Category Archives: FYP Product Design 2016-17

Dome Iterations


Inspired by the orchid for its out-of-the-world, irregular form.

Top right (previous design) Bottom 3 (3 iterations)

 

 

Things to include while detailing (& Observations from sail ships):

  • tensional strings to hold down the structures and the connection
  • Rain cover (using tensile screens)
  • Fabric joints (because large pieces of fabric are joint by many smaller pieces)
  • bulge within pieces of fabric because of inflation

Updates on the detailing (& Eye level view)

  • Opted for a less exaggerated inflation because the outcome looks better than that for a rounded air chamber/tube-ish thing.  Looks more subtle with shallower indents between each air tube. This means that the way the fabric joins will be at the curved area.
  • Large pieces of fabric sewn vertically, so that theres no fabric joining marks on the exterior surface.

What if the screen is curved upside down?

Inspiration of the entrance area taken from the curvature of the orchid.

Curvature of the entrance is more ergonomic for a projection from a human’s POV from the ground. Neck tilt cannot be too high otherwise it will look like watching from the front seat of the cinema. A human being’s depth of vision is 114 degrees horizontal-wise. Considering that, I have to decide how big the seating area is. From the center of the cinema, a person must be able to see the whole screen. 

Two screen curvatures.

Both intersection marks the area where a person sits. First picture shows back of the theatre while the second shows the middle of the the theatre.


 

Orchid-Inspired designs research

 

More Modifications 

• Tilted the panels for more organic look and feel. Straight lines are too geometric in appearance, vertical lines create a sense of seriousness.

Tried joining the edges of opposite panels together so that the ends can e pulled downwards together, but it will create more sense of rigidness.
1.6 m tall view at entrance

So that the entrance can be more obvious.

 

Interior View

First man standing at center. Second man standing at the circumference.

@Peer

Modified Seating Area in Sketches

Currently modelling this in Rhino. Bent convex metal piece in T-shape/or H shape. Curvature inspired from bounce stilts from Kingsmen’s female assassin – sleek, flexible, responsive.

Moving in two different direction  is a visual input for motion sickness. Thus I narrow down the direction of tilt to only one – left and right. Amount of movement – gentle tilt that the seater can feel and detectable by the machine through weight on different parts of the seat.

I like this grouped seats in the image above. I like the minimalistic frame for grouping the seats together. I feel like this can tilt the chairs all together, creating an element of competition between seaters of different chair units.

Below is the exploration of levitating the chairs, and stacking them using temporary bleacher platforms (boring—).

The last sketch is a projector/sound system inspired from Star Wars machines.

Inflatable Cinema and Seats (Presentation 5 Slides and Images)

Presentation 5 Kiniodeon V3_red

Version 3

Version 4

References: Lotus temple, Sydney Opera House

Comments from Peer

  1. Bring back stacked tilting chair instead of inflated.
  2. Opt for a more opened up form.
  3. Spot printing tribal patterns on the surface of the inflatable dome.

My references:

Ron Resch‘s geometric tessellated origami folding, folded structures which offer more possibilities than Buckminister Fuller’s Geodesic Domes. They are easy to set up, offer many shape possibilities, and they are visually stimulating with planes and patterns. (BMF’s domes can be constructed in very limited ways – with tensile supports and fabric, and full inflation with air blowers.)

 

 

 

UPDATES

Few things I would like to address with this post:

  1. Big picture: Narration of the immersive experience
  2. Inspiration for the experience design (Analysing existing experiences, how could my experience be something unique? a) Energy levels, b) Space design
  3. Sketches, Form of Equipment and Rationale
  4. Technology & FYP Booth

 


ONE.  Big Picture

Narration from a first person POV:

I approach a space where I can hear excitement coming from, to only see part of the excitement going on as flashes of light and sound emitted from a small entrance to an interestingly-shaped enclosed structure.

Entering the doorway, a score board lies in my line of sight, displaying usernames and “_ _ _ kcal”, and I do not comprehend what that means until later.

At the entrance, floor projections leading into the activity area listed the instructions to interact with the space inside. – Download an application, enter your name and personal information.

The space is covered in patterns, projected from overhead. They look dynamic, in sync with the energy levels in the room. The projections also blanketed the interesting, enticing and tactile structures in the room that looks inviting for me to take a seat, a spot where I can observe what is going on. As I take a seat, the light senses my presence and brightens with my presence, then dulls down to darkness in my spot while I sit for another 10 minutes. It is like the party quietened in the spot that I sit on.

Suddenly, the projection recedes, as if they are leaving through a focal point in the wall. At the same focal point, a regular rectangular screen appears, and a loud voice booms through the speaker “Batman Telltale”, together with the tacky background music. Instruction appears on a corner of the screen – for its audience to tilt left, right, hop and stoop in order to move on to the next screen, go back, change program, or select another program, or make decisions in the storyline – during the lead in. A box appears on the top right hand corner – stating the decision of the majority of the people in the  place.

-> Using movements to direct what you want to see or what’s happening.

 

Intuitive ways of using movements to direct:

Tilt right/step right -> Proceed

Tilt left/step left -> Back

Hop (Upward motion) -> Next program

Dip (Downward motion) -> Previous program

2 commands: IF-THEN-ELSE-THEN-IF (2 options)

 

(The story starts.) When the group of people tilts, the space acknowledges action with light and colours. When the majority tilts right, a wave of light hits from the left to the right of the whole projected space.

DURING LONG HOURS OF INACTIVITY. The sensors senses it, and the space becomes an exploration game. In the dull dark room appears a curious ray of light, inviting people to step in it. When the person does, the light hops and hops and hops to furniture in the room, hops on the furniture, and invites the user to climb on. Once that is done and more activity can be sensed, the room brightens up as if it feels the energy of the people in the space, and programs continue to be played to entertain its guests.

Apart from storylines, include: 

• Mixed media, for reference, Snapchat Stories.

• Reality TV related to sports and gameshows for eg. running men, the best/funniest moments of reality tv (just an idea, it can be like a mixed media channel by Netflix, each program taking minimally 90 seconds )

 

LEAVING THE ROOM -> The phone sensors tabulates the total amount of energy consumed by the person (in kcal) and it is displayed in your personal app.

 

TWO.  Analysing the Spatial aspect of other experience designsphoto_2017-02-11_00-08-29

From left to right, first row -> Theme Parks, Clubs, and SEA Games

From left to right, second row -> Horse Racing, Interactive gyms

The desired effects lie very close to the experience of a club – > Different levels of energy from high to low. A transition point being the counter/bar to energise/lose some steam. The full picture completed by disco lights and the music. The life of the party (DJ booth), and the dance stage being the center of attention, where the party gravitates to, like a focal point.

 

THREE. Sketches, Form of Equipment and Rationale.

Form of equipments: Taking inspiration from mobius strips (See previous post for older sketches) to create different equipments for creative play.

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Can the strips be landforms instead, which can be leaned on, ran on, sat on etc?

 

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Landform inspired terrains. I decided to incorporate a raised platform (top right) that more involved players can take as a stage. Smaller shapes (middle) can be shapes to lean on. (middle).

 

Odd shaped raised platform. Material used to make these can be tactile, such as metal grills, textured metal sheets, because it reflects light well, and because its a sturdy structure and encourages play but not sitting.
Odd shaped raised platform. Material used to make these can be tactile, such as metal grills, textured metal sheets, because it reflects light well, and because its a sturdy structure and encourages play.

 

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(Bottom left) Yoga ball pit – maybe. (Center) A flght of stairs a sitting and viewing area with slides on the side that you can climb or slide down from. (Top left) – The arrangement of the equipment in the room – Having a stage in the center speaks excitement, mobius strip at the side for sitting/climbing, and screen can be projected at the outer ring. This brings me to my next thought -> Can the screen be projected in the center of the space?

 

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Putting things together according to the story.

 

^ On mobius strips

Experimental models of mock ups – using paper. From the mock ups I played with, I realised that mobius strip furniture idea can be explored further.

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Paper twisted 360 degrees and joined
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Paper twisted 520 degrees and jointed. VERY TENSE. Not sure if this can be done by metal sheets. Perhaps have to do it with plastic moulds.
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180 degrees twist. Leaast tension. But tension is still huge if the material is thick or if the strip is broad. (Made with cardboard)

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This can be split into 4 similar units.
This can be split into 4 similar units.

 

FOUR.

Booth: I’ve considered 2 options to give the industry reviewers a droplet of the full experience.

Option 1 (Crazy)

  1. Scaled model of the space
  2. Screen showing application, space rendering, a video of the  transitions between programmes and game shows.
  3. Sample interactive project taken from https://threejs.org/ closely related to the idea of Rewarding Movement.
  4. Interactive projection of (3) on 5. a scaled down mobius loop chair.

Option 2 (Less crazy)

  1. Scaled model of the space
  2. Screen showing application, space rendering, a video of the  transitions between programmes and game shows.
  3. Projection directly on the scaled model

Peer, please advise me in this. If option 2 is approved, I can find collaboration with others (IM/engineering) to make the interactive projections and motion sensors, because I should focus on the screen, space and furniture.

About Immersive Experience

Whether you’re throwing a corporate event or building a virtual reality game, creating an experience that truly immerses an audience is no easy feat. I spoke to writers, game designers, immersive theater producers, and others on the forefront of experience design and asked them all the same question: What do you think is the secret to creating an immersive experience or world? Here are their top tips.

Use Details To Make Your World Feel Big And Alive

“Pay attention to the details. The little, transformative things are what bring a setting to life, and if they ring false, they can jar the viewer/player/reader right back into the real world. For example, when I wrote my first Halo novel, I included a passage about how warm and familiar the sun’s radiation felt on the narrator’s skin when he returned to his home planet, compared to all the other worlds on which he’d been fighting aliens. One of the writers at 343 Industries, which now produces the Halo games, called out how he loved that bit because it anchored the character and made the story feel much more real to him.”

— Matt Forbeck, game designer and author of books such as Halo: New Blood, which builds off the game franchise’s expanded fictional universe.

“Create a list of every element within the party and design it to your vision. We make a big list of elements within the party then customize each to suit our theme. How are the waiters dressed? How are the guests dressed? What sort of drinks are you putting in their hands? What is the food and how does it look? To throw a truly fantastic event you have to customize every element to your satisfaction.”

Adam Aleksander, New York-based experiential event designer. 

“When you’re creating an immersive experience you’re inviting someone into another world, you want to be a good host. That means providing a sense of place, and a sense of a world beyond that place. Audiences crave a sense that the portion of the world they get to see and explore is part of something larger, even if they never see it. This is as true for an immersive environment that never leaves a small room, or an epic feature film. If a breeze is coming from somewhere in the virtual space – the human audience knows that there’s a world with wind and gravity out there subconsciously. We all crave these details to understand the world around us, it’s satisfying and exciting to explore these worlds. To make a truly transportive experience, audiences crave the sensory richness we would find in the real world around us–not only visually–but in the care and attention to sound, scale and the imagined world off-stage.”

-Caitlin Burns, COO of Datavized, an immersive design and technology lab specializing in WebVR and data visualization. She currently serves as Vice Chair of the Producers’ Guild of America’s New Media Council and East Coast Co-Chair of the PGA Women’s’ Impact Network.

At this BBQ Films event for "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles", audience members were cast as members of the Foot Clan (Photo: Jacob King for BBQ Films)

At this BBQ Films event for “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles”, audience members were cast as members of the Foot Clan (Photo: Jacob King for BBQ Films)

Be Clear About Your Expectations From The Audience
“We are social animals, so the single best element of a transportive event are the people that are in it with you. We start all of our ideation with a simple call to action. What version of self are we asking our guests to be when they walk into our transportive cinematic world? Are they good, or bad, or both? Are they prom-goers? Are they villainous trainees? Are they just out to save the Empire ? If we get social setting right, then each audience member is part of a bigger whole, and everyone can feel it. And it feels good.”
-Gabriel Rhoads, co-founder of BBQ Films, a New York-based event production company that specializes in immersive cinema.
“The old rule that there’s no such thing as ‘character’ but instead there’s only “action” applies to the role of the audience in an immersive experience. I always give the audience a clear task or work to do. Rather than try to create a complicated backstory for the audience—which usually leads to boring exposition—give them something to do. That action will tell them who they are, and how they should relate to the other characters in the story world.”
-Michael Rau, co-founder of the narrative technology company Wolf 359, and co-creator of “Temping”, an interactive installation performed at the 53rd Lincoln Center Film Festival.
Provide A Sense Of Status
“Provide the audience with a clear sense of status. More so than anything else—immersion, choice, etc.—status helps participants see how you are inviting them into the story world or experience you’re creating for them. That doesn’t mean you  have to cast them in a role per se, but you do need to let them know they have a role to fill, however large or small. Transformation, therefore, starts with properly positioning people towards  play.”
-Byron Laviolette, Creative Director of The Mission, an experience design agency based in Toronto. He also holds a Ph.D. in Interactivity and Play Theory.

Use Limitations To Your Advantage

“If you’re putting on an event, think about the unusual characteristics surrounding your venue, then devise a way to best utilize these atypical circumstances. Some of the most creative expressions are born from having to circumnavigate a limitation with the venue. here are times when I’ve devised an entire map-point system with actors simply because I didn’t know how else to get people to find the venue. Another time, there was an elevator that we didn’t know what to do with, so we hired an actor to steal people from the party for a 1-on-1 storytelling experience.”

Adam Aleksander, New York-based experiential event designer. 

Let The Audience Make Decisions

“Be generous with the amount of agency you give your audience. Once you’ve created a space that is different from daily life, allow your visitors to engage with it in a meaningful way. Adults carry with them the innate desire we all experienced as children: to play and to pretend. This is not a childish desire, but a human desire. Where do audiences want to be transported? In some ways, we want to go to a place that feels new and exciting, but perhaps what we want more is to be present and experience our true self.”

-Andrew Hoepfner, creator of the immersive theatrical production Houseworld.

“The unparalleled sense of presence that VR provides has lead the audience to question their agency within the worlds they explore. Choice is no longer enough. Let go of traditional narrative and experiment with emergent storytelling. This will become increasingly important as the Maker Generation matures with this new medium.”

-Stefan Grambart, Creative Director of Secret Location, whose past projects include the Sleepy Hollow VR Experience for Fox TV.

Create A Space That People Can Project Themselves Into

“For a world to be truly immersive, you have to leave it unfurnished, and without wallpaper. This flies in the face of the unwavering trajectory towards 360-degree construction. But I’m talking about the invisible stuff. The walls no one else see. The armchair in the corner with the childhood cat that nobody notices. The laughter that shakes free a piece of mental chewing gum that has been stuck in your hairy memory for decades. It doesn’t matter if it is a book where words trigger detailed mind films, or if it is a contraption filling your vision with undulating panoramas, or it is an installation with kettles and faxes and hands to touch. If the player’s self isn’t imported into the world, it’s all paper thin. They have to project themselves into it in some way. They need to hear their breath in order for it to be alive.”

– Christy Dena, writer-designer-director atUniverse Creation 101; Cofounder of Forward Slash Story; Chair of Games, SAE Creative Media Institute.

“For a successful immersive experience, put your audience at the center of the work, and think about it from their user perspective. If the audience is made the protagonist, they will see the most meaning and relevance for themselves. They don’t have to role play, but the work will serve as a Rorschach for them and create layers of meaning in the space that you allow for their agency and interpretations.”

-Tom Pearson, co-artistic director at Third Rail Projects, which puts on immersive theatrical and dance productions that include Then She Fell and The Grand Paradise.

System + app

Just some thoughts in sketches.

1
I imagined an arena where obstacles morph into place in the forms of cubes.

 

2
Obstacles morphing on walls as well. Screens move from place to place (eg walls to the floors) depending on the show, inviting movement to be immersed in the space.

 

8
A thought about incorporating elements into the design. Looking at playgrounds on Dezeen I came across a modular one as this, constructed of planes, and yet containing different equipments that allow different types of movement such as basketball hoops, seats, bars for climbing. Thus I came up with my own interpretation of climbing bars and rotating bars as in this picture. Not the best design but got my juices flowing.

 

9
The diagram on the left describes the proportion of the things to be designed for the space. On the right, I tried drawing modular units of bars that can be joined/stacked to become larger units. The issue is, they look like bars of a cage. Perhaps bars do not look so friendly. On the far right, an ice-cream dispenser that releases ice cream through pipes when the viewer earns the treat.
10
Back to looking at usual playground designs and the reasons they are designed this way. From limited research there is no strong objective behind the invention of a slide, rock wall, or swing. There are objective purposes for going to each of these stations – to climb a wall to the highest point, to swing back and forth to the highest height possible, etc. These spaces does not very well promote imaginative play. Unstructured play areas however, provoke imagination to use the place From examples online, I found that this is the difference between old playground equipments and modern designs. Many featured playgrounds on the Internet (I’m not sure about their level of success, or what is considered successful) are artistic statements.

 

12
Designing the app to tabulate the activity levels for the users of the playscape. The app speaks to the user as if its taking the persona of a personal friend/trainer, who encourages the user to move about, presents the user with gifts for their participation, and as a bar service personnel presenting a menu to the user.

13

 

14
Global TV providers streaming local content have an ability to share culture across places. I am exploring the fact that each of these units of playscape can be its own reality TV. (Just a random thought to KIV)

 

15
Reality TV challenge on the screen. Each challenge will last only a very short time frame of 2-3 minutes. The programmes will be laid out on a spinning wheel, along with short films. After every program, the spinning wheel appears and the next program is chosen at random (algorithm) – it could be another reality-tv-ish challenge or a popular short film/side film of a popular production).

 

Currently I am working on the form of the playscape.

Presentation 4 + Design

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Commenting lecturers: Fabrizio and Galina

Comments:

  • Confusion with the concept: Is it a public space or a gym? The theoretical motivation does not match. “Why do I have to choose … if I am a sedentary person?” The design does not have to change the world, people have a choice for what they want to do, and the measures taken to get people moving in the cinema is too cumbersome. Putting things in perspective, “Why would I want to go to the place when I can control the network and I cant sit straight?”
  • It is not so much about the cinema, but about the activity.
  • Possible to combine the cinema and gym for an immersive experience. But it will be much less about the cinema and shows and more on how to help people who CHOOSE to BE ACTIVE achieve their GOAL to be ACTIVE. Create an intermediate between the gym and the cinema and be straightforward for the reason I want to do it. (It was mentioned that I can present this project as a personal take.)
  • I have to stop spending time on the theory. Consumers have an option for the things that they do and even if I designed something that helps them, they might not choose to use it.
  • Instead of whole nets, why not design seats like the adult playground installation Metal Spun Chairs by Heatherwick Studio. (My idea of the project, from my own observations, surveys and research gathered is that social interaction can inspire people to engage in activities. Without either, it is possible to make an activity enjoyable but perhaps limited effect. I want to inspire movement through social interaction.da374e836b9c8a77bb75c4d12a97e5b3

• Net as a fabric might not work when spanned over a large area. The net may sink in the middle. > (Some ways to solve this problem include smaller units of nets, or making use of stronger material such as polypropelene from trampolines)

• Think about the attire of the users when going to such a place. Must there be a dress code?

I think at this point it is important for me to eliminate what works and what doesn’t work. Netflix TV shows such as cartoons and comedies will not work because of its weak connection to movements at all. If I were to continue to use the idea of combining tv and activity, the TV shows picked should be relevant eg sports channels, or reality TV.

This makes me think of Episode 2 of Black Mirror “Fifteen Million Merits”. In the world narrated, everyone must cycle on exercise bikes in order to power their surroundings and generate currency called Merits. Everyday activities are constantly interrupted by advertisements that cannot be skipped or ignored without financial penalty.

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Workers pedalling on their bikes in return for credits.
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The visual aid which the workers watch while working. Their avatars cycle distances visually while they cycle stationary.

Perhaps instead of movie shows, the screens can be a form of visual aid combined to improve on the mundane activity of exercising in a gym. For example, visuals of ascending mountains when ascending staircases, or like the above example, visual aid to show distance ran while running on a threadmill. [Exercising does not have to be always fun (when the act of doing an activity is rewarding) , but many do it for the sense of achievement and accomplishment they receive.]

Updates: Dilemmas

Designing for people who need the active lifestyle but are not eager to to change

– Mismatch of expectations: When someone goes to the place with the expectations that they will get a good experience of CINEMA, but instead, gets asked to move about instead. > it’s not impossible to get people to move but perhaps more subtly > then it has to be motivational.

VS

Designing for people who are eager to change their lifestyle and need help

– Match between expectations when visiting the space for the experience of EXERCISE, and the actual scenario when they are helped with improved experience

VS

Designing for PLAY.

Remove the notion of designing for cinema or designing for exercise. Designing for play is a better option imo. Because 1. The expectations are conveniently different for each person. The rewards for each person varies. Rather than narrowing it down to only health or worse, tv entertainment. No guarantees but likely at bridging the expectations vs reality. 2. Being free while playing invokes creativity, and escapism is a good reason for people to visit the space.