Gumlink is a large, international chewing gum research and manufacturing company with approximately 450 employees. We have worked with Gumlink to create interactive elements for their booth at the world's largest annual sweets convention, ISM, which is held in Germany and hosts more than 35.000 visitors. Our collaboration with Gumlink spanned a year, from initial field studies at the convention, through concept and product development, to the launch of the installations a year after the initial studies. Our collaboration with CAVI resulted in two interactive installations, the Gum Facade and the Gum Console, that were part of Gumlink's sales stand at ISM 2006. Videos of the installations are available below.
Demonstrators
The gum console is a walk-up-and-use interactive console with the following components: a screen on which information about Gumlink and their products and services are displayed, a narrow strip of matte glass under which a camera connected to a computer are placed, and five tangible boxes with colour codes at the bottom, each representing a service or product, which can be slid across the glass to navigate the information on the display. The console is placed at the entrance to the approximately 100m2 stand. The purpose of the console is to attract visitors who may be hesitant to engage in conversations with sales staff at the stand, but are still interested in getting to know the company. The console serves as a portal between the exterior and interior of the stand.
The gum facade is placed along one of the exterior walls of the stand. It consists of four screens connected to form one large display. Above the display, a camera tracks people who approach or walk past the stand. The video feed from the camera is processed by software that identifies faces. The images of faces of passers-by are then captured and represented live, in the shape of orbs on the display. The orbs exist in a 3D space showered by small gum tablets. By moving around in front of the display, users control the orbs that interact with the showering tablets and other orbs. The purpose is to create attention and attract visitors who may otherwise not notice the stand. The intended use-time for the console is 10 seconds to 2 minutes.
Prototypes
As part of the development process with Gumlink A/S the following video prototypes has been produced:
CAVI
