This document outlines a research plan to investigate how the design of material artifacts representing physical activity data can influence people's relationship with exercise. The goal is to discover new ways of creating 3D printed objects that embody past activities. The research will involve collecting physical activity data, analyzing it digitally, and translating it into physical artifacts using personal fabrication technologies. Three exploratory case studies are proposed to understand the impact of these artifacts on exercise behavior and experience. The overall research question is how the design of a material representation of exertion influences one's relationship with physical activity.

1. Understanding
Material
Representations of
Physical Activity
Confirmation seminar
Rohit ashok khot

2. Materiality
“Homo faber: manufacturer and collector of objects who
imbue sentiments in external artifacts.”
- Sennett (2008)

3. 1. Autotopography
“External expression of self, through material artifacts”
- Gonzalez (1995)

4. 2. Rewards
“Public display of self.”
- Goffman (1959)

5. 3. Reflection and reminiscence
“Humility of things”
- Miller (2008)

6. I have a dream.
“To discover new ways of creating material artifacts
through technology that embody self and past activities.”
1. Autotopography
2. Rewards
3. Reminiscence

7. Let’s think how.
“...material arfifacts that embody ourself... Hmmm...”

8. 1.Physical activity
“Key to maintain and regain personal health”
- Weinberg and Gould (2006)

9. 2.Personal informatics
“Self monitoring and reflection”
- Li (2010)

10. 3.Personal Fabrication
“Soon the 3D printers will be in everybody’s home.”
- Gershenfeld (2012)

11. New perspective
“To discover new ways of creating material artifacts
through technology that embody self and past activities.”
1. Physical activity
2. Personal Informatics
3. Personal Fabrication

12. Show, don’t tell.
“Demo time.”

13. SweatAtoms
“3D printing of heartbeats”

14. How does the design of
a material artifact
representing one’s
exertion, influence one’s
relationship with physical
activity?
Key research question

15. Design space
“Investigate the interrelationship between physical
activity and material artifacts.
Focal point
of this
research

16. The problem of representation
“... Physical activity data has no natural counterpart that
can be graphically reproduced.”
- Vande Moere (2008)

17. Virtual representation
“Awareness, efficiency & performance goals”
- Vande Moere (2008)

18. Material representation
“Expression & reflection.”
- Vande Moere (2008)

19. Motivation
Energy expenditure Vs. Additive manufacturing.
First law of thermodynamics

20. Physical-Digital-Physical
Physical
activity
Personal
Informatics
Material
artifacts
is measured using and represented as

21. Challenges
“to identify best possible strategy to design and present
material artifacts to the user”
Design challenge
Feedback challenge

22. Exploratory study
“Understand the impact of material artifacts on the
behavior and experience of everyday physical activity.”

23. Research Plan
Research through design

24. September
2013
Submit case study 1 to CHI 2014
October
2013
design of case study 2
November
2013
Prototyping of case study 2, write Ethics
July 2013 Start case study 1
August
2013
Finish case study 1 and start analysis

25. April 2014 Submit results to UIST 2013
May 2014 Design case study 3
June – Dec.
2014
Case study 3 as internship abroad
January
2014
Finalize study design and submit Ethics
application, submit to CHI SRC 2014
February
2014
Start case study 2
March 2014 Finish case study 2 and start analysis

26. April 2015 Submit results to TOCHI
May - June
2015
Finish write-up
July-August
2015
Finalize and submit thesis to the panel
January
2015
Finish case study 3. submit to CHI SRC,
CHI Interactivity 2015
February
2015
Start thesis write-up
March 2015 Refinement on writing

27. Achievements
Selected for ACM CHI SRC 2013 and demoed at the CHI
Interactivity session to around 500 HCI researchers.

28. Call for Participation
“ I will be really grateful”

29. Let’s create our world by ourselves.
Physical
activity
Personal
Informatics
Material
artifacts
is measured using and represented as