Journal Summary | Architecture In-Play

Viny, Andrew. Dabholkar, Avanti. Llach, Daniel Cardoso. “Two Design Experiments in Playful Architectural Adaptability.” Nexus Network Journal, Architecture and Mathematics, 2018, pp.25-38. Two Design Experiments in Playful Architectural Adaptability (springer.com)

 

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Playful architectural interactions in an architecture studio

   This research is about two computational experiments on dealing with furniture or space design, targeting ordinary people or designers, in combination with “open-ended bodily interactions over symbolic transactions and goal-driven optimization.”(p.25) That is, beyond the physical limitations of architecture, these experiments dreamed about customizable form change according to users’ states and their ambiance, which the authors called “the notion of adaptability and fit” (p.26) The authors make a representation of two design examples: chair design interface with multi-modal interactors; space design responsive to the occupant’s biometric data.

   These experiments were done as a part of an architecture studio at Carnegie Mellon University for two semesters, written by two conductors and a director. (p.27) The authors’ different backgrounds in Architecture and Human-computer interaction helped to use multidisciplinary work in “basic computer programming, interactive prototyping, user testing, anthropometrics, model-making and 3-D rendering.” (p.27)

First design experiment: Physical Interactors for mass customization as trimming the curved surface of the chair beyond the screen

   As parametric design for product design was considered a solution to mass customization to fulfill its demand, this experiment aimed to one, “promoted playful user engagement”(p.28) through “sensorial inputs.”(p.28) The final demonstration looks like a Nintendo game, as the interactors of press and bend, like a small switch, are connected to the screen and control the curvature scales of chairs on it. These interactors have been developed to possess “richer interactions” by dense sensor networks. (p.29)

   The initial multimodal idea for the “mass-customization”(p.27) method in chair design was somewhat far from the final interactor. The first trial was using the projector to manipulate the abstracted frame of a curvy chair by “bodily gestures captured with a depth camera.”(p.28) However, limited interaction tools failed the experiment to convey abounding data about the design intention. Although the mapping of the armature was so restricted to attempt complex order, the second trial has been enhanced in a way of more physical engagement for the manipulator’s sake. (p.29)

Second design experiment: Responsive Architecture to Occupants’ Heartbeats

   This experiment attempted to design a physical space whose thermal, visual, acoustic, and olfactory experiences reacted to “biometric data from human bodies.” in the space. (p.31) It has been attempted to find a comfort zone for the occupants with MEP systems, standing for mechanical, electrical, and plumbing, in combination with automated algorithms. However, this trial is somewhat poetic and emotion-oriented access to present a responsive space for users.

   The final output with “sympathy, softness, enclosure, and multiplicity” (pp.35-36) design is composed of “tessellated triangular”(p.35) units, hanging from the ceiling, covering from one person the torso to the head with a shape of a four-foot-tall pod that created variable “microclimates” for “a layered scalar experience” corresponding to the user’s mood. (p.35)

   To notice an occupant’s biometric shift, this responsive design prototype needed biometric data sensors with two category options: “emotion-specific sensors and binary stimulation monitors.”(p.32) This experiment employed the latter monitoring device between two options for the reason that emotion-specific sensors were used for analyzing input data rather than for producing reprocessing sources whereas binary stimulation monitors suit the process easily. (p.32) The initial way of receiving occupants’ biometric state was by counting the beats per minute of one’s pulse, which was a simple set of stimulation-level data. Later, a wearable GSR (galvanic skin response) sensor device that provided the similar binary data served as a real-time biometric data collector. (p.33)

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더 이해가 필요한 용어

variable, parametric, modality, multi-modal, interaction, responsive, physiological response, biometric data, microclimates

조사가 필요한 레퍼런스

March, Lionel, and Philip Steadman. 1971. Geometry of Environment. London: RIBA Enterprises. MIT Media Lab: Affective Computing Group. Accessed May 07, 2016. http://affect.media.mit.edu/

(Responsive design의 언급) Negroponte, Nicholas. 1970. The Architecture Machine. Cambridge, Mass.: M.I.T. Press

(brain coats, networked raincoats enabled with sensors that interact through glowing lights) Diller, Elizabeth, and Ricardo Scofidio. 2002. Blur: The Making of Nothing. New York: Harry N. Abrams.