Blended space

A blended space is an area in which the physical environment and virtual environment are oriented in such a way that together they create a experience of being in an entirely new environment.[1][2] While in a blended space, a person's cultural and cognitive models subconsciously obscure the borders between the physical and digital spaces to create a feeling, called presence,[1] of a unified space.[3] The interaction between the person and the space, and the related feedback, are what creates the sense of presence and separates the blended space from mixed reality.[1]

History

The idea of blending comes out of metaphor theory. Metaphors allow people to combine concepts from one area and apply them to another, often without thought. Metaphor theory has led cognitive scientists, such as Gilles Fauconnier and Mark Turner, to ideas of conceptual blending. Concepts from one area are not just applied to another, the two areas are combined to create an entirely new space that is different from either of the two original areas.[1]
Blended Space design also comes from user experience research and design. The feelings a person experiences in a space are the focus of user experience design. In a blended space, designers can target certain feelings by understanding the blend of the space. User experience design and theory has allowed for effective blended spaces to be designed.[1]

Describing spaces

Conceptual Blending in Mixed Reality Spaces

There are two main components to any space. They are:

  1. Objects – The actual distinct objects which make up the medium/space. The objects thus effectively describe the space.
  2. Agents – Correspondents/users inside the space who interact with it through the objects.[1]


For presence in a blended space, there must be a physical space and a digital space. In the context of blended space, the higher the communication between the physical and digital spaces, the richer the experience.[1] This communication happens through the medium of correspondents which relay the state and nature of objects.
For the purpose of looking at blended spaces, the nature and characteristics of any space can be represented by these factors:

  1. Ontology – Different types of objects present in the space the total number of objects and the relationships between objects and the space.
  2. Topology – The way objects are placed and positioned.
  3. Volatility – Frequency with which the objects change.
  4. Agency – Medium of communication between the objects, and between the objects and users. Agency also encompasses the users inside the space.


Physical Space – Physical spaces are spaces which afford spatial interaction.[4] This kind of spatial interaction greatly impacts the user's cognitive model.[5]
Digital Space – Digital space (also called the information space) consists of all the information content. This content can be in any form.[3]

Structure

The simplest implementation of a blended space requires two features. The first required feature is input. The input can range from tactile, to changes in the environment. The next required feature is notifications received from the digital spaces. The correspondences between the physical and digital space have to be abstracted and exploited by the design of the blended space. Seamless integration of both the spaces is rare. Blended spaces need anchoring points or technologies to link the spaces.[2]
A well designed blended space advertises and conveys the digital content in a subtle and unobtrusive way. Presence can be measured using physiological, behavioral, and subjective measures derived from the space.[6]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Benyon, David (2014). Spaces of Interaction, Places for Experience (1 ed.). Morgan and Claypool. p. 97. ISBN 9781608457724.
  2. 1 2 Benyon, David (July 2012). "Presence in Blended Spaces". Interacting with Computers. 24 (4): 219–226. doi:10.1016/j.intcom.2012.04.005.
  3. 1 2 Benyon, David (2012). Designing Blended Spaces (PDF). BCS-HCI '12 Proceedings of the 26th Annual BCS Interaction Specialist Group Conference on People and Computers. dl.acm.org. BCS-HCI. pp. 398–403.
  4. ↑ Dourish, Paul. Implications for Design. Proceedings of the SIGCHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems. dl.acm.org. SIGHCI. doi:10.1145/1124772.1124855.
  5. ↑ Buxton, Bill (2009). "Mediaspace – Meaningspace – Meetingspace". Media Space 20 + Years of Mediated Life. www.springer.com/us/. Springer. pp. 217–231. doi:10.1007/978-1-84882-483-6_13. ISBN 978-1-84882-482-9.
  6. ↑ Benyon, David; Imaz, Manuel (2007). Designing with blends (1 ed.). Cambridge, Mass. & London: MIT Press. pp. 209–218. ISBN 9780262090421.
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