ORI*sense
Adaptive User Interface Prototyping Towards a Vision of Programmable MatterMasters Thesis by Christoph Kirmaier
Research by Making
In the past decade, touch surfaces revolutionized our interactions with digital systems and accelerated the conception of flexible user interfaces depending on their use cases. By now, we can already think of a future in which static and inflexible materials can also be programmed in three-dimensional space.
ORI*Sense is a design for a mobile shape display that not only carries information with its transformation, but also introduces new interactions with digital devices through flexible features - by exposing haptic interface elements such as buttons, potentiometers and sliders on top of both flat and curved surfaces, depending on the stage of the application.
The prototype was designed in the course of the diploma thesis of Christoph Kirmaier within the ORI* project at the Ars Electronica Futurelab under Dr. Matthew Gardiner’s direction. It consists of a 3D-printed resch pattern enhanced with sensoric components, to illustrate the idea of a shape pixel that can be lifted out of the surface and sense deformation, touch and proximity of a user.
By implementing soft robotic actuators mounted below the 3D-printed surface, the shape pixel can also be deformed programmatically. The surface could theoretically be of any material - for this concept the surface is designed as an user interface element that appears in any color, through even patterning of red, green and blue lighting elements.
ORI*sense meets four core qualities that were identified during the design process - multi-materiality, 4-dimensionality, modularity and mobility. It is conceptualized as a system of stackable elements, that can be produced out of any material, move in any direction and be used in any mobile scenario. Finally, the project outlines the simplest form of user interaction with computer systems: a button which grows out of a display when needed.
Credits
Pneumatics - Ilina Kokaleska, eXperimonde
Pictures & Video - Christoph Kirmaier, Matthew Gardiner
ORI*Sense is a design for a mobile shape display that not only carries information with its transformation, but also introduces new interactions with digital devices through flexible features - by exposing haptic interface elements such as buttons, potis and sliders on top of both flat and curved surfaces, depending on the stage of the application.
