In this talk, I will discuss a set of our recent and ongoing work from the Small Artifacts Lab (https://smartlab.cs.umd.edu/) on Human-Computer/AI Interaction. Specifically, I would like to draw connections between small, personal, and physical devices and a new frontier of embodied AI, presenting three research prototypes: a camera-equipped, motorized measuring tape that can help blind and low-vision people use inaccessible public kiosks; a set of tabletop tangible bricks for blind users to design the graphics and layout of a personal website; and a small, movable wearable that can quickly move across one's body, presumably sensing the host's activities. I will discuss the following questions: How can these embodied artifacts augment human ability? What are the benefits and risks of extending digital computation to a physical form that is personal or interpersonal (i.e., beyond industrial context)? What are the research opportunities in interdisciplinary research across multiple fields?
Huaishu Peng is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Computer Science at the University of Maryland, College Park. He aims to advance interactive technologies by designing, prototyping, and evaluating novel artifacts that are personal, hands-on, and often compact in form factor. He is interested in the methods for building these personal artifacts (e.g., through design and interactive fabrication), the scenarios in which they are used (e.g., in mixed reality), and the users who can benefit from them (e.g., through assistive and enabling technologies). His work has been frequently published in prestigious venues such as CHI, UIST, IMWUT, and SIGGRAPH, and has received several best paper and demo awards. Additionally, his research has been featured in media outlets including Wired, MIT Technology Review, TechCrunch, and Gizmodo.