PGR1 Postgraduate Research Proposal V1.

0 Update Nov12 Page 1 of 5

FORM PGR1 POSTGRADUATE RESEARCH PROPOSAL
PLEASE NOTE
This form must be typed. Handwritten forms will not be accepted.
Double clicking on the check boxes enables you to change them from not-checked to checked.

Student ID No 1301669 Name Matteo Giommarelli
Faculty DCT School/Dept
Ethnicity NZ European Residency
Citizen/PR
International
Programme Bachelor of Creative Technologies
Full-time
Part-time
Is an Ethics application required?
Yes
No
Has a supervision agreement been completed?
Supervision agreements are compulsory
Yes
No
Thesis Dissertation Points Value
Pathway 1 Pathway 2 Pathway 3

A D D I T I ON A L I N F OR MA T I ON
Referencing: when citing references please specify the referencing style you will use (e.g. APA). This specified style
should be used throughout the entire proposal.
External parties: when working with external parties, contractual arrangements should be in place to clarify your rights
and responsibilities. The University Research Office is responsible for such contracts and is available to assist and answer
questions.
Conflicts of Interest: Please refer to the current version of the Postgraduate Handbook for information on conflict of
interest. This section establishes a set of questions to help identify any potential conflicts. If a conflict is identified, the
supervisory agreement should outline how this will be managed.
Confidential Material: If the subject matter of the research is confidential and may require an embargo once completed
refer to the current version of the Postgraduate Handbook for further information and the procedure. Your primary
supervisor must supply a justification for confidentiality.
Intellectual Property: Please refer to the current version of the Postgraduate Handbook. If you or your supervisor have
reason to believe that Intellectual Property implications will arise out of independent research, your primary supervisor is
responsible for discussing this with you and liaising with the Universitys commercialisation arm AUT Enterprises Ltd.
Ethics Approval: please seek advice from the Ethics Secretariat (AUTEC)if you have any queries on ethics requirements.
Postgraduate Handbook: the postgraduate handbook is the overarching guide to postgraduate academic policies and
procedures.

C o n f i d e n t i a l Ma t e r i a l
Will you be requesting that your research be embargoed?
(If yes, please include documents to support this request from your supervisor)
Yes
No
S c h o l a r s h i p s
Do you hold any scholarships/awards/sponsorship by an external organisation? Yes
No
Are fees included in the scholarship?
Yes
No
Give the name(s) of scholarships/awards/sponsors
PGR1 Postgraduate Research Proposal V1.0 Update Nov12 Page 2 of 5


L a n g u a g e
Do you wish to present your research in a language other than English? Yes
No
If yes, state which language

D E C L A R A T I ON B Y A P P L I C A N T
I declare that the information provided by me in this application is true and complete. I recognise that it is my responsibility
to provide all necessary documentation to support my application and I authorise Auckland University of Technology, where
necessary, to obtain further relevant documentation and to verify my qualifications as detailed in this application. I
acknowledge that AUT reserves the right to vary or reverse any decision regarding admission to candidature on the basis of
this application. I have read and understand the conditions of candidature outlined in the current Postgraduate Handbook
and am prepared to accept them in full.
Applicants signature: Date:


S U P E R V I S I ON

Primary Supervisor
Supervised Masters to
Completion
Yes No
Signature Date
Second Supervisor
Supervised Masters to
Completion
Yes No
Signature Date
Additional Supervisor
Supervised Masters to
Completion
Yes No
Signature Date
Capacity of
Additional Supervisor


S C H OOL R E S OU R C E S

HOD/HOS/DepChair/
Authorised staff member

Confirm Resources
Available for this project
Yes No
Signature Date

F A C U L T Y P OS T G R A DU A T E C OMMI T T E E E N D OR S E ME N T

Associate Dean (name)
Signature Date

E MB A R G O A P P R OV A L

This research has been approved as confidential and an embargo of months approved.
Associate Dean (name)
Signature Date

PGR1 Postgraduate Research Proposal V1.0 Update Nov12 Page 3 of 5
R E S E A R C H P R OP OS A L

Provide 2-3 pages containing a description of your proposed research. Use the following headings.

Title
Virtual Objects Interacting with and Augmenting Physical Objects.

Abstract/Summary: (100 words or fewer)
The purpose of this research is to explore the present and future implications of virtual and
physical interaction, as well as explore the benefits of the hybridisation of physical and digital
objects when fused.

Literature/Past Research Review
As technology rapidly grows in sophistication, so does its uses. There is a noticeable trend
emerging of virtual/digital devices outclassing their physical counterparts. The most renowned
examples of this would be when countering the problems of people with disabilities and helping
them lead more comfortable lives. For example, the people at Liftlabs have addressed the
difficulty that people with Parkinsons disease have while eating; The Liftlab spoon constantly
steadies itself thanks to an embedded computer that takes the motion signals detected by the
sensors, identifies the user's tremor, and then moves the spoon in the opposite direction of that
tremor (Pathak, 2013).

The interaction between the digital and physical of this example is the digital code with the
physical component. This is what is called an adaptive interface, which is a modern tactic that
can be applied to a system to increase its utility (Brown, 2012). This overall simple idea was one
of many that were not possible until the combination of the internet and emerging technologies
such as near-field communications, real-time localisation, and embedded sensors. With these
techniques we can turn everyday objects into smart objects that understand and react to their
environment (Kortuem, Kawsar, Fitton, Sundramoorthy, 2010).

A more traditional fusion of digital and physical, and one many expect to see more of in the
future, is the interactable surface. Even 8 years ago, the technology to have a sophisticated
touchscreen with multiple points of interaction already existed (Han, 2006). Currently there are
many active projects utilising interactable surfaces such as The Slow Floor; which utilised sound
and pressure sensors to evoke immersive, visual descriptions of dark solitary places (Feltham,
Loke, 2014).

Our everyday life is becoming surrounded by new hybridisation of physical and digital artefacts.
Now even being embraced by non-technological industries such as fast-food chains allowing
people to visualise a pizza as they construct it (Honig, 2014). What is needed now is an
understanding of these emerging technologies and exploration into which integrations makes
sense. (Terrenghi, 2014)









PGR1 Postgraduate Research Proposal V1.0 Update Nov12 Page 4 of 5
Design/Plan of the Study:
In order to analyse the concept of digital and physical interaction, I will need to examine
inventions (and more prevalently, modifications of inventions) that fulfil a need in society or
replace an older, physical object with a more convenient hybrid of digital and physical. Using
applied context, I will examine further examples of digital/virtual-to-physical integration (in this
instance, virtual and digital are interchangeable) as well as plans being made for the future of
technological advances in this area.

In order to further explore the concept, I plan to create/recreate a project that encompasses the
ideas of digital-to-physical interaction. Since this is my first time exploring this area of study, I am
going to begin by focusing on digital replacing physical by creating an app that takes the idea and
uses of a physical tool; specifically a tape measure, and ideally replaces it. The app will cover all
the functionality of a physical tape-measure, but be completely contained within a smartphone
or tablet device. In doing so I hope to learn about the process and difficulties that are to be
overcome when attempting a hybridisation of this kind.

Ethics
This project will not require ethical approval because it is inoffensive and harmless.

Resources and Budget
This project will require a smartphone, computer, and app-creating technology.

Location
The study will be conducted solely at AUT


Timetable for Completion
Duration Activity
Week 1-2 Initial concept of Design Plans
Week 2-6 Research into app design
Week 6-10 App construction
Week 10-12 App testing and bug fixing
Week 12-14 Evaluation













PGR1 Postgraduate Research Proposal V1.0 Update Nov12 Page 5 of 5
References
Brown. (2014). Intersection of the Physical and Digital Worlds | UX Magazine. Uxmag.com.
Retrieved 25 April 2014, from http://uxmag.com/articles/intersection-of-the-physical-and-
digital-worlds

Moore. (2014). Smart spoon may help stabilize Parkinson's tremors. Retrieved 1 May 2014, from
http://www.cbsnews.com/news/smart-spoon-may-help-stabilize-parkinsons-tremors/

Feltham, Loke. (2014). The Slow Floor: towards an awareness of bodily movement through
interactive walking surfaces. Academia.edu. Retrieved 28 April 2014, from
http://www.academia.edu/3191139/The_Slow_Floor_towards_an_awareness_of_bodily_mov
ement_through_interactive_walking_surfaces

Han. (2014). Transcript of "The radical promise of the multi-touch interface". Ted.com. Retrieved
29 April 2014, from
http://www.ted.com/talks/jeff_han_demos_his_breakthrough_touchscreen/transcript

Honig. (2014). Pizza Hut's concept touch table lets you swipe your way to a perfect pie
(video). Engadget. Retrieved 3 May 2014, from
http://www.engadget.com/2014/03/03/pizza-hut-touch-table/

Kortuem, Kawsar, Fitton, & Sundramoorthy. (2010). Smart objects as building blocks for the
Internet of things. Internet Computing, IEEE, 14(1), 44-51. Retrieved 5 May 2014, from
http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/xpl/login.jsp?tp=&arnumber=5342399&url=http%3A%2F%2Fieeexp
lore.ieee.org%2Fstamp%2Fstamp.jsp%3Ftp%3D%26arnumber%3D5342399

Terrenghi (2014). Designing Hybris Interaction through an Understanding of the
Affordances of Physical and Digital Technologies. University of Cambridge.
Retrieved 6 May 2014, from
http://www.cl.cam.ac.uk/events/tangibleinterfaces/TUIworkshop-Terrenghi.pdf