During the empirical studies of ORFI at Haug School this spring, many wishes and requirements were proposed and formulated. The music and health professionals wanted the sound source to be close to the interaction place, similar to how acoustic instruments work. For interactive objects, it means to place the input sensors close to the speakers. This is a complex design challenge regarding wireless objects, object size and weight, sensor qualities, sound quality and wireless sound transmission. These are some of the reasons for building future prototypes on Smartphone technologies, since they can offer a very compact package of wireless technology, sensors, battery and sound transmission. Similarly, regarding lighting, we wanted a closeness between input sensors and light. Further we also wanted a sensor that was easier to interact with than the bending sensors we have in ORFI. This is a design challenge, regarding the transparent (illuminating) material, tactility and desirable qualities of the sensors: How to design sensors that motivate the user to interact easy in many ways over long time?

Bellow you can see some pictures of the designs created to try to reach these goals. We have developed 3 kinds of soft textile, illuminating touch sensors based on different sensor technologies, that offer a variety of sensory and sensual qualities. We have created shapes that can be used alone and together with two or more people to create a physical, sensory and socially shared experience. This experiences will be presented at the Ambience11 conference in november. Further we have explored new forms of cross-media collaborative interaction, combinig musical interaction, and visual interaction with camera and projection.

Design of new shapes and textures:

Exploring new shapes for musical interaction:

New designs for sensory and musical experiences:

Exploring new forms of cross-media interaction: