Sumangla Bishnoi
Dotchat is a prototype for a digital product inviting us to create engaging relationships with the environment. Data visualizations based on the weather and other inputs serve to generate patterns on everyday objects. The patterns could be displayed on bags, shoes, accessories, clothing, phone wallpapers, and other products. The patterns are controlled with a digital app, introducing movement, receptivity, and playfulness into our lives.
As a designer, I aspire to become fluent in translating ideas into design applications, either physical or virtual. In today’s day and age, mobile applications and websites play invaluable role in not just creating but sustaining a brand and its identity. Ever since I was a design student, I have been intrigued by the ability to design technology to add dynamism to the tangible design. Thus, for my thesis project, I have advanced my inclination and learning in the field of graphic design through coding, technology, and interaction design. I created dotchat as an interactive, techno-design product so I could learn the basics of design coding with programs such as P5JS and Processing.
This product could be made with flexible screens, which will soon be a market reality. The product could be connected to the phone with Bluetooth. The product could be charged with a portable charger, collecting energy from the movement of the body to charge the product continuously. A spring and two magnets could generate constant charging as and when product will move.
Dotchat will be controlled with a mobile application that will do data visualization of data collected by our mobiles for different features.
Weather: Gathering environmental imagery for visualising cloudy, sunny, rainy and snowy. Extracting circular forms to create textures. Iterating form into a pattern for coding in P5Js.
Camera: Interpreting how a digital self reflection could be visualised through dot codes. An interactive feature that visualises your selfie image through dot patterns.
Recreation: To add more expressional interpretation, this feature allows user to make their product an expressional playground. Gestures can be interpreted into dot patterns.
Sound: According to changing tempos and volume of the interacting voice, the dots form and reform into patterns visually interpreting the quality of the voice.
Sound Patterns On the shoes
Sunny Patterns On Coat
I created a promotional video, which has four different products with patterns displaying different features. These products were carried by four models, who showcased them with a neutral attitude so as to focus on the product.
My exhibition allows people to interact and have fun with the product. My research also involves the study of materials that will work well with projection mapping.
The installation features a mannequin wearing a white coat. A projector with mac mini attached to it was projecting on the coat. A trackpad enabled users to draw patterns on the surface. A webcam and a voice recorder collect data from the surroundings to create dynamic patterns.
The display aimed at showing the most important features of the product and most importantly its use.
Complete with a screen, and a scope for the user to interact with the product, the exhibition opening day was a wonderful opportunity for live feedback and interaction with potential users.
