Adrian Gradinar

Prototyping 'clasp': implications for designing digital technology for and with adults with autism

This paper presents Clasp, a novel tactile anxiety management, communication and peer support tool developed with, by and for adults diagnosed with High Functioning Autism (HFA). Clasp connects a tactile anxiety coping device to a smartphone, which records and communicates anxiety levels for self-feedback and reflection. By adopting an iterative prototyping approach, we gained a deep insight into anxiety experienced by adults with HFA and evaluated the role of digital technology in its management. The paper describes our development approach, which we argue is unique to this multidisciplinary and multiorganizational design context involving hard-to-reach and vulnerable groups. Finally, we reflect on lessons learned from this process and share a set of design implications for the future development of digital tools that, like Clasp, are specifically designed with, by and for adults with HFA.

Designing Seamless Mobile Augmented Reality Location Based Game Interfaces

The majority of mobile devices nowadays harness location and orientation-sensing capabilities, permitting for sensor based Mixed Reality (MR) gaming experiences such as Augmented Reality (AR) games. Nonetheless, only few entertainment implementations of sensor based AR systems emerged, predominantly due to low precision of sensory information causing crude and jerky augmentation, significantly impacting meaningful augmentation that inevitably affects gameplay experience. In this paper, we present a novel pervasive mobile AR Location Based Game (LBG) named Time-wARpXplorer (TARX) where a seamless design approach is used in order to address the quality of augmentation. TARX comprises of a mobile client and an online authoring tool, created to encourage visitors and locals to explore the city of Lancaster by travelling back in time and space to discover their immediate and distant surroundings. Within the game, time travel is linked to present day through the implementation of Foursquares checkin platform to further raise awareness of historic sites. This paper focuses on the design considerations implemented through an iterative design process and prototyping of the mobile client, of which a novel interface emerged.

Mapping the Beach Beneath the Street: Digital Cartography for the Playable City

Maps are an important component within many of the playful and gameful experiences designed to turn cities into a playable infrastructures. They take advantage of the fact that the technologies used for obtaining accurate spatial information, such as GPS receivers and magnetometers (digital compasses), are now so widespread that they are considered as ‘standard’ sensors on mobile phones, which are themselves ubiquitous. Interactive digital maps, therefore, are widely used by the general public for a variety of purposes. However, despite the rich design history of cartography digital maps typically exhibit a dominant aesthetic that has been designed to serve the usability and utility requirements of turn-by-turn urban navigation, which is itself driven by the proliferation of in-car and personal navigation services. The navigation aesthetic is now widespread across almost all spatial applications, even where a bespoke cartographic product would be better suited. In this chapter we seek to challenge this by exploring novel neocartographic approaches to making maps for use within playful and gameful experiences designed for the cities. We will examine the potential of design approaches that can produce not only more aesthetically pleasing maps, but also offer the potential for influencing user behaviour, which can be used to promote emotional engagement and exploration in playable city experiences.

Ageing playfully : a story of forgetting and remembering

ABSTRACT An increasing interest in exploring how digital innovation could support dementia care has been a leading research responding to e-health movements, from caregiving and medical perspectives. Little research has included perspectives of people with dementia; even fewer are concerned with the emotional side of the research experience per se. The aim of this case study is to open a space for a discussion of the impact that this process has on design researchers engaging in the area of dementia. Grounded in these two overlapping creative spaces, a methodology emerged that focused on adding design value to outcomes and to all stakeholders involved along the process. The Ageing Playfully project explored, through a series of playful workshops, the opportunities available for people with dementia to catalyse imagination and social interaction through co-design. Participating in Ageing Playfully were 12 co-designers with dementia, 2 healthcarers and 4 researchers from Lancaster University working in the areas of design, computer science and health studies. This paper recounts the experience of the design researchers as part of the team and constructs a narrative in which emerging methods together with personal experience are protagonists; a story that offers memories within the forgetful corners of the investigation.

Perceptive Media – Adaptive Storytelling for Digital Broadcast

Storytelling techniques within traditional broadcast media have not made major advances in recent years due to the linear and relatively rigid approach to narrative despite advances in the technology that delivers the content. This research proposes the concept of ‘perceptive media’ in which the content creators have at their disposal different tools and sensors to allow for the subtle adaption of the narrative without any direct interactions from the audience members. The concept is demonstrated through the creation of a ‘perceptive radio’ that is able to play specially designed content that adapts to the physical and social context in which the radio resides.

Designing a Mobile Service as a Facilitator for Capturing Local Trade Data

In this paper we will highlight the potential for creating alternative economic models based on ethical trading to encourage communities to embrace the benefits of connecting, sharing and trading more locally. In particular the research presented considers whether mobile and ubiquitous computing can be used to effectively to support such an initiative as an alternative to local currency schemes. The current prototype known as BARTER encourages transparency in the dissemination of local trade information to all members of the community, including the customers, rather than adopting current approaches whereby the trader records such information without revealing anything to the customers. This transparency also allows us to illustrate to customers that the more money is spent locally the healthier the local economy becomes bringing benefits to all.

Computing and mental health: intentionality and reflection at the click of a button

Automated passive sensing applications and self-reported smart diaries seem to hold promise for the management of anxiety in autism and other mental health conditions. However, passive sensing often struggles with noisy data, ambiguous feedback and weak user agency over the device, whilst self-reporting relies on user-entered data which can be time consuming and cognitively demanding. To address these limitations, we explore a different approach, whereby individuals consciously actuate personal data capture and are in control of it at all times; yet, the interaction solely involves clicking a button, thus avoiding cognitive overload whilst supporting immediate reflection. We call this approach intentive computing. Through our initial investigations we found that conscious interactions cannot only provide real-time relief in anxiety management, but can also function as memory anchors irrespective of the content captured and even prior to data visualization.

Combining physiological, environmental and locational sensors for citizen-oriented health applications

This work investigates the potential of combining the outputs of multiple low-cost sensor technologies for the direct measurement of spatio-temporal variations in phenomena that exist at the interface between our bodies and the environment. The example used herein is the measurement of personal exposure to traffic pollution, which may be considered as a function of the concentration of pollutants in the air and the frequency and volume of that air which enters our lungs. The sensor-based approach described in this paper removes the ‘traditional’ requirements either to model or interpolate pollution levels or to make assumptions about the physiology of an individual. Rather, a wholly empirical analysis into pollution exposure is possible, based upon high-resolution spatio-temporal data drawn from sensors for NO2, nasal airflow and location (GPS). Data are collected via a custom smartphone application and mapped to give an unprecedented insight into exposure to traffic pollution at the individual level. Whilst the quality of data from low-cost miniaturised sensors is not suitable for all applications, there certainly are many applications for which these data would be well suited, particularly those in the field of citizen science. This paper demonstrates both the potential and limitations of sensor-based approaches and discusses the wider relevance of these technologies for the advancement of citizen science.

Exercising playfully: co-designing fun ways of keeping active in the park

In this work in progress paper we present our work in the co-design of a playful interactive artifact that encourages people to engage in casual physical activity in the park. The initial testing of our proof-of-concept prototype received extremely positive feedback as a potential way of motivating people to keep active in the park and in bridging the generation gap.

Engaging people with dementia in designing playful and creative practices: Co-design or co-creation?

Stimulating active, social interactions for people with dementia is an important and timely challenge that merits continuing attention in design research. The idea of using participatory co-design to engage people with dementia is attracting increased interest. In this paper, we draw on our qualitative study that used a playful, participatory arts approach to explore the ways co-design could be implemented in a group of 12 people with dementia and their carers, and developed practical recommendations, in the form of a set of playing cards, for other researchers and caregivers to work in similar ways. The emphasis is on the value of play and playfulness, providing a ‘magic circle’ (Huizinga, 1955) that fosters the required conditions for a co-creative, co-design space. This aims to encourage social interaction between people with dementia, to stimulate imagination and creativity; and engage even the most the reticent, less confident members. Our observations, however, suggest that the exact notion and nature of co-design within the context of working with people with dementia is unclear. We critically explore whether such participatory creative practices that engage people with dementia can be considered as purely co-design. In conclusion, we argue that such interaction is better described as co-creation and that this definition can still embrace considerable contribution and involvement by people with dementia in a co-design process.