Mutual Exclusivity: Understanding Complex Physical-Digital User Interaction Through Design Research

ROLE

  • DESIGN RESEARCH
  • DEsIGN
  • DEVELOPMENT

YEAR

  • 2014

TECHNOLOGIES

  • ARDUINO
  • RASPBERRY PI
  • JAVA/JDK
  • PRINT DESIGN
  • PRINTMAKING

As part of a year long research project at OCAD University exploring the relationships between physical and digital interaction, a 200 page book was produced detailing the design research involved in the project. At its core, this project aimed to explore and unpack the ways in which designed physical interaction can be translated into digital UX patterns and gain a better understanding of how unconventional user input can affect the human-machine relationship.

Combining traditional research with design research, this project produced a series of work that explored and intervened in human-machine interaction, spanning experimental user input (movement, temperature, biometrics, etc.) and traditional design patterns.

80k+
Lines of
code written
155
Hours in printmaking studios
450+
Meters drawn by machines
The final 150 page book outlining a year of design research focusing on how user experience as a product of design.
Mini book showcasing an interactive installation of a wall mounted plotter controlled by an array of physical sensors.
The primary product of this project, a designed book, showcases the design research, as well as outlines the resulting conclusions from the user research in the context of User Experience Design. This design artifact is part of a working repository of exploratory work aiming to question the ways in which we interact with technologies (both digital and physical).