Written Description Proposal

I plan on creating a touch test by using beads to form patterns and shapes, very similar to Braille – what the blind use to read by touching. The test will consist of different difficulty levels, the user will not be able to see what they are touching and they will also use their non-writing hand.

I am going to do this by using beads to create the patterns/shapes on cardboard. This will be done by using a needle and thread. To make sure the user cannot see what they are touching I am going to make a box with a lid and a gap in the side for the user to put their hand through. I will either use a shoe box or make a box out of wood. To create different difficulty levels I plan on adding distractions to the ‘Braille’. For example: I could sew the beads onto fluffy material.

The user will get to experience the feeling of only having their touch sense to rely on when trying to read something. As people our touch and sight seem to go hand in hand when doing particular tasks. The user will get a sense of what it is like to be blind.

It will be exciting for the user as it will test their ability to use only their touch and also because they will be trying their best to get every shape/pattern correct.

Our fingers are very sensitive to touch and it will be interesting to see how others do when testing this sense.

StoryBoard

Feedback

I was very happy with the feedback I received for my tester ideas for the Braille. Everybody who tried it managed to work out what the shapes were (they were very simple anyway) and also thought that my overall idea would work. They also gave me suggestions into ways of improving my idea.
Mitch said that "I should make the Braille more challenging by using patterns and adding distracting materials to increase the amount of concentration needed by the user".
Jarrod said "By stitching to beads closer together and making the shapes smaller it could make it harder for the user to work out what the shape is".
I was very happy to receive these suggestions and I am seriously considering including some of these in my proposal.


The feedback I received back for the sandpaper idea was not to bad. Everybody who attempted this task managed to do it correctly in a very short amount of time. But Alex made a very good point when he said "Sticking to just the Braille could be more effective because there is a lot more I can do with it. The sandpaper is also quite boring".
From this feedback I have decided to get rid of the sandpaper idea for now, but I will always keep it in the back of my mind in case it ends up fitting into my idea somewhere down the track.


Testing my idea has really helped me to come up with my final proposal idea. I am glad that we did this testing as I received some very good feedback and suggestions which could make my interactive piece be a lot more successful.

Idea Testing

To make my Braille testers for my chosen idea I used beads, needle and thread, and cardboard. I then thought of simple shapes I could use.







I made two testers. One was a straight line and the other was a square with a cross through it. I chose to make one very simple and one a little bit harder just to see what the different thoughts would be.

I then tested my mock ups on everybody in my group. So overall 13 people tried my form of 'Braille".










I also tested my original sandpaper idea. I had 5 different gradients of sandpaper and asked a person to order them from smooth to rough without looking at them, only touching.

I also tested this idea with my group and everybody who attempted it managed to complete ordering the pieces with no trouble at all. 

Chosen Idea Expanded

Three Ideas

Morphological Box

The Five Senses

Brain Storm:

Project One - Interactive Objects


In this project you are asked to design an interactive object, that is providing a unique experience for one of the five senses: see, hear, smell, touch, taste. You are strongly encouraged to use simple materials such as paper, cardboard, toothpicks, rubber band, string, pins and paper clips.