New modes of interaction between humans and living plants
The Challenge
Communicating the interaction possibilities enabled by a touch-sensitive capacitive sensor invented by Disney Research
The Result
A magical experience that was exhibited around the globe
Our Expertise
- Ideation
- Interaction Design
- Data Analysis & Visualization
- UX & UI Design
The Brief
Studio NAND's Jonas Loh co-invented a new kind of capacitive touch sensor at Disney Research that creates an electromagnetic field around an object and measures minute disturbances in this field.
Disney brought us to develop an experience that communicates the mesmerizing possibilities of interacting with the sensor for the SIGGRAPH emerging technologies exhibition in Los Angeles.
Our Approach
We envision a future where interactive devices are not manufactured but are living, growing organisms.Dr. Ivan Poupyrev
An orchid hemmed by Botanicus’ visualization
We designed and developed a portable interactive experience that explores new modes of interaction between humans and living plants by instrumenting them with rich touch and gesture sensitivity. It allows for rich and expressive interaction with plants.
Depending on the physiology of each plant species, Botanicus Interacticus can allow a wide variety of gestures such as sliding fingers on the plant stem, detecting touch and grasp location, tracking proximity between the user and plant, and estimating the amount of touch contact.
The Exhibition
The installation was exhibited in Museums around the World, featuring
SIGGRAPH emerging technologies exhibition Los Angeles
Numa International Digital Media Festival, Finnlad
NIGHTIME-DREAMREAL, Shanghai
Credits
Project Lead by Dr. Ivan Poupyrev
Developed at Disney Research by Dr. Ivan Poupyrev in collaboration with Jonas Loh/Studio NAND, Philipp Schoessler, and Munehiko Sato.
In collaboration with TheGreenEyl, Christian Riekoff, Eric Brockmeyer
Published in ACM SIGGRAPH 2012 Emerging Technologies,
Article 4 "Poupyrev, I., Schoessler, O., Loh, J. and Sato, M. Botanicus Interacticus: Interactive Plant Technology."
Related Case Studies
See how we design interactive experiences across an ecosystem of devices, platforms, and physical objects.
Project Meta Materials
Designing data-driven ambient interfaces for the future of mobility
Project Project Soli
Designing feasible prototypes for Google’s new interaction sensor using radar technology
Collaborate with us
Lets find out how we can add value to your business:
Work with us
See our open positions: