Tabletops Beyond the "Wow" Factor

A major challenge when desiging tabletop interactions is the bias created by the "Wow" factor in which users are thrilled to play with the device at first then start to lose interest. Using bodystorming, participatory design, and paper prototyping we designed and developed a free-play application for the purposes of our preliminary research. In this application users can individually choose gestures and interact with several colored balls on the table.

In our design we identified a range of gestures common to tabletop interaction, and using a mixed method approach we evaluated how engaging these types of gestures are in different interaction contexts. We found that in order to design for engaging experiences on tabletops, designers must carefully consider issues such as personal space, physical orientation, and various engagement "triggers" such as discovery, shared experience, and individual interpretation of gestures. Our work was presented at the International Tabletops and Surfaces 2009 conference. Further details can be found in the video and images below, and the abstract of the work can be downloaded here.