Vasco Branco

2BeOn: interactive television supporting interpersonal communication

Interpersonal communication mediated by computer services supports the reinforcement and emergence of new communities brought together by leisure or work interests. This paper presents a workbench system that aims to study how the same principle can be applied in interactive television. The main objective is to allow TV users to be online (2BeOn) through the integration of basic and advanced communication services, enabling them to reinforce their interpersonal communication. The 2BeOn system is based on four core components: user tracking, Communication services, interface engine and collaboration content/interaction tracing. In addition to the social and behavioural context of the system, its conceptualisation, prototyping and evaluation are addressed.

Cascading recognizers for ambiguous calligraphic interaction

Throughout the last decade many approaches have been made to the problem of developing CAD systems that are usable in the early stages of product ideation. Although most of these approaches rely on some kind of drawing paradigm and on the paper-and-pencil metaphor, only a few of them deal with the ambiguity that is inherent to natural languages in general and to sketching in particular. Also the paper-and-pencil metaphor has not in most cases been fully accomplished, since many gesture-based interfaces resort to secondary buttons and modifier keys in order to make command strokes easier to differentiate from their geometry instantiating counterparts. In this paper we describe the architecture of GIDeS++, a sketch-based 3D modeling system that approaches these problems in three different ways: by dealing with ambiguity and exploring it to the users benefit; by reducing the command set and thus minimizing the cognitive load on the user; and by cascading different types of gesture recognizers, which allows interaction to resort only to the button located on the tip of an electronic stylus.

Calligraphic Interfaces: Mixed Metaphors for Design

CAD systems have yet to become usable at the early stages of product ideation, where precise shape definitions and sometimes even design intentions are not fully developed. To overcome these limitations, new approaches, which we call Calligraphic Interfaces, use sketching as the main organizing paradigm. Such applications rely on continuous input modalities rather than discrete interactions characteristic of WIMP interfaces. However, replacing direct manipulation by sketching alone poses very interesting challenges. While the temptation to follow the paper-and-pencil metaphor is great, free-hand sketch recognition remains an elusive goal. Further, using gestures to enter commands and sketches to draw shapes requires users to learn a command set – sketches do not enjoy the self-disclosing characteristics of menus. Moreover, the imprecise nature of interactions presents additional problems that are difficult to address using present-day techniques.

Emotional spectrum developed by virtual storytelling

We have performed a quantitative study in order to find out the emotional spectrum of Virtual Storytelling in comparison with movies, taking into consideration the Russells emotional circumplex model. Via internet forums we gathered videogames that people considered to be capable of eliciting each of the seven basic emotions, distributed around the circumplex. From the 200 videogames collected, we chose 14, following the principle of the two most cited for each of the seven emotions. These videogames were then tested with 33 subjects. These results were compared with Gross & Levenson (1995) study on movies. We found that these videogames were capable of successfully eliciting emotions such as Surprise, Anger, Disgust and Fear. There is also evidence that Happiness could be elicited. It was not possible to verify the existence of Tranquility. The most problematic was Sadness, except when interactivity was absent and emotion propelled through cutscenes.

Dynamic and interactive typography in digital art

The objective of this investigation was to produce a work that demonstrates the potential of typography as a subject matter for a contemporary artistic discourse by exploiting the dynamism and interactivity of digital typography. This paper describes the process of the conceptual development and implementation of an interactive multimedia installation based on the history of writing and typography. The main aspects of the methodology that inspired the building of an installation are emphasised and it is argued that in arts, technology is meant to serve a concept and poetics, not the opposite way round.

How to measure design contribution to the competitiveness of companies: models for analysis tool

The research presented here, is aimed to design a tool to evaluate the degree of maturity of design intervention, and the investment return from applying design in production companies in the north of Portugal. A theoretical frame is set to support the use and relevance of this kind of tools as a means to generate a set of guide lines on how companies may use design as a strategic tool. Several tools from different countries are evaluated, and a generic model is set to become the base of a support tool development for future researches. This model focuses on the results and on an inter company experience sharing. In the final part of this article, some aspects of the studied models are discussed, namely the results relevance and diffusion for other companies. Issues are raised on ongoing investigations.

The languages of Typeface Design in Portugal

This paper addresses the evolution of Letter and Typeface Design in Portugal, walking through the genesis of letter painters and graphic artists up to the contemporary typeface designers, tracing influences and characteristics that may contribute to a better understanding and lead to the further development of an emerging Typographic Culture in Portugal. Morphological, stylistic, as well as cultural and social relationships are investigated, in an attempt to obtain core indicators that will allow to understand the influences that ancient visual vocabulary, material and techniques had on the innovation of contemporary digital Typography. Since Typography is a structural component within Communication Design, this research aims to understand better the Typeface Design in Portugal, its roots and extensions, looking for variables that may explain the idiosyncrasies and reputation of their creations. This study is being developed as part of a PhD thesis in the Research Institute for Design, Media and Culture (ID+) of the University of Aveiro in Portugal (UA) and is supported by Fundacao para a Ciencia e a Tecnologia (FCT) and Porto Polytechnic Institute (IPP). Key words: calligraphy, typography, typeface design, Portugal.

From the Necessity of Film Closure to Inherent VR Wideness

Film is a ”closed” medium, so narrative closure is a necessity; VR is a ”wideness” medium, so narrative completeness is not vital. In this paper, we would like to analyse the purposes of narrative film closure in terms of the viewer and explore VR ”wideness” effects within user emotions, to demonstrate that ”wideness” eliminates the necessity of closure through continuous engagement and gratification. From this exploration we allege that VR narrative forms must grant less attention to closure and focus most on their new capacity for ”wideness”.

Design research for the development of a Medical Emergency Ambulance. Design as a symbolic qualifier in the design of complex systems/products

Abstract This research made it possible to launch a cooperation program between the University, the Industry and the National Institute of Medical Emergency of Portugal (INEM), to design a new medical emergency ambulance. The study has built a conceptual reference framework of an Ambulance Type B, focused on the sanitary cell, i.e. the area of a vehicle in which the assistance to the patient, stabilization and transport take place, as well as the interaction between the main medical equipment, medical personnel and patients occurs. This type of ambulance is used by the INEM to attend more than 91% of emergency calls. This project has developed a holistic participative design approach to the user´s needs, qualifying space with the conditions to improve the medical staff and patient experience. The research results have emphasized design as one of the main factors for the development of Prehospital emergency and patient transport vehicles.

System development for its disclosure of Portuguese digital type design

This study aims to cover the current development of a platform for the disclosure of the Portuguese type design community, since the beginning of the desktop revolution, until today. 
To deepen our understanding, interviews were made to a selected and representative group of type designers from our sample based on several criteria. The interview tested six dimensions: people, processes, products, uses, identity and platform. The results analyzed in the last dimension, through content analysis and quantitative data, lead to the development of an online digital collaborative system – one of our specific objectives. 
Our hypothesis – that the development of a online digital collaborative system would allow further development of knowledge between products, users and authors, as well as, processes and uses – was also corroborated by the interviewers. 
Reviews have been made to reference international online projects to identify their purposes, areas of activity, objectives, mechanisms of interaction, usability and accessibility. This previous research brought together a set of notes that would become essential in the definition and development of our concept. 

The classification of typefaces is a subject of study by researchers and designers, but it is certainly not a topic for complete agreement. Organizing and balancing the content for the database was our first challenge since we were expecting users with good knowledge on the field, but also beginners. Several diagrams were put into test during the early stage of information architecture to better define categories, filters, and sorting methods, as well as users role in the system. The items and categories chosen were redefined in a second stage, and in the third stage hi-fidelity wireframes were produced, to concentrate on design aspects and decisions, and put the system into test and evaluation. 

The current results on the platform development, with the improvements made through several user tests, evaluations and refinements undertaken in all phases of the project have been crucial. We are expecting to run some pilot tests, as well as usability tests prior to the full implementation to further improve the system and meet the expectations.