my_choosen_brief

There are 12 designing briefs from which we can choose. I picked out the following four to explore a bit further:

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I. Graphic language for touch

RFIDs are being used for an increasingly varied number of interactions with everyday infrastructures. From travelcards, keyless entry, passports, micropayments and vehicle identification to content downloads, smart posters and physical hyperlinks on mobile phones. While attempts have been made to visualise these interactions, many of these various iconographies have unclear or inconsistent design and no definite language has Look into existing NFC research and documentation to see the kinds of use_ cases that are being designed withNFC.

Finally, this project might also consider the physical form of RFID reader and writers in the environment. How might we redesign an RFID ticketing machine or payment terminal? What is the optimum location, form and placement of an RFID reader for key access for instance.

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II. “Design for all” with NFC

One idea that is often used to promote NFC technology is using physical objects to activate mobile functions. One common scenario is using a collection of photos of our close friends and family to create phonecalls or SMS messages. This can be easily achieved by sticking NFC tags behind photos or inside photo frame.

NFC has thus been suggested as a potential application for “universal design” or “design for all”: particular for elderly or users with motor difficulties. The act of touching a large area on an object is thought to be easier than pressing buttons and navigating hierarchical menus. But there is a distinct lack of research and testing into his area, and so far there is no proof that this is actually easier or more desirable for any group of users.

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III. The landscape of radio

With the increasingly “ubiquitous” use of wireless communications, the physical world is filling up with bubbles of radio waves, from massive GSM, 3G and wifi networks to tiny RFID chips pinging out their ID numbers. Each of these invisible bubbles offers a set of funcions or serviece, from talking on the phone to transferring data or granting access or paying for a ticket.

This is a central issue for ubiquitous computing where computation is embedded, often invisibly into the environment. Knowing what kinds of functions, applications or services they offer may be a central usability problem in the near future. Can we design systems that let us know when we are in a particular kind of field, what we might do in those fields and what information we give up to them?

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IV. Playful RFID(of course it would have been that one;-)

Playful interactions in RFID toys or consumer electronics.

RFID offers the opportunity to have action at a distance, bateryless and “active” objects with memory, and the use of natural material without obvious “technology” on the surface. How could we use these attributes to make games, toys or playful products? The focus here should be on immediate, simple, playful, “magic”.

The project should work towards making a demonstrable prototype, even at a very simple level. Using simple protottyping techniques such as sketching, model making and image compositions, th project should result in a body of visual and physical work. Any prototype could use simple, self contained RFID reader and transponders, but keep in mind that NFC mobile phones might also fit into the picture at some point in the future (the ability to download settings via a phone and update behaviour?)

Some examples of existing products would be the recent “Brio Network” toys, Mattel card games and other short_range wireless toys.

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