Physical Computing

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Embodied Interaction

This page tells you about the beginning of our project. We were introduced into the topic “Embodied Interaction / Location-Aware Technology” with small practices and assignments. We had both conceptual as well as technical assignments and lectures - therefore this page covers both of them.

Here are some descriptions of the topic of the workshop:

„Embodiment means possessing and acting through a physical manifestation in the world. [...] Embodied phenomena are those that by their very nature occur in real time and real space.“
Dourish, P. (2004a), Where The Action Is: The Foundations of Embodied Interaction, MIT Press, S.100-101

Where The Action Is: The Foundations of Embodied Interaction
Paul Dourish, MIT Press, October 2001

Embodied Interaction: Exploring the Foundations of a New Approach to HCI
Paul Dourish, Xerox Palo Alto Research Center, 1999

GPS

Our first assignment was to create a shape with our gps devices on a map.
This is our result. We could not finish our shape because the battery of our laptop went weak. The shape we actually wanted to draw looked like the one of the right side.

In addition to the python script we recieved from max that was able to save the current location to an xml, we added some functionality to automatically show our current position in Google Earth.

pos = gpsObj.position()
callGoogle(createScript(pos[0], pos[1]))

def createScript(lat, long):
    return '''tell application "Google Earth"
    SetViewInfo {latitude:%f, longitude:%f, distance:200, tilt:0.0, azimuth:0.0} speed .8
    activate
    end tell''' % (lat, long)

def callGoogle(script):
    os.system("osascript -e '"+script+"'")

Thinking-Feeling Location

Our task was to make three recipes for: moving thorough the urban space, for engaging in social interaction and for physical interaction with your surroundings.

For example, define rules such as “turn left every time you see a dog”, “ask a question to a stranger every time you hear a loud sound”, “drum for one minute on something in your context every time you see a person with white shoes”..

Go into the urban space and apply your rules. Half of the group performs the rules, while the other half documents the action in video.

As you move through the city, change your rules according to location. Why did you change these rules?

.

Our recipes for group “Chris, Tobi, Philippe”

a) walk
b) if you meet someone, ask him wheather to turn left or tight, then do so
c) the next time you have to ask a group of two people
d) the next time, you have to ask a group of three people, then, four, then five and so on…
e) if they do not answer, you should beat the next waste bin…

.
The result

Serial Communication

To get used to the BeagleBoard, the Arduino Nano and the Communication between those two as well as Python we had to conclude some small tasks.

Linux comands for dummies - thx Phil ;)

Important commandos

ls --> list files and directories
cd --> change direcory (cd /dev --> geht ins /dev verzeichnis rein)
cd .. --> gehe aus dem verzeichnis raus
cd / --> gehe ins root
pwd --> print working directory -> zeige aktuelles laufwerk an
python --> starte python
python filename.py --> führe python script aus
more filname.irgenwas --> zeige dateinhalt an.
vi -->  ultra hacker editor

/dev = zugriff auf daten / alle geräte
/media/sda1/src# python serialExample.py = starts python programm§

Research

Here you can find a collection of researched projects we found on the internet.

Game: Urban Tennis/Botcha

Very soon after, we had to come up with ideas for our project. The first was to create a tennis-like game that is played without a visual display. It is independent of location (you can play it anywhere). Because the player does not have a display that informs him if a ball is approaching, everything is made via headphones and 3D audio.

Black Box / Guerilla Marketing Tool

The other idea we had was to create some kind of a marketing toy. An unidentified black-box that interact with its environment. The media then creates a narrative / dramatic structure around that black-box and gathers public attention.

Three directions

After our first ideas were ripped apart by our lecturers, we came up with three other ideas or areas we were interested:

1. Threat detection or signalization
2. Posture, Body language and improvements
3. Game

Nice to know: Porta Bio Screen

Occasionally the third idea lasted. The idea of creating a location based game, or much more: a location based toy. We then went into deeper research on that topic by visiting toy stores and read books about toys and games.

Toys - state of the art

To get a feeling for toys we went to the Franz Karl Weber Kids Town.

This completes the introduction and we were ready to create and work on our concept: Urban Defender.

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