Designing with Haptic Feedback MFA Thesis in Advanced Product Design
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Designing with Haptic Feedback MFA Thesis in Advanced Product Design Thomas Müller 2020 Designing with Haptic Feedback Master of Fine Arts in Advanced Product Design Umeå University, Umeå Institute of Design Author Thomas Müller [email protected] www.thomasjmueller.de Examiner Thomas Degn Supervisors Tina Alnaes Oscar Björk 2019 04 Table of contents Introduction 09 The digital experience 161 Collaboration 14 Current software interfaces 164 Approach 16 Visual expression 172 Wireframing and evaluating 174 Research 19 App architecture 180 Final outcome 182 Sensory system 22 Haptic perception 24 The satellite 195 Terminology 34 Applications of active haptics 40 Satellite player 196 Haptic technology 46 Workfow evaluation 204 Prototyping haptics 52 Final outcome 208 Sound and haptics 56 User interviews 58 The knowledge base 217 Expert interviews 60 Design principles 222 Research synthesis 64 Opportunity areas 230 Tutorial 232 Applied research 67 Online platform 236 Usage vs. Contact 72 Haptic checklist 108 Refection and conclusions 245 Conclusions 111 References 251 Research Synthesis 112 Haptic design process 114 Appendices 256 Re-evaluation 116 Concept 119 Process analysis 122 Concept refnement 124 Target group 126 Ideation 128 Final direction 130 Prototyping toolkit 133 Case study 138 Requirements 140 Toolkit 144 Evaluation 156 05 Special thanks to: Thomas Degn for his everlasting support and commitment. All colleagues at Intuity Media Lab for their open minds and support throughout the collaboration. Camille Mousette and Victor Johannson for the inspiring and encouraging discussions. Tina Alnaes and Oscar Björk for their thoughtful feedback. My classmates of APD for sharing all the ups and downs My friends and family for their unlimited support and patience Without you, this project could never have happened. 06 Abstract What this project is about Most interactions with physical objects access to the field for designers. are based on three senses: Sight, hearing The outcome is called hapticlabs.io and and touch. Although we highly rely on consists of two parts: visual communication nowadays, haptic feedback is not only involved in every sin- A prototyping kit which allows you to gle interaction, but plays a significant role design, evaluate, and integrate haptic in how we perceive our surroundings. feedback without requiring any expertise in coding or electronics. One major reason why there are only few applications available incorporating A knowledge base which provides con- active haptic technology is the com- densed and easy to understand back- plex design process, which requires a ground information, opportunity areas profound understanding of electronics, showcasing capabilities, as well as a coding, physiology and psychology. Unfor- collection of design principles guiding you tunately there is currently little support through the process. and guidance available to get you started and help you during the process. Hapticlabs.io provides an ecosystem to democratise haptic design. It simplifies In this thesis I explored the opportunities the process of modulating the feedback, of haptic feedback and how we can ease creating functional prototypes and taking full potential of the capabilities. 07 Introduction Introduction – Haptic feedback Haptic feedback What, why and how? Personal motivation Methods Looking back on my previous working This thesis took a more experimental experience and education, I realised approach compared to the usual gradua- almost all projects involved haptics in tion projects in APD. Prototyping was an some way, but it was barely defined any essential part of discovering possibilities further. This also came true when talking and new applications. I began the project to a lot of colleagues and professionals in by creating and think through at least one the field. new application of haptic feedback each My aspiration was, therefore, to not only day for the first month. This approach use this thesis to make myself be able allowed me not only to discover advan- to work with haptics in detail, but also tages and challenges, but to develop to provide guidance and inspiration to solutions based on hands-on explorations others interested in the topic. across various areas. Not being a classic industrial design topic, The report not only has the goal of it also allowed me to push myself out of illustrating the design process, but also the comfort zone, while staying close to to be a compendium of information and the physical object. This aligned well with learnings in the field of haptic feedback in my personal ambitions and also reflected general. the current trend in design overall. 10 Touch by Rafael Garcia Motta 11 Introduction – Scope Scope Why it's more important than ever Smart devices Feeling it „In future, every electronic What is the most natural and product of Bosch will be desirable - even invisible - way web-enabled.“ [1] for human being to interact with (Rose, 2015, p. 29) Smart products are flooding our lives technology?“ with displays and incorporating connect- A few years ago our interaction with ed technology is not anymore a trend, physical products relied on form, the used but has already taken place. Applica- material and visuals such as graph- tions range from consumer electronics ics. While the amount of information such as smart watches and cameras to increased, digital interfaces took over to professional applications such as power deal with the complexity. To be able to tools and surgical tools. The world of interact with the new technology we had screens is trying hard to enhance glass to learn a new language of swiping, sliding covered devices and VR-applications and tapping. As human beings we are with a human touch, while at the same extremely capable of sensing haptics: time we are using the same standard- Everyone knows how to act on a shoul- ised push-buttons and interfaces in the der tap and recognises the smallest fly products we use. Through new haptic running on our skin. technology we have the opportunity to create tailored tangible interactions - not Can we use haptic feedback as a universal only in smart devices. language to communicate information? How can we use haptics to resume to a How can we utilise haptics to enhance more analogue and human interaction? everyday objects? What if every interac- tion and every button press can be tailored to its action? Cold technology We live in a world where interactions are based on flat, emotionless screens which are sold like warm cookies. While the discussion about the smartphone pinky (the pinky finger transforms due to sup- porting the weight of the smartphone) is debatable, the amount of influence on our 12 minds and bodies is not. We pack more Enchanted products and more functionality in small devices which makes our daily lives more and „Its a [...] fusion between ana- more complex. logue and digital while preserv- How can we declutter our daily lives and ing all the familiar characteris- return to a point where we are enchanted tics.“ (Rose, 2015, p. 70) by the products we use? Muted interactions While a few years back we found the idea of smart products exciting and „[...] we often don’t want to see were charmed by the thought of a fridge telling us about how to improve our lives, and hear more than we already nowadays most of us are annoyed by the do; rather, we want better filters plain sight of displays and electronics in objects. Most of this frustration is due so we see and hear less or just to an inadequate and complex setup exactly what we want.“ (Rose, 2015, process, but is also based on our wish p. 40) for seamless and simple interactions. Speech-enabled systems moved into our apartments, and while one can argue Using electronic devices, we are faced against them in a lot of aspects, there is with screaming interactions, including one thing they do exceptionally well: They sounds, flashes and buzzing haptics. integrate seamlessly, and if I don’t want to While this usually is just an annoying part use it, it won’t bother me. we have to deal with, there are situations where information clutter leads to dis- What if products can stay analogue but traction impairing our concentration. inherit technology without showing off? While driving a car at top speed, getting How can we introduce technology to notified about the next oil change in enchant products and crate exciting bright red or an alarm from your in-box experiences? might not be the best solution. What if we can communicate without interfering with the user? How can we seamlessly include feedback into devices? 13 Introduction – Collaboration Collaboration Who was involved In order to gain close-up insights from the professional environment, I had the chance to spent two months at Intuity Media Lab GmbH, which is a design driven consultancy based in Stuttgart, Germany combining “Strategy, creativity, design, science and technology in one place” [3] Their work and projects covers a variety of areas ranging from digital experiences to healthcare products and AI applica- tions. Combined with a highly cross-dis- ciplinary and user-centred approach as well as valuing the physical prototyping process, Intuity was the perfect match for this thesis. During my stay I took part in a client project including haptic feedback, while I still had the freedom to explore the field on my own. The collab- oration allowed me to gain insights from the clients' as well as the consultancies' perspective and helped to kickstart this project. 14 https://www.intuity.de » We combine strategy, creativity, design, science and technology in one place. « 15 Introduction – Approach Approach Framing the process Early on, it became apparent that not only will the topic demand a deep theoretical understanding but an extensive explora- tion, which highly depends on a tangible experience of haptic feedback.