Dinkum Kev Siv Tseem Ceeb: Daim Ntawv Thov Hluav Taws Xob Ncig Xis by Tobias Kappeler

Dinkum Kev Siv Tseem Ceeb: Daim Ntawv Thov Hluav Taws Xob Ncig Xis by Tobias Kappeler is a highly esteemed winner of the very prestigious 2022 A' Design Award Hlau in Tsim Thev Naus Laus Zis Xov Tooj, Apps thiab Software Competition Category.

HlauXov Tooj· 2022

Dinkum Kev Siv Tseem Ceeb: Daim Ntawv Thov Hluav Taws Xob Ncig Xis

by Tobias Kappeler

Client: Tobias Kappeler Design

A' Design Award Hlau Winner in Xov Tooj Category

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Verified Award Winner

Verify Award Status for #127093

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Colors

The Design

About Dinkum Kev Siv Tseem Ceeb: Daim Ntawv Thov Hluav Taws Xob Ncig Xis

Ntawv Qhia: Dinkum yog ib qho daim ntawv thov hluav taws xob ncig xis rau kev sib txuas lus siv suab nyob rau hauv chaw ntsuas. Dinkum muab cov kev sib tham nyob deb los rau hauv cov chaw ntsuas suab uas peb tuaj yeem hloov kho tau raws li peb xav tau. Cov neeg siv tuaj yeem xaiv ib qho ntawm peb qhov loj me ntawm chav, uas piav qhia tias zoo li ib chav uas ze thiab tsis dav (intimate), ib chav uas yooj yim thiab tsis hnyav (casual), thiab ib chav uas muaj kev nyuaj siab thiab kev txaus siab (adventurous). Cov neeg siv kuj tseem tuaj yeem xaiv cov suab nyob ib puag ncig (ambisonic background sounds), uas yog ib hom suab puv nkaus thoob plaws lub npoj los ntawm txhua sab (full sphere surround sound format), uas haum rau hom kev sib tham thiab cov neeg koom nrog. Qhov deb ntawm lwm tus neeg koom nrog tuaj yeem hloov tau thaum lub sijhawm hu xov tooj. Lub hom phiaj yog los txhawb kev nyob ua ke ntawm cov neeg sib tham, thiab ua kom cov kev sib tham nyob deb muaj kev ntseeg tau tias yog ib qho kev sib tham tiag tiag thiab ua tau zoo yam tsis nyuaj.

The Recognition

About the A' Design Award Hlau

Dinkum Kev Siv Tseem Ceeb: Daim Ntawv Thov Hluav Taws Xob Ncig Xis yog tus yeej ntawm A' Design Award Hlau, ib qho kev lees paub muaj meej mom uas muab rau cov qauv tsim zoo uas ua tau raws li cov kev xav tau ntawm kev ua haujlwm thiab kev lag luam uas xav tau los ntawm cov khoom tsim zoo. Cov neeg yeej Hlau qhia txog kev txawj loj, kev paub tshwj xeeb siab, kev nkag siab ntawm cov kws tshaj lij thiab lub peev xwm tsim ntawm cov neeg tsim. Dinkum Kev Siv Tseem Ceeb: Daim Ntawv Thov Hluav Taws Xob Ncig Xis xav tias yuav yog ib qho khoom tsim uas neeg hwm, qhuas thiab hlub uas siv tau thiab tsim tshiab. Cov qauv tsim yeej A' Design Award Hlau no sib xyaw cov kev coj ua zoo tshaj plaws ntawm kev lag luam thiab muaj cov yam ntxwv siv tshuab txawj ntse txuas nrog kev paub thiab txuj ci. Dinkum Kev Siv Tseem Ceeb: Daim Ntawv Thov Hluav Taws Xob Ncig Xis tau txais kev hwm vim nws tag nrho thiab tsim los muab kev txhim kho rau lub neej uas pab ua rau lub ntiaj teb zoo dua.

Behind the Design

Press Kit

Credits, team members and technical details provided by the designer.

Unique Properties: Dinkum is a spatial audio communication tool that allows users to immerse themselves in customisable audio environments. Users can select from three room sizes (intimate, casual, adventurous) and different ambisonic (full-sphere surround sound format) background sounds that match the type of conversation and people they are speaking to. People can change their distance to other participants throughout the conversation, which adds an extra layer of interaction to remote conversations. Dinkum can increase participants sense of presence and intimacy in the conversation and increase conversation fluency.
Dimensions & Packaging: Dinkum was developed using the 3D Tune-In Toolkit real-time binaural spatialisation tool. This was utilised as a VST plugin within Ableton Live. The 3D Tune in Toolkit simulates the reverberation of different room sizes, the distance to the listener and the direction to the sound source. For user testing, I’ve developed a signal processing path that allows me to send an audio recording from a binaural microphone through Zoom.
Tags: Communication, Spatial Audio, Interaction design, Immersive experiences, Audio & Sound, Mobile application, Teleconferencing, Conversations,
Production Technology: The project was developed through iterative prototyping, intensive user testing and a strong collaboration between academia and industry. I used different plugins for the spatialisation of mono audio files in a DAW (Digital Audio Workstation) and tested the experiences with different people. Furthermore, I built a binaural microphone for in-depth user testing with multiple people. I established a signal-processing path that allowed me to test with various users while being remote.
Design Challenge: The challenge was to create an environment that allowed me to test with the necessary fidelity and change the audio in real-time. An additional challenge was the visual representation of a 3D space with characters on a small smartphone screen which is easy to understand, interact with and is visually pleasing and unique. I overcame this through prototyping the interactions on the phone while affecting the audio and visual interface in real-time through OSC protocol and user feedback.
Research: The project started with an academic literature review and interviews on real-time spatialisation technologies. After intensive ideation on different applications, I moved into early experimentation and prototyping to get a better feel and understanding of the technology and its value. I used an iterative and human-centred design approach focusing on the experience. Experiments were analyzed with questionnaires with a Likert scale focusing on the presence and intimacy.
Inspiration: Throughout the pandemic, I realised the difficulties of remote collaboration and the lack of attention to the audio side of the experience. We are flooded with visual stimuli but a lot of these experiences lack the emotional aspect of the experience. User research and secondary research into spatial audio technologies strongly informed the development. As a music producer and DJ, I’m fascinated by the emotional characteristics of audio.
Project Duration: The project started in January 2021 and was developed by myself for my MA/MSc Innovation Design Engineering until June 2021. The project will be exhibited at the yearly graduation show of the Royal College of Art and Imperial College London in June 2021.
Operation Flow: To start a conversation, select the participants you want to speak to, select the room size which matches your conversations and participants, (Intimate, Casual, Adventurous) select the ambisonic background sounds and then start the call. Users can leave the room and create a new room during the conversations with individual participants. For recurring conversations, users can save groups and settings. In case a conversation drastically changes the topic.
Team Members: Tobias Kappeler