¹ This summary includes only research creation of technological systems and digital prototypes led, co-led and/or designed by Dr. Antle. This summary does not include prototypes designed and built by students under Dr. Antle’s supervision.
Virtual Reality, Youth, and Mental Health
(2021 – ongoing)
Funders: NSERC RTI & NSERC Discovery RTI
The VR Youth mental health project involves the creation of new co-design methods for involving youth, therapists and teachers in research creation of VR prototypes. The end goal is to investigate how VR can be used by youth for emotion regulation skills training in their everyday lives, homes and schools.
Critical Making (Bio)Wearables: Co-located and remote use versions
(2020 – 2022)
Funders: NSERC RTI & NSERC Discovery RTI
The Critical Making Biowearable Workshop project investigates how to design and deploy a participatory computational thinking workshop in which students explore and reflect on potential impacts of biowearables during biowearable making activities using a pre-made tangible-biowearable kit and reflection cards. Due
to Covid-19 the co-located workshop designed for the SFU Maker Space with young adults was transformed to a virtual workshop with 12-14 year olds working with community partner Brilliant Labs in Atlantic Canada.
Critical Reflection Card Set: Biowearables
(2019 – 2022)
Funders: NSERC RTI & NSERC Discovery RTI
The Critical Making Biowearable Workshop project investigates how to design and deploy a participatory computational thinking workshop in which students explore and reflect on potential impacts of biowearables during biowearable making activities using a pre-made tangible-biowearable kit and reflection cards.
Three PhonoBlocks Augmented Reality Reading Systems on Android Tablets
(2018 – 2020)
Funders: NSERC RTI & NSERC Discovery RTI
AR PhonoBlocks was an exploration of technical variations using everyday technologies (e.g. ipad + fridge magnets) in order to make the effective tangible-PhonoBlocks system (see P7 below) more accessible for broader deployment into schools and families. We created three AR versions of the system using different technical approaches to sense physical letters and provide digital visual overlays that can provide colour cues, including: 1) camera sensing of fiducial markers using Vuforial and AR Toolkit; 2) custom-created machine learning for optical character recognition via a trained convolutional neural network; and 3) capacitive sensing of custom letters with 3D laser printed metal pin patterns.
Brain-Computer Neurofeedback Self-Regulation Training App (Android):
Mind-Full Wind (2014)
Wild and Sky (next gen, nine games)
(2016-2017)
Mind-View (2014/2017)
All iOS (2019)
Funders: NSERC RTI & NSERC Discovery RTI
The Mind-Full system supports a series of tablet-based neurofeedback games that help children learn to improve their ability to self-regulate anxiety and attention. After finding positive evidence of effectiveness, transfer and maintenance in a controlled field study in Nepal, we decided to design, build and study six new games, three for Indigenous and three for local (Vancouver) children with similar challenges. Mind-View is an extension that works with all our Mind-Full game apps. It enables another user to view the child’s level of relaxation and attention in real time and adjust the brain wave and game level settings as the child is playing, providing real time customization.
PhonoBlocks: Tangible System Windows
(2021 – ongoing)
Funders: NSERC RTI & NSERC Discovery RTI
PhonoBlocks is a custom tangible-touch laptop reading application. The tangible letters have embedded dynamic colours that draw children’s attention to the moment when the addition of letters changes word sounds. Tangible letters also enabled letter tracing and epistemic strategies that simplified learning to read and spell.
ʔeləәw̓k̓w | Belongings: Design for Intangible Cultural Heritage
(2021 – ongoing)
Funders: NSERC RTI & NSERC Discovery RTI
ʔeləw̓k ̓ w Belongings uses replicas of Musqueam belongings excavated from c̓əsnaʔəm, as well as contemporary objects that are a part of everyday Musqueam life. Through tangible interaction visitors are enabled to directly experience intangible elements of Indigenous culture, such as values, as well as access information about the long history of salmon fishing and the continuity of related knowledge at c̓əsnaʔəm. ʔeləw̓k ̓ w Belongings was on exhibition for a year at the MOA, Vancouver, Canada.
Youtopia: Tangible Table Game Design for Sustainability Education
(2021 – ongoing)
Funders: NSERC RTI & NSERC Discovery RTI
Youtopia is a hybrid tangible and multi-touch land use planning activity for elementary school aged children implemented on a PixelSense Surface tabletop. Youtopia was developed to investigate issues surrounding how to design and evaluate children’s collaborative learning applications using digital tabletops and designing to support emergent dialogue (values-based discussion). In particular we looked at how the interface design supported values-
based discussion, negotiation and conflict resolution between pairs of children around issues in sustainable development.
Developmentally Situated Design Cards: Designer Tools
(2011 – 2013)
Funders: NSERC RTI & NSERC Discovery RTI
There is a wealth of theoretical knowledge about the developmental abilities and skills of children. However, this knowledge is not readily accessible to designers of interactive products. In this project, we developed and evaluated developmentally situated design (DSD) cards. DSD cards are a design tool that makes age specific
information about children’s developing cognitive, physical, social, and emotional abilities readily accessible for designers.
Futura: Sustainable Land Use Planning Sim and Exhibition
(2009 – 2012)
Funders: NSERC RTI & NSERC Discovery RTI
Futura is a persistent, real time, collaborative land use planning activity for children and the public. The prototype supported the investigation of a variety of topics related games for learning and serious games including
local-global information display design, collaborative interaction, comparisons of multi-touch and tangible interaction, and using persistent simulation games for learning. Futura was showcased to thousands of users at the Vancouver 2010 Olympics Surrey Celebration site.
Springboard: Embodied Metaphor-based Design for Social Justice
(2009 – 2012)
NSERC RTI, NSERC Discovery & SFU Small SSHRC
Springboard is whole body interactive environment where users move their bodies in and out of balance to explore images and sounds that represent balance and imbalance in social justice (e.g., shelter, food, community safety). Results from experiments with whole body or handheld devices as input indicated that when users move their bodies in and out of balance they more deeply experience issues in social justice related to balance. This prototype extended work on embodied metaphor based design begun with SoundMaker into a full multimedia
environment representing abstract concepts (balance in justice) vs percepts (sounds).
Youtopia: Tangible Table Game Design for Sustainability Education
(2021 – ongoing)
Funders: NSERC RTI & NSERC Discovery RTI
Youtopia is a hybrid tangible and multi-touch land use planning activity for elementary school aged children implemented on a PixelSense Surface tabletop. Youtopia was developed to investigate issues surrounding how to design and evaluate children’s collaborative learning applications using digital tabletops and designing to support emergent dialogue (values-based discussion). In particular we looked at how the interface design supported values-
based discussion, negotiation and conflict resolution between pairs of children around issues in sustainable development.
Tangible Tabletop Interaction Design & Thinking with Hands
(2021 – ongoing)
Funders: NSERC RTI & NSERC Discovery RTI
EventTable is a tangible tabletop prototyping platform which we used to investigate a variety of topics in hands-on interaction design. The tangible jigsaw puzzle prototype was used in comparative studies of the way children think with their hands during spatial puzzle solving using physical, graphical, tangible interfaces.
SoundMaker: Embodied Metaphor-based Interaction Design
(2021 – ongoing)
Funders: NSERC RTI & NSERC Discovery RTI
SoundMaker is an interactive floor interface to a percussive music creation system. Players can imitate and compose musical patterns by modifying the quality of their movements based on image schemata, which are mapped through embodied metaphors to changes in sound percepts (e.g. volume, tempo, pitch and rhythm).