EYE CATCHER

source: interactivearchitectureorg

Using a combination of industrial robotics and high power magnets, a seemingly inconspicuous frame on a wall, magically comes to life. Through a series of experimental films, photography and physical prototypes, the primitive effects of eye (and eye-like) stimuli have been investigated. The Eye Catcher project in its conclusion has developed a novel expressive interface where emotion recognition algorithms read audience faces and in-turn trigger the animation of a face formed of ferrofluid.

As people walk by, unaware of the interactive installation, out of the corner of their eye, they see an unexpected movement. Turning their head, they find an empty frame on the wall appearing to move towards them and as they stop in disbelief it positions itself to look straight at them. Suddenly from the murky black liquid sitting in the bottom of the frame, two primordial pupils rise up and seem to stare back at its viewer. A hidden pinhole camera in the frame captures the facial expressions of the onlooker and responds with a range of emotions crafted out of the subtle manipulation of motion cues. An uncanny and playful interaction is formed as expressions are exchanged.
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source: fastcolabs

The simple wooden frame hangs nondescriptly on the wall, until its motion sensors spot a passerby. That initiates the “face to face” alignment, powered by a magnetic “puppeteer” arm behind the wall. The hidden pinhole camera transmits the live video footage to the software, which uses emotional recognition algorithms to analyze face expressions. The ferrofluid “eyes” in the frame, controlled by four servo/magnets, begin to react, producing abstract, drippy, floating forms.

“Eye Catcher” is an interactive project from Lin Zhang and Ran Xie, combining receptive software and analog mechanics. It reads your facial expression and expresses itself accordingly, in the form of two morphing black liquid blobs. They’re quite expressive… for blobs.

“There are many digital interfaces that have the appearance of advanced technologies and compete for our attention,” Lin Zhang tells We Make Money Not Art. “But I think it is better to develop interfaces that rather than standing out, can sit within our normal daily lives and then come to life at the right moment whether for functional or playful purposes.” That’s sneaky, and pretty great.