Abstract

This paper has as a main objective to present the design aspects involved in the development of the NeuroBodyGame that consists of a wearable computer that allows the user to play games using their brain signs. It is a wireless interface for brain interaction with games loaded into the system. Both games and wearable computer react to the emotion of the user at the moment of interaction.

The playability can get easier or more difficult according to the brain wave frequency of the user at that very moment. The wearable computer interprets the brain activity of the user and reacts to it by changing the colors (back and front) and by applying vibrations (back). A really calm user, extremely careful and focused will have its playability enhanced and the NeuroBodyGame will mostly react by showing the color blue. If the user is just calm and focused, the color displayed is green. A tense user, if a bit unfocused or even nervous, will have his playability worsen and the NeuroBodyGame will react to it by turning into yellow and applying a soft vibration in the area of the back. However, a really tense and unfocused user will have its playability worsen and the NeuroBodyGame will react by changing its color to red and by vibrating really intensively. The cardiac sensor also incorporated to the wearable computer analyses the blood flow; functional oxygen; cardiac frequency and sympathetic and parasympathetic activity of the user.

The design of the NeuroBodyGame is adjustable to different body types. It means that the wearable computer can be expanded or contracted in order to fit the user’s body. Its main challenge lies in the fact that it tries to reserve the user’s comfort, in other words, it is ergonomic. Once each and every possibility of discomfort may alter the neurophysiologic signs and by doing so, it would compromise the biometric information.

In order to achieve all ages, two games that are being used with the NeuroBodyGame:one which aims at a low user and has a less complex playability and other which aims at a more experienced user and present a complex playability.

• Rachel Zuanon is media artist and de­signer. She is a re­searcher and pro­fes­sor in the MA De­sign Pro­gram at the An­hembi Mo­rumbi Uni­ver­sity. She co­or­di­nates the CNPq re­search group “De­sign: cre­ation, lan­guage and tech­nol­ogy” and the study group “De­sign of Phys­i­cal-Dig­i­tal In­ter­faces”. She holds a PhD in Com­mu­ni­ca­tion and Semi­otics (PUC-SP).  She is a part­ner-di­rec­tor of the Zuan­non In­te­grated So­lu­tions in De­sign, In­ter­ac­tiv­ity and Tech­nol­ogy, a com­pany fo­cused in de­vel­op­ment of pro­jects and in­ter­ac­tive so­lu­tions for phys­i­cal and dig­i­tal en­vi­ron­ments. She has pre­sented her re­search in a va­ri­ety of places, such as: M-Con­nect 2010; ISEA2008 and ISEA2002; Con­scious­ness Re­framed 2008 and 2004, among oth­ers.
• Geraldo Lima  

Full text (PDF) p. 2686-2691