Sprint 3: Synthesizing Research Findings And Building Pretotypes
Sprint 3 Overview
In this sprint, our team has finished the user and expert interviews. Then based on the interview responses, we began to synthesize the findings by building an empathy map for the user interview and affinity diagram based on experts’ insights.
Informed by our research findings, we later made the pretotypes we will test and adjust in the next couple of weeks. When creating the pretotypes, our team explored three scenarios where 6G networks make sense of the users’ context and data in real-time, delivering highly personalized, immersive, and context-aware experiences.
Our Research
User Interview with Storyboard Speed-dating
For the user interview, we recruited 6 participants, including our clients. As discussed earlier, our team mainly focused on building scenarios for three industries(Game, Entertainment, Smart Environments). For each domain, we asked the participant to evaluate and discuss a risky storyboard we proposed and also fill a partially empty storyboard where they map out their ideal state.
Key Learnings
Based on the storyboard, we learned that people would love to experience augmented reality within a boundary, which will make them feel safe. For example, people feel insecure if the entire world surrounding them is transformed into a virtual arena for gaming when they wear AR glasses. However, they feel safer when their backyard is transformed into a playground.
Another interesting finding of immersive experiences is that most of our participants rejected immersive horror movies. When one participant was drawing a storyboard, she told us that she would love to go to the island of Hawaii for vacation, and since she doesn’t have time right now, she would like to experience this leisure virtually. The results have coincided with our expert interviews because the experts also pointed out the greatest value in games/entertainment is about escapism and entering a fantasy world.
Expert Interview
For the expert interview, we talked to 6 industry experts in each field and discussed what they think is the value, limitations, and future for the areas they are working on.
Key Learnings
Based on the interviews, we have gathered the following insights:
- People play games and watch movies for various kinds of reasons, but they are all centered around the idea of escaping reality and immersing themselves in the fantasy world. The experience will give them a series of positive feedback, including a sense of accomplishment, joy, and socially/emotionally content. We also began to see the domains of gaming and entertainment merge as experts said gaming is also entertainment.
- Validated opportunities in establishing new personal/social connections based on existing norms.
- Experiences should be tailored for specific scenarios with ease of use.
- Technologies should give simple entry point users can rely on.
- The limitations of VR games are more experience-centered, while AR has more hardware limitations.
- For smart environments, both privacy and trust are the key issues. Even though we aim to personalize the experience for the user, personal data collection can backlash.
- For technologies like autonomous vehicles that are relatively novel, one AV company’s mistake or accident will adversely affect the entire industry.
Pretotyping the Ideas
Our Process
While conducting the interviews, we also started brainstorming our pretotype ideas. Each of us came up with an idea and shared it with the group, and we all critiqued and gave suggestions for each other. We also shared them with our faculty advisors and gathered precious feedback.
From the six individual pretotype ideas, we discussed the feasibility of the ideas and narrowed them down to the final three pretotypes we wanted to build. Those three scenarios are:
- Merging the physical world with an immersive virtual experience with body filters and UI
- Understanding when and where AR technology could enhance the experience of traveling
- Probing how far we can push personalization and incorporating technology before it creates uncomfortable feelings
The team then split into three groups to tackle the pretotypes in pairs.
Pretotype#1: Body UI and AR Body filter
Goal: To test the boundaries of blurring the lines between physical and virtual worlds, we envision a future where every individual can customize how they present themselves to the outside world with the help of AR body filters akin to face filters on Instagram.
Task: We are projecting different videos onto a participant’s body and letting them experience what it is like to have an image projected onto them. Additionally, placing an armband to test how body UI will add to the immersive experience.
Protocol: We plan to test the following:
- How comfortable are participants with virtual elements invading their personal space?
- Do participants treat virtual accessories the same way as physical accessories?
- How do participants react with interacting with virtual elements outside their house?
- First Wizard of Oz: in charge of controlling body projection and reacting to the interfaces on the wristband.
- Second Wizard of Oz: in charge of controlling wall projection and prompting participant as the virtual assistant.
This pretotype is designed to provide valuable insight into how participants will engage with XR technology when it permeates into everyday life and whether they interact with it the same way they would when in a controlled environment like their homes.
Pretotype #2: AR Travel experience in a Smart City
Goal: Understand in what ways AR technology enabled by high connectivity could enhance the experience of traveling
In this pretotype, there are three aspects we wanted to test. The first is when and where the AR experience should take place to make virtual travel seamless and immersive. (Some “wheres” include train windows, car windows, phone, etc. Some “whens” include parking, walking on the street, navigating to the destination, etc. ) Second is what are some ways we could make the travel experiences tailored to the users’ interests. The third is to understand what values AR will provide to travelers. For example, it could be educational, as the traveler will be able to understand the historical meaning of certain buildings in the context.
Task: Ask people to watch the trailer of how we imagine AR travel would work and see what is the reaction (Later, we will be projecting the video or Figma prototype to the wall where we will ask the users to interact with the interfaces and find out more about what to include and not to include)
Protocols:
- First Wizard of Oz: Time travel (help travelers understand the historical meaning of certain buildings in the context)
We create a trailer of how we imagine AR travel would help users time travel to the same place 100 years ago. (AE)
- Second Wizard of Oz: Personalized, interactive environment
We created a personalized interactive AR travel experience where we suggest the locations to visit based on the user’s interests. As the user clicks the button, they will see relevant information overlapping on the environment, simulating the AR experience. (Figma)
Pretotype #3 Personalization and interconnectivity of devices
Goal: To understand how much people would allow or actively add technology into their everyday lives, we created an extreme personalization experience with interconnected devices providing personalized feedback to users. The pretotype includes simulating user interactions with ordinary household objects like a coffee machine, toaster, mirror, etc., augmented to communicate with the user and perform actions by learning their preferences. This would allow scenarios like a mirror to suggest clothing options based on the outdoor environment and user’s weather preferences or brewing different types of coffee based on user’s preferences, etc. We created a variety of scenarios ranging from standard to extreme personalization to test how much people would accept this new way of life.
Task: Go through the room doing things you would usually do when getting ready in the morning. Machines around the participant will react accordingly.
Protocol: The participant would start off with a general conversation with a team member asking leading questions about what comes next like “What’s your favorite coffee flavor?” while another member prepares the kitchen area based on things that the participant talks about during the general chat. The participant will then be guided into the room to “wait” for the team member.
For example, the coffee maker will be made to say “your coffee is ready” prompted by an observing team member, without giving any heads up to the participant. When the participant picks up the coffee cup, another machine will say “Have some toast with that” and the toaster pops up with toasted bread. After breakfast, when the user goes to keep their used dishes in the sink, the water automatically turns on to rinse out the plates.
- Wizard of Oz: One observer that triggers voice feedback from machines.
Our pretotype intends to test how far we can push personalization and incorporating technology before it creates uncomfortable feelings, fear, or paranoia within users. It is designed to provide insight into how technology would be incorporated into everyday life while keeping this development within a publicly acceptable or desired range. While this pretotype tests personalization in closed physical spaces like user homes, this research will inform the development of prototypes to extend personalization to outside areas like hotels, office spaces, etc.
Next Steps
Moving forward, the team will be testing and revising the pretotypes during the next couple of weeks. We will also rotate in pairing and enhancing the pretotypes because we do not want too much attachment to one particular idea. We also see an opportunity to merge the pretotypes into an immersive experience potentially.
Although we treated the three domains (Game, Entertainment, and Smart Environments) separately in the research process, when we designed the pretotypes, we found that the reality is that these three domains are not entirely separated and can coexist together. The group has accelerated during the sprint, and we will keep the same energy moving forward!
By the way, one of the big accomplishments is that we finalized our team name: Oh My 6G!
