Developing Mixed Interactive Systems: A Model-Based Process for Generating and Managing Design Solutions

Abstract

Taking advantage of the physical objects surrounding the user and the human ability to manipulate them fosters the development of multiple, new and advanced interaction techniques, called mixed interactive systems (MIS). Much work has been done to address specific aspects of the development of MIS. However, there is still no unifying conceptual framework to link these contributions and that presents a global approach for the development of MIS. In this context, this chapter presents a domain-specific development process that goes beyond ad hoc approaches and attempts to overcome barriers between different types of developer expertise, through a set of connections between steps of the MIS development process. Furthermore, to facilitate iteration in the design, these connections are observable, thus allowing a designer to review their decisions. The development process is illustrated via a concrete museum application.