Tangible User Interfaces

Abstract

Imagine an iceberg, a floating mass of ice in the ocean. This is one metaphor of tangible user interface (TUI). A TUI gives physical form to digital information and computation, salvaging the bits from the bottom of the water, setting them afloat, and making them directly manipulable with human hands. graphical user interfaces represent information (bits) with pixels on bitmapped displays. These graphical representations can be manipulated with generic remote controllers such as mice, touchpads, and keyboards. By decoupling representation (pixels) from control, graphical user interfaces provide the malleability to graphically mediate diverse digital information and operations. Urp uses physical scale models of architectural buildings to configure and control an underlying urban simulation of shadow, light reflection, wind flow, and other properties. In addition to an ensemble of building models, Urp also provides a variety of interactive tools for querying and controlling parameters of the urban simulation.