IDAT101 Group Project Interactive Installation Creation and Realisation

'Implementation Vision'

One idea that we decided to expand on was the use of RFID tags. Our idea was to put these RFID tags into balloons that we give away at the children's play area. We would make them shaped like the animals in the area to keep with theme, e.g. elephant, zebra etc. The RFID would be contained within the balloon.

This is an example of the balloons we could use and the RFID tages would be contained inside them. ------------------>









The RFID tags are able to track the movement of the item they are attached to. Once a person takes the balloon we will be able to see where they move to within a certain area, e.g. within the shopping centre and the surrounding shops. These tracks will then appear on a screen moving as the RFID tag moves. We could then put a screen in our chosen area that shows the movement of these tags, therefore creating a visual image that moves with different colours. An idea we had was to place this screen on the floor, in the middle of the shopping centre so that it can be walked over and people can look down and see the patterns moving.

Our installation has to be interactive so an idea we had was to make the installation contain pressure sensors so that when it was walked over the screen would move and react to the pressure.

Here is a copy of the image we are trying to create, with the backdrop of google maps so the concept is clear, and the one without so you can see what the final screen would look like. This is just a quick representation of what the final screen would look like, hopefully if it was created it would be moving and there would be more tags.

There may be some security issues regarding the RFID tags tracking people as they walk around the shopping centre. This is the reason we made sure that the installation does not show the actual layout of the shopping centre. Once there are enough people walking around with the balloons there will be a lot of trackers on the screen.

To make our screen more interactive we had the idea of using pressure sensors and a multi touch screen so that when someone walks over the screen it reacts to the person. We had the idea of making all the line segments scatter away from the pressure point and then slowly returning back to the original shape.

'Meeting the requirements'

• The location is within the children's play area and the installation adds to the area as it incorporates the jungle animals with the theme of the balloons.
• If the screen is installed into the floor it will be covered with a waterproof sheet which will protect it from the elements.
• It will be covered with heavy duty plastic to allow for persistent use and people walking over it.
• The floor is the largest area of the location so allows for a bigger screen and therefore more interaction, and because it is in the floor it does not get in the way of any of the pedestrians walking by as they can simply walk over it.
• It's unique and individual compared to the other interactive installations within Plymouth.
• The cables can be drilled into the floor so that they can be connected to electricity sources from the nearby shops.
• The screen will be large and lit up so the installation will work in the dark.
• The screen is embedded in the ground so no parts of it can be stolen and the only interactive device needed is the RFID which are really cheap to buy and are biodegradable so will disappear when the balloon pops.

I found some images on google of a similar idea that we are trying to create. London can be seen from a satellite at night and it gives a similar effect to what we want to create. These photos will hopefully show the kind of thing we want to achieve.

This photo shows the Isle Of Wight using GPS trackers to show how people have moved around the island.



I found a video on YouTube that shows the type of screen we want to create and the program we want to show on it. There's an example in the video of someone walking over the screen with flowers on it. The flowers move out of the way as the guy walks over them, this is the idea we are thinking of when someone walks over our screen, the RFID tag tracks are supposed to disperse when someone walks over them. Here is the video which will help to demonstrate our ideas.