather conditions.

### **Acknowledgements**

This project was financed and produced at Royal Academy of Fine Arts, School of Architecture, Copenhagen, and IT University of Copenhagen in larger team collaboration. Research partner was Karin Søndergaard, KADK. Instrument designer was Karina Madsen, KADK. Software design and descriptions of the software functions and interface design were done by Ole Kristensen, ITU. The project is described in detail in the published report: An Exploration into Integrating Daylight and Artificial Light via an Observational Instrument [18].

### **Author details**

might also allow a new form of entanglement of user experience, which involves a dynamic overlap between the dynamics of visual impressions and perceptual processes that emerge out of actions [9]. Ambience in this thinking is the experience of light fluctuations integrated as context, as an emergent material quality in-between several environmental influences [14, 15]. Fourteen architectural lighting design professionals have visited the installation in 2014 during the development phase and first iteration of the Observational Instrument, advising in the parameterisation and dynamics of the instrument. Each visitor spent 60 minutes closely observing the installation (**Figure 1**) guided through a pre-defined schedule of activities and engaged in continuous discussion as a semi-structured interview. The investigation followed three phases, where the visitors focused on: (1) the experience of lighting dynamics, (2) the integration with daylight dynamics, and (3) the perceptual experience of moving through the space themselves [16, 17]. The responses were rich and contextualised with in-depth expert knowledge on the

Proceedings of the Conference on Design and Semantics of Form and Movement - Sense and Sensitivity, DeSForM

challenges in the field, but a few significant positions can be extracted and synthesised.

thus change the basic assumption on the elements that compose a lighting design.

**Acknowledgements**

2017

370

The implications of the enhanced design capacities rehearsed by experiential engagement with the Observational Instrument have relevance in several contexts of lighting design. The possibility of adaptive lighting enables heightened focus on the need for daylight exposure when indoor facilitates enhanced relation between dynamic outdoor condition in the indoor environment and promotes energy saving by using more daylight and less artificial lighting. The delicate adaptive artificial lighting allows architectural designs beyond the current constraints, where the design solution facilitates a common average of daylight influx, often leading to measures of shading to keep the daylighting dynamics in control. With a dynamic integration of daylight and artificial lighting, more daylight can be allowed to enter indoor, delicately controlled by adaption of lighting conditions across the day, and weather conditions.

This project was financed and produced at Royal Academy of Fine Arts, School of Architecture, Copenhagen, and IT University of Copenhagen in larger team collaboration. Research partner was Karin Søndergaard, KADK. Instrument designer was Karina Madsen, KADK. Software

The dual dynamics of the integrated daylighting and artificial lighting enables movement and changes the designers' focus from light as designed objects in space towards a form of ambient composition, which could be rehearsed in a range of variations through engagement with the instrument. The visitors noted the obvious capacity to enhance the daylight dynamics further into space, maintaining the textual and ambient qualities often missed in current system designs. The embedded Digital Weather algorithms seemed to show the ability to deliver daylighting qualities in spaces with no daylight access, enabling a relevant lighting design service in IoT infrastructures. The strategic move from lighting design as a configuration of luminaires that each contribute to the light in space, towards lighting as an embedded feature in the reflective materials of walls and objects, possibly with no primary light sources at all, would prioritise the architectural shapes as primary light givers rather than luminaires, and Kjell Yngve Petersen\* and Ole Kristensen


### **References**

	- [12] Shaker N, Togelius J, Nelson MJ. Procedural Content Generation in Games: A Textbook and an Overview of Current Research. New York: Springer; 2016
	- [13] Perlin, K. Webpages on Perlin Noice 2005. Available from: http://mrl.nyu.edu/~perlin/ doc/oscar.html and libnoise.sourceforge.net + Bevins, Jason, libnoise: Glossary, Perlin Noise, [Accessed: 18 Dec 2014] Available from: <http://libnoise.sourceforge.net/glossary/ index.html#perlinnoise> [Accessed: 16 Feb 2017]
	- [14] Böhme, Germot. The Art of the Stage Set as a Paradigm for an Aesthetics of Atmosphere. Available from: Ambiences http://ambiances.revues.org/315 [Accessed: 16 Feb 2017]
	- [15] Schmidt U. Det Ambiente: Sansning, Medialisering, Omgivelse. [thesis]. Aarhus: Aarhus University Press; 2013
	- [16] Maglielse R. Designing for adaptive lighting environments. [thesis]. Eindhoven: Eindhoven University of Technology; 2009
	- [17] Petersen K, Søndergaard K, Kongshaug J. Adaptive Lighting. Copenhagen: Royal Academy of Fine Arts, School of Architecture, Architectural Lighting Lab; 2015
	- [18] Petersen K, Søndergaard K. An Exploration Into Integrating Daylight and Artificial Light via an Observational Instrument. Copenhagen: Royal Academy of Fine Arts, School of Architecture, Architectural Lighting Lab; 2015

**Provisional chapter**

### **Designed for Delight: Surprising Visual-Tactile Experiences Using 3D Printing in Lighting Design Experiences Using 3D Printing in Lighting Design**

**Designed for Delight: Surprising Visual-Tactile** 

10.5772/intechopen.71177

Edgar R. Rodríguez Ramírez, Sebastien Voerman and Helen Andreae and Helen Andreae Additional information is available at the end of the chapter

Additional information is available at the end of the chapter

Edgar R. Rodríguez Ramírez, Sebastien Voerman

http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.71177

#### **Abstract**

[12] Shaker N, Togelius J, Nelson MJ. Procedural Content Generation in Games: A Textbook

Proceedings of the Conference on Design and Semantics of Form and Movement - Sense and Sensitivity, DeSForM

[13] Perlin, K. Webpages on Perlin Noice 2005. Available from: http://mrl.nyu.edu/~perlin/ doc/oscar.html and libnoise.sourceforge.net + Bevins, Jason, libnoise: Glossary, Perlin Noise, [Accessed: 18 Dec 2014] Available from: <http://libnoise.sourceforge.net/glossary/

[14] Böhme, Germot. The Art of the Stage Set as a Paradigm for an Aesthetics of Atmosphere. Available from: Ambiences http://ambiances.revues.org/315 [Accessed: 16 Feb 2017] [15] Schmidt U. Det Ambiente: Sansning, Medialisering, Omgivelse. [thesis]. Aarhus: Aarhus

[16] Maglielse R. Designing for adaptive lighting environments. [thesis]. Eindhoven: Eindhoven

[17] Petersen K, Søndergaard K, Kongshaug J. Adaptive Lighting. Copenhagen: Royal Academy of Fine Arts, School of Architecture, Architectural Lighting Lab; 2015

[18] Petersen K, Søndergaard K. An Exploration Into Integrating Daylight and Artificial Light via an Observational Instrument. Copenhagen: Royal Academy of Fine Arts, School of

and an Overview of Current Research. New York: Springer; 2016

index.html#perlinnoise> [Accessed: 16 Feb 2017]

Architecture, Architectural Lighting Lab; 2015

University Press; 2013

2017

372

University of Technology; 2009

Designing for surprise is a useful tool for designers and can elevate a product from mundane to memorable, drawing attention and inviting engagement. Existing strategies have explored surprise in product design through the exploration of sensory incongruities, most notably visual-tactile incongruities: when an object looks different to what it feels like to touch. There are two digital technologies that offer new opportunities to investigate surprise in tangible-embedded interactive systems: 3D printing and tangible interaction through sensor controls. Research is yet to investigate how visually tactually incongruous 3D printing can offer new strategies for eliciting surprise in lighting design through tangible-embedded interactive systems. This research addresses this identified gap by assessing the applicability of the Ludden's strategies to surprise through 3D printing. This was performed through the design of a series of experimental 3D printed objects and lights that sought to surprise by using visual-tactile incongruities. We suggest new approaches expressed through the final designs of four interactive lights; objects designed to inspire delight through their unique interactions and surprising qualities. We report on new strategies to surprise by using an experiential gap between vision and touch through 3D printing and we report the findings from user-testing sessions.

**Keywords:** surprise, visual-tactile incongruity, 3D printing, interaction design, lighting design

### **1. Introduction**

Surprise represents a useful and powerful tool for product designers looking to inject more dynamism and intrigue into people's relationships with their objects [1–5]. It has the potential to draw people in; inviting touch and encouraging interaction. One technique for exploring

© 2016 The Author(s). Licensee InTech. This chapter is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. © 2017 The Author(s). Licensee InTech. This chapter is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

surprise in the design of objects is by manipulating the user's visual perception of the tactile experience they expect to have. This is known as a visual-tactile incongruity (VTI). The use of this was identified by Ludden [2] as a technique employed by designers to elicit surprise in their products. Ludden developed a collection of strategies that addressed and identified the various ways in which VTIs had been employed in a collection of products. Most of these products did not explore multimaterial 3D printing, which is an advanced additive manufacturing technology and offers capabilities and qualities outside the possibilities of other manufacturing techniques [6].

This chapter explores how the unique qualities that multimaterial 3D printing offers can be coupled with the capabilities of electronic sensors to generate surprising interactive technologies that create a perceptual and experiential gap, seeking to ascertain whether there is the potential for developing new specific approaches for generating surprise.

Fox-Derwin [7] identified that surprise generated through a VTI in existing products is often marred by a lack of longevity, a property that she called a "one-liner" (p. 2), also referred to as a "one-time experience" [2, 8]. Since surprise can be perceived as value-adding, this loss of surprise could be translated to a loss of perceived value in the product. Fox-Derwin [7] suggests the use of layering surprise into the interaction as a way of extending the experience and encouraging a rich reflection and relationship with the object. This research explores this in combination with VTIs and interactive systems in lighting design, seeking to extend and expand the user's' experience and sense of surprise. Lighting design acts as a focal point, offering direction and a specific outcome for both the interaction and the surprise. This directed focus and expectation of illumination offer a specific field of design opportunities to experiment with the use of VTIs in combination with interactive systems and 3D printing.

### **2. Background**

The key existing explorations that underpinned the research included the Ludden's strategies for surprise that she developed by assessing existing product designs. These strategies were conceived and analyzed in the context of traditional manufacturing technologies and were limited to the prevailing manufacturing technologies that the designers had access to. Rapid prototyping technologies, particularly 3D printing, were not as widely used by designers in 2008 as they are today. Strategies proposed by Ludden explored how VTIs had been used in the studied designed objects but did not systematically explore how new and emerging technologies could have an impact on the way these strategies could be applied. Therefore, there was an opportunity to assess the applicability of these strategies to 3D printing as well as suggesting new approaches to generating surprise in product design. Polyjet photopolymerization (PPP), a multimaterial printing technology where ultraviolet light cures incremental layers of photopolymers laid down by an extrusion head, was chosen as the primary printing technology due to its capabilities for hard and soft material blending (gradients, interlocking sections, and materials within other materials) and high-resolution finishing, potentially lending itself well to setting up visual-tactile incongruities.

Ludden [2] identified six strategies for eliciting surprise in the design of a product: "new material with unknown characteristics; new material that looks like familiar material; new appearance for known product or material; combination with transparent material; hidden material characteristics; and visual illusion" (p. 31). These six strategies are all framed within two categories: Hidden and Visible Novelty. These categories illustrate an overarching difference between the strategies and whether the user can discern a visible novelty. This distinction affects the reveal of the surprise, and research [1] suggests that superficially it seems possible that a "Hidden Novelty" (HN) strategy could elicit a stronger sense of surprise due to the lack of an expectation of novelty (p. 31). "Visible Novelty" (VN) strategies explore a different angle on surprise, where the user enters the experience with a larger degree of uncertainty. While it appears that on the surface, an HN strategy might be more successful at providing immediate surprise, a VN strategy could potentially have a longer lasting effect of delight, which research corroborated by saying "people often viewed VN products as more interesting than HN products" [1].

In lighting design, most familiar systems generally favor two types of controls: on/off switches and dials (generally used for dimming light). These are the physical components that people interact with through their sense of touch and offer an opportunity for eliciting VTIs. By offering a different tactile sensation to the one visually apparent, this could layer the surprise directly into the interactive system. As a result, "the beneficial aspects of eliciting surprise through interactions with products will have the potential to be prolonged" [7]. Touch is responsible for a lot of our emotional investigation and investment, as well as our bodily awareness [9, 10]. As a result, this surprising reveal could have a greater emotional impact than if it were revealed through another sense.

There are a variety of sensors that can interpret tactile interactions, including flex sensors, capacitive touch sensors, potentiometers, pressure sensors, knock sensors, and many others. These sensors can each facilitate different aspects of tactile interaction. Pleasurable tactile interaction with products has been connected with usability [11, 12]. Ross and Wensveen [12] explored interactive product behavior, suggesting that the interactions with a product are of significant importance and should underpin the entire process of designing the product. These understandings provide a clear opportunity to emotionally and experientially extend these interactions with electronic systems and to enhance the experience and engagement with the interactive system.

### **3. Methods**

surprise in the design of objects is by manipulating the user's visual perception of the tactile experience they expect to have. This is known as a visual-tactile incongruity (VTI). The use of this was identified by Ludden [2] as a technique employed by designers to elicit surprise in their products. Ludden developed a collection of strategies that addressed and identified the various ways in which VTIs had been employed in a collection of products. Most of these products did not explore multimaterial 3D printing, which is an advanced additive manufacturing technology and offers capabilities and qualities outside the possibilities of other

Proceedings of the Conference on Design and Semantics of Form and Movement - Sense and Sensitivity, DeSForM

This chapter explores how the unique qualities that multimaterial 3D printing offers can be coupled with the capabilities of electronic sensors to generate surprising interactive technologies that create a perceptual and experiential gap, seeking to ascertain whether there is the

Fox-Derwin [7] identified that surprise generated through a VTI in existing products is often marred by a lack of longevity, a property that she called a "one-liner" (p. 2), also referred to as a "one-time experience" [2, 8]. Since surprise can be perceived as value-adding, this loss of surprise could be translated to a loss of perceived value in the product. Fox-Derwin [7] suggests the use of layering surprise into the interaction as a way of extending the experience and encouraging a rich reflection and relationship with the object. This research explores this in combination with VTIs and interactive systems in lighting design, seeking to extend and expand the user's' experience and sense of surprise. Lighting design acts as a focal point, offering direction and a specific outcome for both the interaction and the surprise. This directed focus and expectation of illumination offer a specific field of design opportunities to experi-

ment with the use of VTIs in combination with interactive systems and 3D printing.

lending itself well to setting up visual-tactile incongruities.

The key existing explorations that underpinned the research included the Ludden's strategies for surprise that she developed by assessing existing product designs. These strategies were conceived and analyzed in the context of traditional manufacturing technologies and were limited to the prevailing manufacturing technologies that the designers had access to. Rapid prototyping technologies, particularly 3D printing, were not as widely used by designers in 2008 as they are today. Strategies proposed by Ludden explored how VTIs had been used in the studied designed objects but did not systematically explore how new and emerging technologies could have an impact on the way these strategies could be applied. Therefore, there was an opportunity to assess the applicability of these strategies to 3D printing as well as suggesting new approaches to generating surprise in product design. Polyjet photopolymerization (PPP), a multimaterial printing technology where ultraviolet light cures incremental layers of photopolymers laid down by an extrusion head, was chosen as the primary printing technology due to its capabilities for hard and soft material blending (gradients, interlocking sections, and materials within other materials) and high-resolution finishing, potentially

potential for developing new specific approaches for generating surprise.

manufacturing techniques [6].

2017

374

**2. Background**

Exploring how the unique qualities that 3D printing offers could generate surprise involved a two-phase process. Phase 1 investigated and critiqued the Ludden's strategies through an iterative research, through design process [13] and through developing sets of criteria. These criteria formed the basis for a morphological analysis [14] that was used to develop 23 physical experiments. These experiments were all designed in the constraints of the Ludden's strategies, with five experiments being developed for each of the three Hidden Novelty strategies

and two experiments for each of the four Visible Novelty strategies. More experiments were developed for the HN strategies, as these appeared to offer more opportunities to distinctly experiment with the capacity of PPP multimaterial printing to elicit a VTI. Designed to incorporate all the distinct material qualities (soft, hard, gradients between soft and hard, transparent, opaque, translucent) available through PPP, the 23 experiments explored the visual and tactile perception of two sets of opposing visible material qualities: "softness to hardness," and "texture to smoothness" (**Figure 1**).

All 23 initial experiments were tested with 10 participants who were unfamiliar with PPP. The participants, between 17 and 20 years old, were first-year design University students, of which half of the participants were male and half were female. While they were aware of 3D printing technologies and had worked on projects by using Fusion Deposition Modeling (FDM) technologies, they had not seen or worked on PPP or other multimaterial 3D printing technology. Data were collected following a procedure similar to Evaluative Research or Product Testing [15], while also using observation and self-reporting techniques, including questionnaires [16], the Geneva Wheel of Emotions [17], and interviews [18]. Participants were shown the cubes one by one and asked to visually assess the object on scales of "hard to soft" and "textured to smooth" as well as verbally voicing their thoughts on the object through Thinking Out Loud (TOL). They were then asked to physically interact with the object and fill out the same scales again in order to gauge their tactile perception of the objects. A large difference between their visual and tactile self-reports would indicate the presence of a VTI. The participants were also encouraged to expand on their emotional experiences with the objects through the use of a customized Geneva Wheel of Emotions [17] that included segments added for "Negative-" and "Positive Surprise." Phase 1 concluded on four specific approaches to elicit VTI that were further investigated in Phase 2.

Phase 2 explored designing an individual light for each of the identified four approaches, as well as incorporating design elements from the experiments in Phase 1. The experiments from Phase 1 also informed the usage of PPP's unique qualities to develop the control mechanisms and the light-diffusing components of the lights. The lights and their corresponding interactions were designed based on qualities and features seen in the experiments from Phase 1, and the integration of sensors and microcontrollers was considered based on the specific interaction desired. The employment of the sensors and the coding around them allowed for carefully calibrated and tested interactions that highlighted and facilitated particular approaches to actually engage with the lights. All the final designs incorporated layered surprise and interaction (visual, tactile, and hidden) in order to increase engagement and delight when experiencing the object. The interactions were often hidden, encouraging users to explore, contemplate, and experiment with different ways to turn the lights on.

These lights were tested using a similar, but improved testing process from the first phase. The lights were hidden from the user before being exposed, whereupon the user had to record their visual perceptions of the object before getting to touch it. After getting to physically interact with the prototype, the user was asked to record their resultant tactile experiences of the object, as well as filling out a Geneva Wheel of Emotions in order to self-report their emotional experiences with the lights. The order of the reveal of the lights was randomized between participants, only one light was ever shown at once, and the lights were again tested with 10 participants.

and two experiments for each of the four Visible Novelty strategies. More experiments were developed for the HN strategies, as these appeared to offer more opportunities to distinctly experiment with the capacity of PPP multimaterial printing to elicit a VTI. Designed to incorporate all the distinct material qualities (soft, hard, gradients between soft and hard, transparent, opaque, translucent) available through PPP, the 23 experiments explored the visual and tactile perception of two sets of opposing visible material qualities: "softness to hardness,"

Proceedings of the Conference on Design and Semantics of Form and Movement - Sense and Sensitivity, DeSForM

All 23 initial experiments were tested with 10 participants who were unfamiliar with PPP. The participants, between 17 and 20 years old, were first-year design University students, of which half of the participants were male and half were female. While they were aware of 3D printing technologies and had worked on projects by using Fusion Deposition Modeling (FDM) technologies, they had not seen or worked on PPP or other multimaterial 3D printing technology. Data were collected following a procedure similar to Evaluative Research or Product Testing [15], while also using observation and self-reporting techniques, including questionnaires [16], the Geneva Wheel of Emotions [17], and interviews [18]. Participants were shown the cubes one by one and asked to visually assess the object on scales of "hard to soft" and "textured to smooth" as well as verbally voicing their thoughts on the object through Thinking Out Loud (TOL). They were then asked to physically interact with the object and fill out the same scales again in order to gauge their tactile perception of the objects. A large difference between their visual and tactile self-reports would indicate the presence of a VTI. The participants were also encouraged to expand on their emotional experiences with the objects through the use of a customized Geneva Wheel of Emotions [17] that included segments added for "Negative-" and "Positive Surprise." Phase 1 concluded on four specific approaches to elicit VTI that were

Phase 2 explored designing an individual light for each of the identified four approaches, as well as incorporating design elements from the experiments in Phase 1. The experiments from Phase 1 also informed the usage of PPP's unique qualities to develop the control mechanisms and the light-diffusing components of the lights. The lights and their corresponding interactions were designed based on qualities and features seen in the experiments from Phase 1, and the integration of sensors and microcontrollers was considered based on the specific interaction desired. The employment of the sensors and the coding around them allowed for carefully calibrated and tested interactions that highlighted and facilitated particular approaches to actually engage with the lights. All the final designs incorporated layered surprise and interaction (visual, tactile, and hidden) in order to increase engagement and delight when experiencing the object. The interactions were often hidden, encouraging users to explore,

These lights were tested using a similar, but improved testing process from the first phase. The lights were hidden from the user before being exposed, whereupon the user had to record their visual perceptions of the object before getting to touch it. After getting to physically interact with the prototype, the user was asked to record their resultant tactile experiences of the object, as well as filling out a Geneva Wheel of Emotions in order to self-report their

contemplate, and experiment with different ways to turn the lights on.

and "texture to smoothness" (**Figure 1**).

2017

376

further investigated in Phase 2.

**Figure 1.** Resulting designs from the initial experimental approach to explore freely the opportunities PPP offers to elicit visual-tactile incongruities (see **Table 1** for names and description).

### **4. Results**

Analyzing the data from Phase 1 highlighted that certain concepts and their strategies for creating VTIs were more successful and more emotionally well received than others. This enabled the development of four approaches tailored toward eliciting surprise through the use of PPP, adapted from the Ludden's strategies:

"Visually referencing recognizable forms, objects and structures, but making them tactually different."

"Using material variances and unfamiliar forms to encourage interaction."

"Suggesting surfaces have texture when they are actually smooth, through the use of an illusion."

"Using internal structures to challenge the initial visual perception of the material properties." (**Tables 1**–**3**).

Each of the final four lights incorporated a very different interaction, with some leaning more heavily on the coding of the microcontrollers, whereas others relied primarily on the sensors. All the lights incorporated a "reveal" aspect with the activation of the light. There is no obvious "switch" on any of the lights, so users had to experiment with the lights to discover the activation. The design of the lights (**Figure 2**) incorporated various elements that were designed to elicit VTIs, all built directly into the means of activating the lights. Each of these lights was designed as an expression of one of the four approaches identified at the end of Phase 1.

Design one (**Figure 3**) was based off a crystalline structure, using this recognizable structure as a basis for creating a VTI where the structure was revealed to be soft on touch. This reveal of the soft structure also showed the user what the interaction was; by flexing each crystal individually, the bend sensors within would allow the user to tune the amount of light emanating from the base of each crystal. A series of carefully calibrated sensors and coded responses allowed the individual an intuitive control of the lights. This design explored the potential of the "Visually referencing recognizable forms, objects, and structures, but making them tactually different" approach. The 3D printed structure made use of the advanced material composition possible with PPP, with fine blending between the softest materials at the tips and a rigid structure at the base to keep the crystal structures in place. The design also included an internal semi-flexible skeleton as well as a procedurally generated series of minuscule opaque volumes to simulate occlusions and sharp-looking edges in an attempt to carefully replicate the visual appearance of a crystal. This VTI proved to be the most surprising out of all the designs, as the visual reference was the most well understood, and a clearly visually rigid quality was being challenged with a malleable, soft, and tactile structure.

Design two (**Figure 4**) relied on the user's exploratory curiosity, hiding six different switches under the myriad of soft, organic forms that yielded to the touch. The forms, each a series of intersecting 3D volumes of various densities and rigidities, were parametrically developed to incorporate small variances between each other, emulating variety between the individuals of


**4. Results**

2017

378

ally different."

erties." (**Tables 1**–**3**).

illusion."

Phase 1.

structure.

use of PPP, adapted from the Ludden's strategies:

Analyzing the data from Phase 1 highlighted that certain concepts and their strategies for creating VTIs were more successful and more emotionally well received than others. This enabled the development of four approaches tailored toward eliciting surprise through the

Proceedings of the Conference on Design and Semantics of Form and Movement - Sense and Sensitivity, DeSForM

"Visually referencing recognizable forms, objects and structures, but making them tactu-

"Suggesting surfaces have texture when they are actually smooth, through the use of an

"Using internal structures to challenge the initial visual perception of the material prop-

Each of the final four lights incorporated a very different interaction, with some leaning more heavily on the coding of the microcontrollers, whereas others relied primarily on the sensors. All the lights incorporated a "reveal" aspect with the activation of the light. There is no obvious "switch" on any of the lights, so users had to experiment with the lights to discover the activation. The design of the lights (**Figure 2**) incorporated various elements that were designed to elicit VTIs, all built directly into the means of activating the lights. Each of these lights was designed as an expression of one of the four approaches identified at the end of

Design one (**Figure 3**) was based off a crystalline structure, using this recognizable structure as a basis for creating a VTI where the structure was revealed to be soft on touch. This reveal of the soft structure also showed the user what the interaction was; by flexing each crystal individually, the bend sensors within would allow the user to tune the amount of light emanating from the base of each crystal. A series of carefully calibrated sensors and coded responses allowed the individual an intuitive control of the lights. This design explored the potential of the "Visually referencing recognizable forms, objects, and structures, but making them tactually different" approach. The 3D printed structure made use of the advanced material composition possible with PPP, with fine blending between the softest materials at the tips and a rigid structure at the base to keep the crystal structures in place. The design also included an internal semi-flexible skeleton as well as a procedurally generated series of minuscule opaque volumes to simulate occlusions and sharp-looking edges in an attempt to carefully replicate the visual appearance of a crystal. This VTI proved to be the most surprising out of all the designs, as the visual reference was the most well understood, and a clearly visually rigid quality was being challenged with a malleable, soft, and tactile

Design two (**Figure 4**) relied on the user's exploratory curiosity, hiding six different switches under the myriad of soft, organic forms that yielded to the touch. The forms, each a series of intersecting 3D volumes of various densities and rigidities, were parametrically developed to incorporate small variances between each other, emulating variety between the individuals of

"Using material variances and unfamiliar forms to encourage interaction."

**Table 1.** Name and description of the 3D printed design experiments from Design Phase 1 (see **Figure 1** for photos of each experiment).


**Table 2.** Design Phase 1: 3D printing qualities that PPP affords and how the strategies to surprise were applied.

a species as well as creating a less homogeneous surface to interact with. Each switch activated a separate panel of light under the structure, and the organic formation created a unique diffusion of the light. This design explored the "Using material variances and unfamiliar forms to encourage interaction" approach. The two halves of the form spun independently of one another, ensuring that the user would be unlikely to be able to memorize the location of the switches, refreshing the search for the switches between uses. This design proved to be frustrating for a number of participants, as the organic structures proved too numerous to be able to reliably find a switch in a short time frame.

Design three (**Figure 5**) built the interaction around the relation of shapes and the "Suggesting surfaces have texture when they are actually smooth, through the use of an illusion" approach. The 3D printed structure needed to be stretched and attached to the other half of the form to light up. The VTI emerged out of the sinuous "slinky-like" form of the 3D printed component, which is not apparent until it is touched. When the structure is stretched and attached to the other half of the design, a sensor detects the magnetic field created by a small magnet in the end of the 3D printed component, and the structure lights up through LEDs built into the base of the wooden structure. A number of participants experienced an "Aha" moment when they


**Table 3.** Notable VTIs achieved by the initial experiments.

a species as well as creating a less homogeneous surface to interact with. Each switch activated a separate panel of light under the structure, and the organic formation created a unique diffusion of the light. This design explored the "Using material variances and unfamiliar forms to encourage interaction" approach. The two halves of the form spun independently of one another, ensuring that the user would be unlikely to be able to memorize the location of the switches, refreshing the search for the switches between uses. This design proved to be frustrating for a number of participants, as the organic structures proved too numerous to be able

**Table 2.** Design Phase 1: 3D printing qualities that PPP affords and how the strategies to surprise were applied.

Proceedings of the Conference on Design and Semantics of Form and Movement - Sense and Sensitivity, DeSForM

2017

380

Design three (**Figure 5**) built the interaction around the relation of shapes and the "Suggesting surfaces have texture when they are actually smooth, through the use of an illusion" approach. The 3D printed structure needed to be stretched and attached to the other half of the form to light up. The VTI emerged out of the sinuous "slinky-like" form of the 3D printed component, which is not apparent until it is touched. When the structure is stretched and attached to the other half of the design, a sensor detects the magnetic field created by a small magnet in the end of the 3D printed component, and the structure lights up through LEDs built into the base of the wooden structure. A number of participants experienced an "Aha" moment when they

to reliably find a switch in a short time frame.

understood the intended interaction but were all surprised by the emergent light quality that highlighted some less visible details of the design, such as the pattern of miniature translucent volumes inside the slinky-like component.

Design four (**Figure 6**) references a dial-like structure, which however has collapsible sections, which cave inwards when gripped tightly, showcasing this design "Using internal structures to challenge the initial visual perception of the material properties approach. The dial is a potentiometer that can be turned to cycle up through all the light combinations; however, these emerge in an interesting way, using a four-way binary coding system, which was linked to four physical relays, allowing a gradual "mechanical dimming" through the individual cycling of differently numbered groups of lights. The interaction here was rewarding and delightful, incorporating an auditory component as well through the opening and closing of the relays, with the reveal of light patterns being particularly praised by research participants. However, the reveal of the collapsible structure was not noticed by a number of the participants.

**Figure 2.** (Clockwise from top left): design one: malleable structures; design two: organic formation; design four: rotary relays; design three: spiral connection.

**Figure 3.** Design one: malleable structures. PPP 3D print, wood, Arduino microcontroller, flex sensor, and LED lights.

Designed for Delight: Surprising Visual-Tactile Experiences Using 3D Printing in Lighting Design http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.71177 383

**Figure 4.** Design two: organic formation. PPP 3D print, wood, Arduino microcontroller, switches, and LED lights.

**Figure 5.** Design three: spiral connection. PPP 3D print, wood, Arduino microcontroller, magnetic sensor, and LED lights.

**Figure 3.** Design one: malleable structures. PPP 3D print, wood, Arduino microcontroller, flex sensor, and LED lights.

**Figure 2.** (Clockwise from top left): design one: malleable structures; design two: organic formation; design four: rotary

Proceedings of the Conference on Design and Semantics of Form and Movement - Sense and Sensitivity, DeSForM

relays; design three: spiral connection.

2017

382

**Figure 6.** Design four: rotary relays. PPP 3D print, wood, Arduino microcontroller, potentiometer, and LED lights.

### **5. Discussion**

Ludden developed strategies through looking at existing products that evoked surprise; yet there was only one example of a product employing 3D printing, namely the "Konko Lamp," designed by Willeke Evenhuis & Alex Gabriel. Exploring the possibility of using PPP 3D printing to elicit surprise through the use of VTIs, particularly using its capabilities to print in soft and hard material combinations, yielded interesting findings that suggested 3D printing appears to show a greater usefulness for the '*Visible Novelty*' (VN) subset of the Ludden's strategies, as the designs based around these strategies tended to invite interaction and speculation.

After conducting research into the applicability of these strategies, it would appear that some of her strategies do offer viable angles for exploring surprise through the use of 3D printing. However, given the still somewhat limited visual qualities of PPP printing at present, achieving effective expressions of Ludden's '*Hidden Novelty*' (HN) strategies is still out of reach. Ludden et al. highlighted that the "HN surprise type includes products that seem familiar to the perceiver, but have unexpected tactual properties" (p. 30). While this appears to sound like the effect seen in the prototype *Malleable Structures*, participants still mentioned that "*It looks odd*" (Participant 8) and "*It looks like a crystal, but I'm not sure*" (Participant 2). A number of participants made comments suggesting that they were not convinced about their visual perceptions, suggesting a more predominant presence of VN in the designs, despite the best efforts to truthfully emulate the real qualities of the desired structure. Finding materials that PPP can specifically emulate, and designing familiar forms and structures around those could address achieving true HN designs.

We believe this primarily due to the "look" of PPP 3D printing. Many participants picked up on the visual strangeness of the materials (most of the prototypes ended up looking somewhat like complex arrangements of various kinds of candle wax). Based on their responses, it simply does not appear to have been possible to fully deceive the viewer's perception enough to make them believe the materials they see are not "odd." However, having a fundamental understanding of the qualities and possibilities of PPP can still offer designers specific ways to elicit surprise. Ludden et al. [2] noted that "people tended to exhibit more exploratory behaviors when interacting with VN products."

People often viewed VN products as more interesting than HN products" (p. 37). For the designs developed in Phase 2; which all incorporated aspects of VN, almost all participants spent well over a minute exploring most of the lights. The reverse of this was seen in several of the purely HN strategy cuboid prototypes from Phase 1, which usually elicited only very brief interactions and comments such as "Oh, it's just hard. That's disappointing." (Participant 4).

Ludden's strategies in the HN category were still essential to the development of the final designs, but the final light designs themselves actually end up fitting predominantly into the VN category, due to the inherent inability for PPP to accurately simulate the visual qualities of other recognizable materials. The four designs developed in Phase 2 explored combining specific PPP capabilities with the Ludden's [2] strategies. The approaches put forward are based on a systematic exploration through the Research through Design approach, as well as the questionnaires and interviews employed during the user testing. These approaches are not exhaustive, and there is potential for research to develop further approaches related more specifically to other 3D printing technologies beyond PPP.

3D printing is an incredibly important growth area presently, with the latest Wohlers Report highlighting that "the 3D printing industry has grown by US\$1 billion" [19]. Understanding the state of the art, what can be done with the technologies, as well as how it can be pushed to the limits is vital in ensuring designs utilizing it can remain surprising. Surprise has, as discussed in previous sections of this chapter, a lot to offer to designers. Exploring the potential of 3D printing, how it can surprise and challenge our sensory perception through the use of VTIs is a topical, relevant exposition. Its application to the comprehensible field of lighting design is one particular angle that this chapter pursued. There is a myriad of other areas dependent on interesting, engaging interactions that this research could potentially inform.

### **6. Conclusion**

**5. Discussion**

2017

384

and speculation.

Ludden developed strategies through looking at existing products that evoked surprise; yet there was only one example of a product employing 3D printing, namely the "Konko Lamp," designed by Willeke Evenhuis & Alex Gabriel. Exploring the possibility of using PPP 3D printing to elicit surprise through the use of VTIs, particularly using its capabilities to print in soft and hard material combinations, yielded interesting findings that suggested 3D printing appears to show a greater usefulness for the '*Visible Novelty*' (VN) subset of the Ludden's strategies, as the designs based around these strategies tended to invite interaction

**Figure 6.** Design four: rotary relays. PPP 3D print, wood, Arduino microcontroller, potentiometer, and LED lights.

Proceedings of the Conference on Design and Semantics of Form and Movement - Sense and Sensitivity, DeSForM

After conducting research into the applicability of these strategies, it would appear that some of her strategies do offer viable angles for exploring surprise through the use of 3D printing. However, given the still somewhat limited visual qualities of PPP printing at present, achieving effective expressions of Ludden's '*Hidden Novelty*' (HN) strategies is still out of reach. Ludden et al. highlighted that the "HN surprise type includes products that seem familiar to the perceiver, but have unexpected tactual properties" (p. 30). While this appears to sound like the effect seen in the prototype *Malleable Structures*, participants still mentioned that "*It looks odd*" (Participant 8) and "*It looks like a crystal, but I'm not sure*" (Participant 2). A number of participants made comments suggesting that they were not convinced about their visual

Designed for Delight sought to expand on existing strategies for the elicitation of surprise to include the new, advanced manufacturing technique of 3D printing. The strategies, suggested by Ludden [2], were based around visual-tactile incongruities. This chapter systematically

explored and critiqued the possibility of applying these strategies to the 3D printing technology Polyjet photopolymerization (PPP), using this to then generate new and specific approaches. This was achieved through designed objects exploring all the Ludden's [2] strategies, and these approaches then inform the design of lights that incorporated interactive controls imbued with VTIs. The exploration of lighting design was chosen due to the expectation of illumination from the interaction. This offered the opportunity to counter expectations of the interaction as well as the reveal of light.

Upon reflection over the data from user testing and the resultant developed lights, it was realized that a key determinant for the success of these approaches in these contexts was how well the approach for eliciting a VTI was combined with the interaction designed for the lights. The importance of this marriage between the approach, the interaction and the possibilities of the 3D printing technology cannot be overstated in this context. In order to generate surprise through a VTI, the designer needs to clearly comprehend their chosen 3D printing technology. This requires a display of sensitivity toward the qualities achievable and carefully employing the desired approach. This will allow designers to craft products that can surprise and delight, conveying more meaning and allowing the end-users to build better person-product relations.

### **Acknowledgements**

This chapter is part of a Masters project in industrial design [20].

### **Author details**

Edgar R. Rodríguez Ramírez\*, Sebastien Voerman and Helen Andreae

\*Address all correspondence to: edgar.rodriguez@vuw.ac.nz

Victoria University of Wellington, Wellington, New Zealand

### **References**


explored and critiqued the possibility of applying these strategies to the 3D printing technology Polyjet photopolymerization (PPP), using this to then generate new and specific approaches. This was achieved through designed objects exploring all the Ludden's [2] strategies, and these approaches then inform the design of lights that incorporated interactive controls imbued with VTIs. The exploration of lighting design was chosen due to the expectation of illumination from the interaction. This offered the opportunity to counter expectations of

Proceedings of the Conference on Design and Semantics of Form and Movement - Sense and Sensitivity, DeSForM

Upon reflection over the data from user testing and the resultant developed lights, it was realized that a key determinant for the success of these approaches in these contexts was how well the approach for eliciting a VTI was combined with the interaction designed for the lights. The importance of this marriage between the approach, the interaction and the possibilities of the 3D printing technology cannot be overstated in this context. In order to generate surprise through a VTI, the designer needs to clearly comprehend their chosen 3D printing technology. This requires a display of sensitivity toward the qualities achievable and carefully employing the desired approach. This will allow designers to craft products that can surprise and delight, conveying more meaning and allowing the end-users to build better person-product relations.

the interaction as well as the reveal of light.

This chapter is part of a Masters project in industrial design [20].

Edgar R. Rodríguez Ramírez\*, Sebastien Voerman and Helen Andreae

[1] Ludden G, Schifferstein H, Hekkert P. Surprise as a design strategy. Design Issues. 2008;

[2] Ludden G. Sensory incongruity and surprise in product design [Internet] [Doctoral dissertation]. Delft: Technical University of Delft, Faculty of Industrial Design Engineering; 2008 [cited 2009 Jan 11]. Available from: http://repository.tudelft.nl/view/ir/

[3] Rodríguez Ramírez ER. The role of surprise on persuasion in industrial design. Inter-

\*Address all correspondence to: edgar.rodriguez@vuw.ac.nz Victoria University of Wellington, Wellington, New Zealand

uuid%3A8cafddd5-6a38-42e4-9ca7-62abb4bfcaab/

national Journal of Product Development. 2012;**16**(3/4):263-283

**Acknowledgements**

2017

386

**Author details**

**References**

**24**(2):28-38


Provisional chapter

### **Using Shape-Change to Express Dynamic Affordances of Intelligent Systems** Using Shape-Change to Express Dynamic Affordances of

DOI: 10.5772/intechopen.71116

José E. Gallegos Nieto and Yaliang Chuang

Additional information is available at the end of the chapter José E. Gallegos Nieto and Yaliang Chuang

http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.71116 Additional information is available at the end of the chapter

Intelligent Systems

#### Abstract

As intelligent systems permeate the world, our everyday lives are made easier and less tedious. However, there exist too many "intelligent" systems whose lack of communication or low intelligibility frustrate users. In this study, we present a tangible interface aimed to bridge human-system interaction. It expresses behaviors through shapechange, and its body movements indicate system status and are responsive and rapid enough for perceptual crossing. Based on preliminary results of a user study conducted with 16 participants, the prototype's implicit interactions show promise in establishing a basic dialog and point to goals and challenges in designing technology that feels truly "smart."

Keywords: shape-changing interfaces, machine-learning, intelligent systems, implicit interaction, anthropomorphism

### 1. Introduction

In a technology-driven market, a main area of focus is designing "smart" products to improve people's daily lives. It is estimated that by 2020, people will have more than 20 smart devices on their body or in their immediate surroundings [1]. Those intelligent agents will continuously sense and proactively suggest changes with goals including: better energy efficiency, improved productivity, and greater entertainment. To reduce the efforts of controlling increasingly numerous, complex, and capable technologies, many systems will also be able to learn. User preferences will be computed along with outside factors to automatically adapt devices and the environment. However, there is a problem in that an excess of automation often leads to user frustrations [2]. Lack of user control and machines' failure to effectively communicate with users are two important challenges surrounding interactions with intelligent systems [3, 4].

© 2017 The Author(s). Licensee InTech. This chapter is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

© The Author(s). Licensee InTech. This chapter is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and eproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Several studies, for example [2, 5, 6], suggest that users want to at least feel a degree of control over an intelligent system's decisions. One possible strategy is to communicate system reasoning to the user [7]. However, a notable study [6] highlighted two challenges in improving users' mental models (understanding) of a system. First, users' knowledge and skills might be insufficient for understanding the complex reasoning of their machines. Second, users often lack the interest or time to invest in learning how a system works. To address those problems, this study aimed to explore interactive designs that could provide incidental intelligibility from the interactions with intelligent machines or systems. We investigated the means by which machines might express their reasoning, their willingness to cooperate, and their ability to negotiate conflicts. With an intelligent lighting system as an application area, we developed a tangible interface that utilizes movement to acknowledge the user's approach, invite their interactions, convey its learning, and show its subjectivity in an implicit way. Our focus is to learn to foster successful social relationships between humans and intelligent systems so that they may coordinate and perform tasks together smoothly and pleasurably.

### 2. Theoretical background

As intelligent systems enter everyday lives, people often encounter very basic problems in communication [8]. Users move through interactive fields often without knowing which objects or spaces to interact with because too many systems are "faceless" and not revealing themselves to be "smart" until the user produces a correct interaction cue through the medium (s) that the system anticipates [9]. Such a lack of a prompt, or feedforward, represents a total decoupling of actions and functions. Deckers et al. [10] proposed the concept of perceptual crossing to show the system's "face" and let users know their approach is acknowledged: a reciprocal interplay of perceiving while being perceived. With perceptual crossing, users can not only recognize the possibility to initiate interactions with machines but also engage in a more continuous way with something akin to an artificial living creature.

The notion of "calm computing" proposed by Weiser [11] is a pattern for intelligent systems in which designers use implicit communication for informing without annoying. Relatedly, a tendency is that as systems develop their perceptional capabilities and intelligence, they require less of an explicit command and control relationship with humans [12]. Implicit interactions can take us far in managing attention, controlling expectations, and minimizing cognitive load. These are helpful factors in applying our research to the successful control of an environment [13].

In implicit human-to-human interactions, body language is a medium through which information is transmitted easily, intuitively, and both continuously and subconsciously. The physical body given to the prototype (as described in the following section) aims to use body language to similarly evoke and even convey emotions (statuses) on this behavioral level. The use of body language also left us with a satisfying amount of ambiguity, allowing for interpretation which along with perception is a crucial pillar for implicit interaction [12]. Ambiguity, in this case, was also a design resource to encourage close engagement with the artifact, an approach detailed by Gaver et al. [14].

### 3. Anthox: a physical hypothesis

Several studies, for example [2, 5, 6], suggest that users want to at least feel a degree of control over an intelligent system's decisions. One possible strategy is to communicate system reasoning to the user [7]. However, a notable study [6] highlighted two challenges in improving users' mental models (understanding) of a system. First, users' knowledge and skills might be insufficient for understanding the complex reasoning of their machines. Second, users often lack the interest or time to invest in learning how a system works. To address those problems, this study aimed to explore interactive designs that could provide incidental intelligibility from the interactions with intelligent machines or systems. We investigated the means by which machines might express their reasoning, their willingness to cooperate, and their ability to negotiate conflicts. With an intelligent lighting system as an application area, we developed a tangible interface that utilizes movement to acknowledge the user's approach, invite their interactions, convey its learning, and show its subjectivity in an implicit way. Our focus is to learn to foster successful social relationships between humans and intelligent systems so that they may coordinate and perform tasks together smoothly and

Proceedings of the Conference on Design and Semantics of Form and Movement - Sense and Sensitivity, DeSForM

As intelligent systems enter everyday lives, people often encounter very basic problems in communication [8]. Users move through interactive fields often without knowing which objects or spaces to interact with because too many systems are "faceless" and not revealing themselves to be "smart" until the user produces a correct interaction cue through the medium (s) that the system anticipates [9]. Such a lack of a prompt, or feedforward, represents a total decoupling of actions and functions. Deckers et al. [10] proposed the concept of perceptual crossing to show the system's "face" and let users know their approach is acknowledged: a reciprocal interplay of perceiving while being perceived. With perceptual crossing, users can not only recognize the possibility to initiate interactions with machines but also engage in a

The notion of "calm computing" proposed by Weiser [11] is a pattern for intelligent systems in which designers use implicit communication for informing without annoying. Relatedly, a tendency is that as systems develop their perceptional capabilities and intelligence, they require less of an explicit command and control relationship with humans [12]. Implicit interactions can take us far in managing attention, controlling expectations, and minimizing cognitive load. These are

In implicit human-to-human interactions, body language is a medium through which information is transmitted easily, intuitively, and both continuously and subconsciously. The physical body given to the prototype (as described in the following section) aims to use body language to similarly evoke and even convey emotions (statuses) on this behavioral level. The use of body language also left us with a satisfying amount of ambiguity, allowing for interpretation which along with perception is a crucial pillar for implicit interaction [12]. Ambiguity, in this case, was also a design resource to encourage close engagement with the artifact, an

helpful factors in applying our research to the successful control of an environment [13].

more continuous way with something akin to an artificial living creature.

pleasurably.

2017

390

2. Theoretical background

approach detailed by Gaver et al. [14].

The name of our prototype, Anthox, is an abbreviation for "Anthropomorphism Box." None of the preceding research directly focused on the design theories of anthropomorphic products. However, it is apparent that the topics of perceptual crossing, implicit interaction, and body language use human interactions and qualities as a starting point for study and analysis. As such, anthropomorphist qualities were an intuitive goal to aim for in the overall characterization of our design.

With the objective of testing reactions to the prototype's interaction styles as well as their intelligibility level, an experiment (Section 4) was designed in conjunction with Anthox. As to what would be communicated, the plot chosen was a machine-learning scenario in which Anthox represented system change over time. In such a scenario, the system would need an amount of training data to learn to serve its users. At first inexperienced, Anthox would need to elicit interactions from the user; it might be "needy" or even "insecure" at its lack of knowledge. Later on, a more "self-assured" Anthox might try to communicate its confidence in what it has learned and even offer resistance to a user's input; the message might then be interpreted as a gentle assertion of the intelligent system's competence or superiority. With this evolution in mind, a vocabulary of movements for Anthox was designed. Overall, the expectation was that its implicit and tangible methods of interaction would not only enrich the expressiveness of intelligent systems but also be more intelligible and accepted by users.

#### 3.1. The intelligent system

The system in this case is a speculative, intelligent lighting system deployed within an office environment. The exact capabilities of this imagined lighting system were left open ended. It would have some autonomy and be more than a reactive setup, where, for example, lights turn on when you enter the room. Instead, it would incorporate information gathered from sensors in its physical context and other data such as the weather forecast or the office's calendar and agenda. It might compute employees' levels of fatigue by tracking sleep patterns, caffeine intakes, eye movements, or any other related parameters. Emotions could also be tracked, as today it is possible to read these wirelessly and with astonishing accuracy [15]. With all of these data, the automatic control of light (color temperature and brightness) could be optimized to be energizing and to enhance comfort and efficiency [16]. Said benefits are measurable, and it is well-documented that light affects humans on psychological, physiological, and emotional levels [3]. Although this system remains mostly speculative for now, it will soon be possible for our lighting environments to be automatically improved in a way that would be infeasible with conventional, manual controls.

#### 3.2. The design

Anthox serves as the physical face and locus of interaction for an otherwise largely intangible lighting system. As presented in Figure 1, Anthox is a white cube with a circular opening on the top surface. This is where interaction happens. Under a layer of mesh fabric, there is a

circular control surface consisting of a graphic mapping of light color temperature and brightness (Figure 2). This control plate is translucent and backlit. The light enables the graphic to be read through the stretchy fabric mesh above it. Single-touch inputs are received on the control plate (through the fabric) as in Figure 1. Users are given functional feedback through connected Philips Hue lights which change according to their inputs.

Figure 1. Anthox, a controller for an intelligent lighting system.

Figure 2. Graphic mapping of light color temperature (left to right, kelvins) and brightness (up and down, lumens).

The circular control plate is the place for both the input and the output on the Anthox. The control plate is capable of moving up and down relative to the top surface of the cube; it can rise above the rest of the box, be flush with the top surface, and also sink down (Figure 3). The fabric is attached to the box around the circumference of its (stationary) top circular opening and also in the middle of the rising and falling control plate. Therefore, when the control plate sinks below the top of the box, the fabric is pulled down in the middle, creating a cone shape pointing down (Figure 4). This middle point on the control plate to which the fabric is attached is also capable of rotating. The rotation produces a twisted, wrinkled spiral in the fabric. This resulting spiral can be created while the circular control plate is at any height, be it protruding over the box or sunk down inside of it, as diagrammed in Figure 3.

circular control surface consisting of a graphic mapping of light color temperature and brightness (Figure 2). This control plate is translucent and backlit. The light enables the graphic to be read through the stretchy fabric mesh above it. Single-touch inputs are received on the control plate (through the fabric) as in Figure 1. Users are given functional feedback through

Proceedings of the Conference on Design and Semantics of Form and Movement - Sense and Sensitivity, DeSForM

Figure 2. Graphic mapping of light color temperature (left to right, kelvins) and brightness (up and down, lumens).

connected Philips Hue lights which change according to their inputs.

2017

392

Figure 1. Anthox, a controller for an intelligent lighting system.

These two parameters of body movement constitute Anthox's potential for expressivity and natural interaction [12]. The level change and spiral motions work to change the controller's affordances. When the control plate rises or is flush, the colored graphic (Figure 2) is legible and highly accessible to touch. When the control plate falls, the graphic becomes less visible

Figure 3. The control plate rising above, flush, and dropping below the top surface of the box.

Figure 4. The Anthox with control plate sunk down inside, fabric twisted into a spiral. Compare legibility of control surface with that of Figure 1.

because the fabric becomes separated from the plate, and the fabric itself becomes a soft barrier between the user's hand and the control surface (Figure 4). The spiral which can be formed by the fabric similarly serves to partially conceal the control plate and to make the surface uneven and less receptive to touching. Through shape-change, Anthox alters its affordances to present dynamic relationships to the users in an implicit way.

### 4. User study

A lab format user study was conducted in order to understand whether Anthox could facilitate users' perceptions and interactions with an invisible intelligent system. The study sought to learn if these interaction styles could successfully establish a feeling of communication and if so, to what degree it was intelligible. This mainly involved testing for perceived evolution or change over time in the system. Finally, the study sought to learn about the relationship established with the artifact on an emotional level.

As mentioned, the design of Anthox was done in conjunction with the design of the experiment. For said testing, two behaviors were developed: Scenario A and Scenario B. The latter behavior, Scenario B, was designed to match the designers' narrative of machine learning. Detailed below, it gradually removes affordances and thereby becomes less accessible to the user, demonstrating its "confidence" and independence from user input. In testing for intelligibility, half of the participants were shown this sequence without any prior prompts about machine learning. If they detected a change over time and correctly attributed it to an evolution in system status, then the system might be judged as intelligible and successful in one of its goals.

By contrast, Scenario A was designed as a completely inverse behavior. The purpose of testing a completely opposite sequence (where affordances were gradually added, not removed) was to avoid confirmation bias. By also not adhering exclusively to our own interpretations of Anthox's implicit interactions, more room was left for other users' interpretations. Additionally, Scenario A was a point of comparison to Scenario B when it came to analyzing results.

#### 4.1. Procedure

The test began with a short introduction to the topics of artificial intelligence (AI), automated lighting systems, and highly-capable LEDs. Machine-learning, or evolution in that AI, was designedly not mentioned. The prototype was then introduced as a controller for a 'smart lighting system in an office', but the exact capabilities of said system (i.e. amount and types of sensors, data) were left undefined. Participants were first able to interact with Anthox freely, with no particular tasks given. After becoming briefly acquainted with the control of light on the immobile prototype, participants were put through five hypothetical scenarios of use over time, during which the prototype then became animated.

The Anthox was controlled in a "Wizard of Oz" method by the evaluator via a hidden set of controls. This method was favored over preprogrammed sequences in order to maintain flexibility in the responses. The goal was to increase the likelihood of users feeling that they experienced a perceptual crossing or engaged in a dialog with the Anthox. As far as the connected lights that the system would be controlling, we used a Philips Hue color bulb (placed in a table lamp next to the user) and a Hue Lightstrip (above the user, near the ceiling). Both capable of displaying 16 million colors, they are an example of the highly capable technologies that AI may help us use to fuller potential in the future.

Figure 5 details the procedure used. The graphic in said figure represents five sectional views of the Anthox over time. Here one can see that Scenario A is an inverse of Scenario B in terms of movement of the control plate. That is, Scenario A sees the control plate rise over the course of the five hypothetical scenarios that the users were put through, while Scenario B sees it falling over the same scenarios. The left column (labeled Scen.) shows that progression with reference to the labeled graphic above.

The middle column in Figure 5 (labeled Narrative) is what the participant heard during each of the scenarios. Here are the actual scenarios verbalized by the evaluator during the test as a directive of what users should imagine and respond to. They mention the passage of time but make no mention of change over time by the AI itself. Again, this and any other judgments are up to the user to interpret from the Anthox's movements.

The column on the right in Figure 5 (labeled controls) is what the evaluator used as rules for the behavior of the movements of the Anthox. These are the movements the evaluator executed


Figure 5. Procedure table.

because the fabric becomes separated from the plate, and the fabric itself becomes a soft barrier between the user's hand and the control surface (Figure 4). The spiral which can be formed by the fabric similarly serves to partially conceal the control plate and to make the surface uneven and less receptive to touching. Through shape-change, Anthox alters its affordances to present

Proceedings of the Conference on Design and Semantics of Form and Movement - Sense and Sensitivity, DeSForM

A lab format user study was conducted in order to understand whether Anthox could facilitate users' perceptions and interactions with an invisible intelligent system. The study sought to learn if these interaction styles could successfully establish a feeling of communication and if so, to what degree it was intelligible. This mainly involved testing for perceived evolution or change over time in the system. Finally, the study sought to learn about the relationship

As mentioned, the design of Anthox was done in conjunction with the design of the experiment. For said testing, two behaviors were developed: Scenario A and Scenario B. The latter behavior, Scenario B, was designed to match the designers' narrative of machine learning. Detailed below, it gradually removes affordances and thereby becomes less accessible to the user, demonstrating its "confidence" and independence from user input. In testing for intelligibility, half of the participants were shown this sequence without any prior prompts about machine learning. If they detected a change over time and correctly attributed it to an evolution in system status, then the system might be judged as intelligible and successful in one of its

By contrast, Scenario A was designed as a completely inverse behavior. The purpose of testing a completely opposite sequence (where affordances were gradually added, not removed) was to avoid confirmation bias. By also not adhering exclusively to our own interpretations of Anthox's implicit interactions, more room was left for other users' interpretations. Additionally,

The test began with a short introduction to the topics of artificial intelligence (AI), automated lighting systems, and highly-capable LEDs. Machine-learning, or evolution in that AI, was designedly not mentioned. The prototype was then introduced as a controller for a 'smart lighting system in an office', but the exact capabilities of said system (i.e. amount and types of sensors, data) were left undefined. Participants were first able to interact with Anthox freely, with no particular tasks given. After becoming briefly acquainted with the control of light on the immobile prototype, participants were put through five hypothetical scenarios of use over

The Anthox was controlled in a "Wizard of Oz" method by the evaluator via a hidden set of controls. This method was favored over preprogrammed sequences in order to maintain flexibility in the responses. The goal was to increase the likelihood of users feeling that they

Scenario A was a point of comparison to Scenario B when it came to analyzing results.

dynamic relationships to the users in an implicit way.

established with the artifact on an emotional level.

time, during which the prototype then became animated.

4. User study

2017

394

goals.

4.1. Procedure

through the prototype. These rules are described in terms of the two parameters possible: up and down of the control plate and spinning of the fabric. Note that UP/DN is relative to the position of the control plate at the given scenario; the starting point for any UP/DN motions follows the progression of low to high (Scenario A) or high to low (Scenario B). Meanwhile, the SPIN category describes movement of the fabric above the control plate in degrees: 0 being the default and 180 being the fully twisted position. The order of movements is crucial. Apart from the gradual removal of affordances, latter scenarios require multiple inputs before the system "confirms" a command. This is meant to reinforce the notion of the system becoming independent.

Below the 'UP/DN' and 'SPIN' rules are the lighting controls executed in each scenario. The Philips Hue app was also used to covertly control the connected lights in the room. To aid in response times and consistency, preset "scenes" that Philips includes with the Hue app were used by the evaluator to respond to the users' touch inputs on the prototype. The values for brightness specified in the table can also be found and manipulated through the app for these same "scenes".

#### 4.2. Participants and evaluation methods

A total of 16 Master's students (mean aged 24 years, 8 males and 8 females) from the authors' department participated in this study. They all are familiar with topics of AI, ubiquitous computing, connected lighting systems, etc. They, therefore, were capable of understanding and responding to queries on a high level. They were tested in a between-group design, participants being randomly assigned to Scenario A or Scenario B, with an equal split in gender.

During the evaluation, participants were asked to think out loud, and their interactions with Anthox were video recorded. They also filled in an affect grid [17] to help better communicate the resulting feelings or impressions. After the interactions, we used audio-recorded openended interviews and discussed topics including: general opinions of Anthox, interpretations of movements, nature of the relationship, perceived intelligence, and change over time. This was also an opportunity for the designers to discuss their opinions over the usage of implicit interactions over explicit ones. Further discussion on these and other topics are presented in the following sections.

### 5. Results

The result of the affect grid survey is shown in Figure 6. An overwhelming 81.25% of participants engaged the interaction with high levels of physiological arousal. More than half felt it was pleasant to use the prototype. Meanwhile, the movement of Scenario B (from high to low) was thought to be pleasant by twice as many participants than that of Scenario A.

A popular topic for remarks was that of the dynamic affordances, especially when the control plate sank to its lowest position. This setting elicited the most engagement, as users had to more closely inspect and probe the prototype to execute their commands. Although cited by half of the participants as the point where they doubted if they had control over the system,

Using Shape-Change to Express Dynamic Affordances of Intelligent Systems http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.71116 397

through the prototype. These rules are described in terms of the two parameters possible: up and down of the control plate and spinning of the fabric. Note that UP/DN is relative to the position of the control plate at the given scenario; the starting point for any UP/DN motions follows the progression of low to high (Scenario A) or high to low (Scenario B). Meanwhile, the SPIN category describes movement of the fabric above the control plate in degrees: 0 being the default and 180 being the fully twisted position. The order of movements is crucial. Apart from the gradual removal of affordances, latter scenarios require multiple inputs before the system "confirms" a

Proceedings of the Conference on Design and Semantics of Form and Movement - Sense and Sensitivity, DeSForM

Below the 'UP/DN' and 'SPIN' rules are the lighting controls executed in each scenario. The Philips Hue app was also used to covertly control the connected lights in the room. To aid in response times and consistency, preset "scenes" that Philips includes with the Hue app were used by the evaluator to respond to the users' touch inputs on the prototype. The values for brightness specified in the table can also be found and manipulated through the app for these

A total of 16 Master's students (mean aged 24 years, 8 males and 8 females) from the authors' department participated in this study. They all are familiar with topics of AI, ubiquitous computing, connected lighting systems, etc. They, therefore, were capable of understanding and responding to queries on a high level. They were tested in a between-group design, participants being randomly assigned to Scenario A or Scenario B, with an equal split in gender. During the evaluation, participants were asked to think out loud, and their interactions with Anthox were video recorded. They also filled in an affect grid [17] to help better communicate the resulting feelings or impressions. After the interactions, we used audio-recorded openended interviews and discussed topics including: general opinions of Anthox, interpretations of movements, nature of the relationship, perceived intelligence, and change over time. This was also an opportunity for the designers to discuss their opinions over the usage of implicit interactions over explicit ones. Further discussion on these and other topics are presented in

The result of the affect grid survey is shown in Figure 6. An overwhelming 81.25% of participants engaged the interaction with high levels of physiological arousal. More than half felt it was pleasant to use the prototype. Meanwhile, the movement of Scenario B (from high to low)

A popular topic for remarks was that of the dynamic affordances, especially when the control plate sank to its lowest position. This setting elicited the most engagement, as users had to more closely inspect and probe the prototype to execute their commands. Although cited by half of the participants as the point where they doubted if they had control over the system,

was thought to be pleasant by twice as many participants than that of Scenario A.

command. This is meant to reinforce the notion of the system becoming independent.

same "scenes".

2017

396

the following sections.

5. Results

4.2. Participants and evaluation methods

Figure 6. Affect grid responses: blue are inputs from Sequence A (low to high) cyan are inputs from Sequence B (high to low).

only one participant reported losing total control here. All others were confident in their ability to override the system, and this decreased affordance was seen more like an increased threshold and not an absolute barrier.

In over half of the open-ended interviews, participants mentioned anthropomorphic and zoomorphic adjectives as part of their descriptions of Anthox and its behaviors. Of eight participants who used anthropomorphic adjectives to describe Anthox, three also reported feeling that they were not in absolute control, indicating some sort of power struggle. However, in all cases of users regarding Anthox as anthromorphic or zoomorphic, responses were positive in regard to their relationship with the system.

There were only four participants who correctly interpreted the overall change in level of the control plate as a visualization of a machine-learning process. Scenario B, in which the plate sinks down over time, was understood by more participants (3) than Scenario A (only 1). The sole Scenario A participant who correctly interpreted machine learning even went so far as to propose a redesign of the sequence which they experienced (low to high) to match the reverse: the order of Scenario B.

This is yet another point in favor of Scenario B, which overall yielded slightly more favorable reviews in the open-ended interviews. Five of eight Scenario A participants had negative comments about Anthox, while only one Scenario B participant expressed any serious criticism.

This is also apparent in Figure 6, where cyan inputs representing Scenario B lean slightly more toward the pleasant (right) side of the matrix than their counterparts from Scenario A.

Interesting takeaways came from participants' descriptions of the human-computer relationship they felt was established. At the very least, participants felt they interacted with some sort of subordinate, often anthropomorphized (like a child or an animal). Only one participant felt that they reached a sense of negotiation with the Anthox. Four others reported feeling close to a negotiation, but it became clear that Anthox needs a way of offering explicit suggestions to make negotiation possible.

Overall, all but three participants felt that they reached some understanding of the "language" or signals being exchanged in the interactions, and most of them stated that an even better understanding could be developed with time. We can therefore suggest that implicit interactions were successful in establishing at least a basic dialog, and that certainly there is potential in making improvements toward this goal.

### 6. Limitations and future work

There are three limitations in the study presented in this manuscript. Firstly, Anthox helped us to investigate participants' opinions in interacting with a shape-changing system through the "Wizard of Oz" approach. However, further work is needed to investigate how a human user will interact with a system that is able to express its own intelligence. Secondly, in a machinelearning scenario, it would take a training period for the intelligent system to learn the human users' behaviors and preferences, and vice versa. Subtler aspects of the user experience might not have been revealed in the short period of time users participated in our experiment. Finally, although more than half of our participants found the simple movements to be pleasant and easy to understand, shape-changing forms could be further explored to express alternative semantics.

Based on the results of this study, we are currently working to give the prototype simple machine learning functions. We plan to deploy the system in an office environment to investigate how people perceive its intelligence and react to its dynamic affordances. The goal of our research is to understand how to design the interactions with human-like characteristics in order to improve the understanding between user and system. With longitudinal testing, we would be able to contribute much more valuable knowledge in designing for intelligent systems.

### 7. Conclusions

To address problems of technologies' intelligibility and the associated frustrations, this study applied implicit interactions through shape-change to attempt to bridge interactions between humans and AIs. With the two simple movements it is capable of, Anthox was able to implicitly communicate a variety of messages. In comparison to more explicit forms of signaling, our data also suggest that users might be more willing to encounter dissent from an interface with a more, "playful" interaction style or appreciable "personality." For now, only two participants imagined that over time the Anthox's interaction style could become tedious or annoying. While not definitive, this encourages further exploration of this paradigm.

The prototype is named for its dependence on natural interaction styles anthropomorphic or zoomorphic in nature. A risk in the investment toward this approach was the potential of creating a sense of conflict between system and user; certainly to perceive something as anthropomorphic does not equate to feeling favorably toward that object. This is especially relevant in control relationships, where a power struggle with an entity perceived as somehow sentient could become very unpleasant. However, as touched on in the previous section, all participants characterizing Anthox as anthropomorphic felt positively toward it, and only one participant ever felt they lost control completely. Favoring simple or playful interaction styles seemed in this case key to maintaining these positive relationships.

When anthro/zoomorphic adjectives began to be used by participants, there seemed to be an associated recognition of perceptual crossings; this is a point where the artifact started being imagined as sentient and more aware. When this happened, users also attributed more complex mental models to the Anthox. For example, one participant from Scenario A noted, "it is like a baby, you always have to guess at what it wants." Choosing instead to see Anthox as a being of another species, one user from Scenario B stated, "you never have to think about what you are going to say to your dog […] but somehow the interactions with them (dogs) are always pretty successful."

Participant preferences for Scenario B supported our own hypothesis in designing the removal of affordances. Through comparisons of qualitative data between the two, we found that indeed Scenario B was more understandable and more pleasant. With our own intuitions confirmed in this regard, future work should look toward testing and understanding more complex behaviors and distinct messages.

The most promising contributors to our experiments were the concepts of natural and implicit interaction styles. The increase in complexity of our changing technological context (has and) will be unmanageable for the human attention span and cognition. Information overload will have to be managed by artificial intelligence and diluted down to less formal and explicit communication channels, where perhaps implicit interaction will be the primary way for us to navigate through it all.

### Acknowledgements

This is also apparent in Figure 6, where cyan inputs representing Scenario B lean slightly more

Proceedings of the Conference on Design and Semantics of Form and Movement - Sense and Sensitivity, DeSForM

Interesting takeaways came from participants' descriptions of the human-computer relationship they felt was established. At the very least, participants felt they interacted with some sort of subordinate, often anthropomorphized (like a child or an animal). Only one participant felt that they reached a sense of negotiation with the Anthox. Four others reported feeling close to a negotiation, but it became clear that Anthox needs a way of offering explicit suggestions to

Overall, all but three participants felt that they reached some understanding of the "language" or signals being exchanged in the interactions, and most of them stated that an even better understanding could be developed with time. We can therefore suggest that implicit interactions were successful in establishing at least a basic dialog, and that certainly there is potential

There are three limitations in the study presented in this manuscript. Firstly, Anthox helped us to investigate participants' opinions in interacting with a shape-changing system through the "Wizard of Oz" approach. However, further work is needed to investigate how a human user will interact with a system that is able to express its own intelligence. Secondly, in a machinelearning scenario, it would take a training period for the intelligent system to learn the human users' behaviors and preferences, and vice versa. Subtler aspects of the user experience might not have been revealed in the short period of time users participated in our experiment. Finally, although more than half of our participants found the simple movements to be pleasant and easy to understand, shape-changing forms could be further explored to express alternative

Based on the results of this study, we are currently working to give the prototype simple machine learning functions. We plan to deploy the system in an office environment to investigate how people perceive its intelligence and react to its dynamic affordances. The goal of our research is to understand how to design the interactions with human-like characteristics in order to improve the understanding between user and system. With longitudinal testing, we would be able to contribute much more valuable knowledge in designing for intelligent

To address problems of technologies' intelligibility and the associated frustrations, this study applied implicit interactions through shape-change to attempt to bridge interactions between humans and AIs. With the two simple movements it is capable of, Anthox was able to implicitly communicate a variety of messages. In comparison to more explicit forms of signaling, our

toward the pleasant (right) side of the matrix than their counterparts from Scenario A.

make negotiation possible.

2017

398

semantics.

systems.

7. Conclusions

in making improvements toward this goal.

6. Limitations and future work

The authors developed this project within the Interactive Lighting Squad of the Industrial Design Department at the Eindhoven University of Technology, and therefore inspired and aided by the students and staff within the squad, as well as their work. Inspiring also was previous work at the same university and department in the realm of shape-changing interfaces, notably the GHOST (Generic and Highly Organic Shape-changing inTerface) module led by Miguel Bruns Alonso and Matthijs Kwak.

### Author details

José E. Gallegos Nieto\* and Yaliang Chuang

\*Address all correspondence to: j.gallegos.nieto@student.tue.nl

Department of Industrial Design, Eindhoven University of Technology, Eindhoven, The Netherlands

### References


[13] Ju W, Leifer L. The design of implicit interactions: Making interactive systems less obnoxious. Design Issues. 2008;24(3):72-84

Author details

2017

400

The Netherlands

References

2009

nl/839746

'13. 2013

2000;4(2–3):191-199

José E. Gallegos Nieto\* and Yaliang Chuang

\*Address all correspondence to: j.gallegos.nieto@student.tue.nl

Department of Industrial Design, Eindhoven University of Technology, Eindhoven,

Proceedings of the Conference on Design and Semantics of Form and Movement - Sense and Sensitivity, DeSForM

[1] Internet of Things Defined—Tech Definitions by Gartner [Internet]. Gartner IT Glossary.

[2] Norman DA. The Design of Future Things. New York: Basic Books/Perseus Book Group;

[3] Offermans S. Interacting with light [Dissertation]. Eindhoven; 2016 http://repository.tue.

[4] Meerbeek B, te Kulve M, Aarts M. User experience of automated blinds in offices. Pro-

[5] Offermans S, van Essen H, Eggen B. Exploring a hybrid control approach for enhanced user experience of interactive lighting. Proceedings of the 27th International BCS Human

[6] Mennicken S, Vermeulen J, Huang EM. From today's augmented houses to tomorrow's smart homes. Proceedings of the 2014 ACM International Joint Conference on Pervasive

[7] Lim BY, Dey AK, Avrahami D. Why and why not explanations improve the intelligibility of context-aware intelligent systems. Proceedings of the 27th international conference on

[8] Yang R, Newman MW. Learning from a learning thermostat. Proceedings of the 2013 ACM international joint conference on Pervasive and ubiquitous computing—UbiComp

[9] Stolterman E. Interactivity clutter. Lecture presented at; Eindhoven University of Tech-

[10] Deckers E, Wensveen S, Levy P, Ahn R. Designing for perceptual crossing. Proceedings of the SIGCHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems—CHI '13. 2013

[12] Schmidt A. Implicit human computer interaction through context. Personal Technologies.

[11] Weiser M. The computer for the 21st century. Scientific American. 1991;265(3):94-104

2017. Available from: http://www.gartner.com/it-glossary/internet-of-things/

ceedings of the Conference on the Effects of Light on Wellbeing. 2012

and Ubiquitous Computing—UbiComp '14 Adjunct. 2014. pp. 105–115.

Human factors in computing systems—CHI 09. 2009. pp. 2119–2128

Computer Interaction Conference. 2013 Sep. pp. 9–13

nology; 2016 Oct. Everyday Matters Symposium


**Provisional chapter**
