Organic primitives: Synthesis and design of pH-reactive materials using molecular I/O for sensing, actuation, and interaction

Viirj Kan, Emma Vargo, Noa Machover, Hiroshi Ishii, Serena Pan, Weixuan Chen, Yasuaki Kakehi

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingConference contribution

42 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

In this paper we present Organic Primitives, an enabling toolbox that expands upon the library of input-output devices in HCI and facilitates the design of interactions with organic, fluid-based systems. We formulated color, odor and shape changing material primitives which act as sensor-actuators that convert pH signals into human-readable outputs. Food-grade organic molecules anthocyanin, vanillin, and chitosan were employed as dopants to synthesize materials which output a spectrum of colors, degrees of shape deformation, and switch between odorous and non-odorous states. We evaluated the individual output properties of our sensor-actuators to assess the rate, range, and reversibility of the changes as a function of pH 2-10. We present a design space with techniques for enhancing the functionality of the material primitives, and offer passive and computational methods for controlling the material interfaces. Finally, we explore applications enabled by Organic Primitives under four contexts: environmental, cosmetic, edible, and interspecies.

Original languageEnglish
Title of host publicationCHI 2017 - Proceedings of the 2017 ACM SIGCHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems
Subtitle of host publicationExplore, Innovate, Inspire
PublisherAssociation for Computing Machinery
Pages989-1000
Number of pages12
ISBN (Electronic)9781450346559
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2017 May 2
Event2017 ACM SIGCHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, CHI 2017 - Denver, United States
Duration: 2017 May 62017 May 11

Publication series

NameConference on Human Factors in Computing Systems - Proceedings
Volume2017-May

Other

Other2017 ACM SIGCHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, CHI 2017
Country/TerritoryUnited States
CityDenver
Period17/5/617/5/11

Keywords

  • Chemical sensing
  • Color
  • Droplets
  • Edible materials
  • Microfluidics
  • Molecular design interactions
  • Multi-modal output
  • Odor
  • Programmable food
  • Shape change
  • pH-reactive

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Software
  • Human-Computer Interaction
  • Computer Graphics and Computer-Aided Design

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