Lightpen

A note taking device for students.Robert S. Wang

May 9, 2014rswang@umich.edu

Lightpen key features

• Write on any surface.• Handwriting recognition & image processing– Sort hashtags automatically. #hci, #td, #mistakes

• Sync and download notes to a desktop.• Search complete history of notes on computer.• Personal projector onto any surface.

Hash tag sorting algorithm

#TD Call to cancel dental insurance.#TD Take winter jacket for dry cleaning#HCI Technology is only important in so far as how it helps people.#Mistakes Remember to bring water bottle for yoga.#HCI Enhance human cognitive load.#Mistakes Remember to wash running clothes

Hash tag sorting algorithm (cont.)

#HCI Technology is only important in so far as how it helps people.#HCI Enhance human cognitive load.

#TDCall to cancel dental insurance.#TD Take winter jacket for dry cleaning

#Mistakes Remember to wash running clothes#Mistakes# Remember to bring water bottle

Why did I think about this?

• I’m a creative professional– Constant stream of ideas and associations I want to

capture.• Diagnosed with learning disability (1996). – Short term memory & information processing deficit.– Need a way to be at parity.

• Traveling in Taiwan• Being a student: 40 responsibilities with time for

7.

Dr. George Miller 7±2 (1956)

• Humans can only process/remember 7±2 at a time.

• EVERY human is limited by this ability.• Anything more would result in cognitive

overload.

Information overload is inevitable

Why even use paper?Devine EB et al. (Feb 2010) Electronic prescribing at the Point of Care:

A Time-Motion Study in the Primary Care Setting

• It’s pretty hard to beat paper. When doctors write e-Prescriptions, it’s still slower than pen and paper. (75 seconds versus 47 seconds)

• Paper encodes spatial information information about where data is stored.

• It fits a human’s mental model of how the physical world should work.

• It’s easy to have things side-by-side, highlight, underline, and annotate things.

Paper elimination

• Store all the notes you’ve ever written OCR encoded in machine readable format.– Be able to search and reference

Benefits of LightPen

• Serves as a memory aid• Expands creative abilities• Archive all notes• Make notes searchable

How others can help me?

• Get support: expertise, advice, feedback, and funding.

• More on expertise:– Business: connecting with the right people.– Software: algorithms and desktop client– Hardware: electrical engineers, mechanical

engineers, and industrial engineers.

The END

• Q & A