MEMORY JOGTELEPRESENT TRAVEL VIA GESTURETEK TECHNOLOGY

Memory Jog enables users to explore and interact with 3-dimensional, immersive representations of locales which they are unable to travel to in real life, due to limitations in either bodily mobility or financial ability.

MEMORY JOG

Memory Jog is meant for users who desire to expand beyond their current environment into spaces which they cannot normally occupy due to circumstantial limitations:

WHO IS IT FOR & WHY?

Senior Citizens

PEOPLE WITH LIMITED TRAVELFUNDS

Age: 60 and onwards

Senior citizens with the desire to see distant places, but who lack the physical mobility and endurance required to withstand the stress of travel.

Age: 20-59

People who have the desire to travel, but lack the funds to reach the locations that they wish to visit.

EARLY CONCEPT

Our early concept employed a round, tent-like projection structure, using a treadmill-like interface for ‘walking’, and Gesturetek system for interacting with the virtual spaces.

Memory Jog consists of a spherical enclosure, which will create for the user a convincing illusion of being and moving within a locale -- the feeling of ‘being there’.

MEMORY JOg CONCEPT

Rear projection screens lining the enclosure will display a continuous feed from Google Streetview for the city of the user’s choice. Users can then ‘move’ through the space simply by walking inside the hamster-ball-like enclosure.

The GestureTek system will be used to add an interactive layer, enabling the user to touch and manipulate objects and areas within the virtual space.

MEMORY JOg CONCEPT

A high level of immersion will be accomplished through:

IMMERSION

360-degree projections of the target locale on the curved walls of the sphere -- the user is surrounded from all sides by imageryEnabling users to traverse the space using natural walking movements that ‘make sense’.(velocity sensors will gauge the speed of walking)

Allowing users to interact with aspects of the space through natural gesture that is contextually appropriate (e.g. grabbing, touching)

* These should be expanded out into their own pages, with more diagrams

A high level of immersion will be accomplished through:

IMMERSION

Contextual audio and haptic feedback based on user’s activities within the virtual space (e.g. the sound and ‘feeling’ of one’s own footsteps on cobblestones)

* These should be expanded out into their own pages, with more diagrams

Environmental audio depending on the user’s location within the virtual space (e.g. sounds of traffic, children’s laughter from a nearby playground)

Dynamic imagery of the user’s desired locale will be represented through Google Street View, using the Google Maps API. The velocity and gestural sensors within the sphere will serve as a ‘interface‘ to Street View.

HOW DOES IT WORK?

TOKYO NEW YORK

Memory Jog will be located within social spaces which are easily accessible to the main user groups:

CONTEXT OF USE

COMMON AREAS IN NURSING HOMES &GERIATRIC WARDS

PUBLIC MALLS &SQUARES

Transportal will be available during business hours, and

times of leisure.

Ruth, who is 75 years old, wants nothing more than to return to New York, the city she decided to leave left 50 years ago. She’s beginning to forget much about her youth and would love to be able to share her stories with her children and grandchildren.

However, her physical health conditions require that she lives in an assisted care facility, so traveling to help jog her memory and share her story with her family is unfortunately not a practical option.

SCENARIO: RUTH

Ruth’s care facility has a room equipped with the Memory Jog device, so she can transport herself virtually to her old New York neighborhood through the power of Google Street View technology.

Ruth steps easily into the large Memory Jog sphere (through the built-in ramp), and after speaking her former address aloud, suddenly finds herself within a virtual New York city.

SCENARIO: RUTH

Ruth is then able to explore her old haunts and see how the city has changed in the past 50 years, and feel and hear the sidewalk under her feet as she ‘walks’. She could even hear the sounds of the busy city.

She starts to remember more and more as she walks and recognizes the old familiar slope of the road by her old house.

SCENARIO: RUTH

In addition, she is able to add locative voice recordings and text-based notes to different objects and places as she reminisces, simply by ‘touching’ them. This enables her to add her own layer of meaning to the virtual city space, and to create a ‘tour of New York city as I knew it” for her children and grandchildren.

Even though Ruth would ideally prefer to take her whole family on a (physical) vacation to New York, Memory Jog gives her the opportunity to re-experience her home town virtually and share stories from her youth with them.

SCENARIO: RUTH

THANK YOU

APPENDIX:EARLY SCENARIOS

Senior confined by abilityRuth is 75, she wants nothing more than to return to Bratislava, Slovakia; the city she emigrated from 50 years prior. Although still sharp as a tack her physical health conditions require that she lives in an assisted care facility, so traveling definitely not in her future.Ruth’s care facility has a TransPortal room, she is able to book the room and with the use of Google Map technology; all she has to do is enter her former Slovakian address. She is now able to walk around her old haunts and see how her birth city has changed in the past 50 years.On top of that she is able to record her actions and voice, which she can then invite her children and grandchildren to follow her around while she reminisces. Even though she would prefer to take her whole family on a vacation, TransPortal gives her the opportunity to experience and share her home city and youth with them.

SCENARIO 1:

SCENARIO 1:

SCENARIO 2:

Youth confined to HospitalToby is 13, he has been diagnosed with a rare disease and although it was caught early and full recovery will be made, he is going to miss an entire summer of family barbeque's. He does not want to feel alone and left out those Sunday afternoons nor does he want his family to stop the tradition.However the children’s hospital where Toby is being cared for has a TransPortal, where his parents can book an avatar with 360 degree camera to put in his place. So on Sunday afternoons Toby is able to go to the TransPortal room and eat his lunch with his family. Spending that time with his family at his home makes the summer in the hospital that much easier for Toby.

SCENARIO 2:

SCENARIO 3:

Parent confined by time, location, and moneyJill is 32, a hardworking mother of three, a wife, and an avid art enthusiast. Ever since she finished her schooling in her adolescence, she has aspired to travel all around Europe, exploring its unique architecture and its world-renowned art sphere. Unfortunately, life hit her sooner than anticipated. She found out she was carrying her first child with her soon to be husband shortly after finishing school, and since then life has been a mix between diapers, bills, and making ends meet. Nowadays, with the burden of caring for her children, putting them through school, and keeping the family’s budget afloat, her long awaited cultural expedition to Europe seems more and more far-fetched each day, due to financial and time constraints.

SCENARIO 3:

Fortunately, with new innovations in technology and wireless communication and data transfer, Jill’s dream has come closer to reality! With the new TransPortal installation at the AGO she can now link in to Google’s software and high-resolution imagery and explore prestigious galleries and museums like MoMA, The Louvre, the Smithsonian and the likes, all in one location and all in one day, without spending a small fortune.By using the immersive projection (360 degree tent) Jill can use GestureTek’s technology to maneuver around her desired gallery/museum and interact with the art works (zoom, attain information) to provide her with a life-like virtual reality that is next best to the real thing.

SCENARIO 3:

SCENARIO 4:

John and Sandra, 89 and 82, have been living in their nursing home for the past few years and have been unable to travel outside without the help of the nursing home staff or their children. Earlier in their retirement, they loved traveling together all over the world. Being unable to experience different places now that they are not able to is something that they have learned to accept, however they still yearn for adventure and new experiences. The couple now feels that they no longer have many things to look forward to, or new things to learn. John and Sandra’s nursing home recently offered them the opportunity to use their new TransPortal immersive experience, which could give them the thrill of going to a new place. They loved the idea of having a safe way for them to relive the experiences of traveling together. 

SCENARIO 4:

They entered the tent-like structure with the help of their nursing home staff. The tent was illuminated with projections of a city in Italy in the late afternoon.

The world was filled out in 3D and everything appeared real. Sunlight shone brightly, people were walking around, and soft music played in the distance. They could feel a light wind blowing and smell the fresh seaside air. John and Sandra walked around the street, exploring markets and restaurants. They were overwhelmed by the realism of the room and were instantly brought back to their experiences of traveling.