Location Aware Smart Spaces
Project Overview
This project explores how Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) technology enables location-based experiences in public spaces. Rather than eliminating technical limitations inherent in indoor positioning, the research advocates a seamful design approach that deliberately exploits signal fluctuations as part of the user experience. Empirical measurements revealed that user position, orientation, and environmental factors such as crowds of people cause major fluctuations in received BLE signal strength, presenting both challenges and design opportunities. The project comprises two main components. The first is the Ghost Detector, an educational museum game designed for children that demonstrates seamful design principles by turning signal variability into an integral part of the interaction rather than treating it as a defect to be hidden. The second component involves domestic Bluetooth beacon measurements that examine how location sensing functions in home environments.
Players use a mobile device to hunt for virtual ghosts whose detectability varies naturally with BLE signal conditions, creating an engaging and unpredictable experience that embraces rather than conceals the limitations of indoor positioning technology. The game demonstrates how seamful design principles can transform a technical weakness into a compelling interaction mechanic, making signal variability an asset rather than a liability.
The domestic beacon measurements treat context as a socially constructed element rather than a purely technical problem, exploring how occupants perceive and interact with location-aware services in the intimate setting of their own homes. Social norms and privacy expectations differ significantly between public and domestic spaces, and these differences have important implications for the design of location-aware IoT systems.
Together these investigations offer insights for future indoor location sensing designs, demonstrating that acknowledging and leveraging the inherent imprecision of wireless signals can lead to richer and more resilient interactive experiences. The findings apply to both public and domestic settings, providing design guidance for practitioners building BLE-based location services.
Team
