Adding Z-Depth and Pressure Expressivity to Tangible Tabletop Surfaces

This paper presents the SmartFiducial, a wireless tangible object that facilitates additional modes of expressivity for vision-based tabletop surfaces. Using infrared proximity sensing and resistive based force-sensors, the SmartFiducial affords users unique, and highly gestural inputs. Furthermore, the SmartFiducial incorporates additional customizable pushbutton switches. Using XBee radio frequency (RF) wireless transmission, the SmartFiducial establishes bipolar communication with a host computer. This paper describes the design and implementation of the SmartFiducial, as well as an exploratory use in a musical context.