FRANK
This project was all about exploration. How will we interact with moving interfaces? We developed a prototype to find out.
Shape-changing materials that are currently being developed may revolutionize interactive products. So-called smart materials might enable novel interactive experiences by making computing emerge from the omnipresent flat screens. Designers will have endless possibilities to develop and create novel interaction styles. By exploring 3D printing processes and magnetic actuation we designed FRANK. FRANK is an interactive material experience that demonstrates how we can design for more expressive surfaces. We explored whether we could guide how we could guide the interaction between user and system by using different movement speeds depending on whether the hand of the user was far away or close to the surface. Also we had different reactions of movement based on how the surface was touched.
It was developed by Davide Amorim, Giulia Caleca, Minerva Loos and Alex de Ruiter as part of the Interactive Materiality course taught by Miguel Bruns and Simone de Waard at the faculty of Industrial Design at Eindhoven University of Technology.
Video
FRANK teaser video
FRANK making off video
Reflection
Developing an interface like this was incredibly fun. It always feels magical to control the movement of an entity other than oneself through an interface that differs from language use. I believe we succeeded in creating an interface that encourages interaction, but at the time, we didn't have a clear idea of the potential applications for such technology. It was an enjoyable exploration, yet reflecting on it now, I would prefer to dedicate my time to researching interfaces with practical applications.