From Research to Product: Smart Workspaces

A group of Fuji Xerox research scientists developed a suite of solutions based on their theoretical research. I used several techniques to help them imagine new applications and build robust prototypes.

After observing Fuji Xerox researcher’s early prototypes, it was obvious that more robust testing platforms were needed. Their methodology was iterative, but their prototypes were one-off and custom built. The construction methods used were not always structurally sound. Shipping a prototype could cause alignment problems. The prototypes were also susceptible to falling over or accidentally being pushed out of alignment.

To solve this problem, a new set of prototype platforms were developed. The first was based on a freestanding lamp. The second was an instrumented table. Both prototypes made use of the same fitting and attachment hardware. All hardware was 3D printed as needed.

Several of these lamp testbeds were produced. A metal fabricator was hired to build the basic structure. A lampshade manufacturer was hired to fabricate custom lampshades. As noted earlier, all fittings were 3D printed in-house as needed. A variety of technologies were attached to them. Research scientists in Japan and the United States were able to share advancements.

These technologies can be applied to many situations. To better understand our potential users, I observed mobile workers — asking questions when appropriate. One thing became very clear: we had overestimated the differences between US and Japanese mobile workers. They used similar techniques to solve similar problems in similar settings. My observations generated many ideas for potential applications. I will only include a few of them in this case study. These observations eventually inspired more rigorous ethnographic studies.

Fuji Xerox makes copy machines known as Multi-function Devices or MFDs. I produced concept art depicting these devices powered by the same camera & projector technologies we demonstrated in our office lamp concept. Free from the technical constraints of traditional MFDs, these new variations could take any form. In the animation below, the MFDs resemble eggs. I wasn’t necessarily proposing that a billion dollar company make egg shaped copy machines. I wanted Fuji Xerox’s engineers to free themselves from the notion that an MFD had to be a large beige box.

These evocative images helped the research scientists imagine new applications for their work. It also helped them explain the value of the research. In an era of shrinking research budgets, these illustrations became a valuable tool.

The tabletop testing rig that I designed was used more than any other. To date, it’s been used to demonstrate more than a half dozen technologies. As before, I hired a metal fabricator to build the basic structure. Hardware was attached to standardized pipes via custom printed fittings. An entirely new piece of hardware could be securely attached to the testing platform in a day or less.

User interactions were recorded with a novel camera projector technology we called Tabletop Telepresence (TTT). TTT was well engineered, capturing over 99% of valid user inputs. Unfortunately, in practice, the technology was hard to use. Each button featured a container, a label, and a colored band. The system needed to observe a finger occluding the central portion of that band for a touch to be recognized. Users had a hard time remembering where, on the button, to touch. I added simple signifiers to the projected user interface—this dramatically improved the overall experience.

As the platforms improved so did the technology demonstrations. As they improved, I was able to help the team envision more complete scenarios, based on our evolving understanding of user stories. I worked with experienced filmmakers to produce “vision videos” — videos that explore a near-future scenario based on new technology.

Towards the end of this project we began to investigate interactions that weren't related to the future of work. One such idea was a tourism kiosk. Fuji Xerox is contributing to the 2020 (now 2021) Olympics effort in Tokyo. We were investigating ways that we could place local knowledge into the environment. Touchless interfaces are plagued by discoverability issues. The lack of obvious physical signifiers tends to hide important functionality. My solution was to incorporate existing tourism marketing material into the UI design—giving potential users a set of enticing goals before they even started using the device. I also added one big obvious signifier, a place to stand that clearly mapped to an interactive screen. Once a user was in the right spot, the system would begin reacting to them. These subtle changes to the research prototype would allow users to explore the UI with much less instruction. An associated smartphone app further enhanced the interaction.

We built a fairly roust prototype to test the UI. I had a metal fabricator modify an existing monitor stand to act as a testbed for all of our kiosk projects. Provisions were devised to attach various sensors, cameras, and projectors. These fittings were 3D printed, often based on measurements taken of alpha or otherwise pre-release devices. This particular testing rig was developed with mobility in mind. This allowed the research staff to test interactions in a variety of settings. Over a two-year period, multiple iterations of the initial concept were user tested. In the end, our kiosk work was not productized.

Eventually, this project solely focused on work booths for mobile workers. Observations and ethnographic work revealed that many office workers in Japan have commutes of nearly an hour. Also, approximately one-quarter of them work in offices without enough space to fully support work activities. Many of these commuters aspire to work in non-traditional settings. Cafes and co-working spaces are popular with mobile workers. Somewhat uniquely, many Japanese mobile workers wish to perform work-related tasks while commuting; often stopping in busy transportation hubs for 45 minutes or more. Co-working spaces are too far away to support this relatively short-duration work. Cafes lack privacy and other affordances. Single-person work booths, placed within Japan’s rail systems were identified as a solution for these workers.

I worked with several designers and research scientists to understand what features work booths needed and what features added no value. As difficult as it was to accept, many of the technologies that we looked at didn’t add value. Abandoned features included Mixed reality, telepresence, and smart cameras that could understand the state of the booth (clean, dirty, or accidentally left open) and the state of the user (normal, ill, or about to run out of their scheduled time). Important features include location; ease of scheduling; help to find the booth; the comfort of the booth; and supporting workers’ equipment with a large screen, power, and wifi. The booths didn’t include any touchless technologies. Interestingly, by supporting workers’ existing equipment we were also fostering many of the video conferencing behaviors that we sought to support with Tabletop Telepresence technologies.

Our lab’s mission was not to produce actual products. While our research absolutely included product thinking, our job was to transfer our findings to colleagues in Japan who would use our research to produce the final product. During productized, our role became increasingly advisory.

After a successful pilot, Fuji Xerox launched CocoDesk. There are now approximately 100 of these personal work booths at commuting hubs across Japan. The product was developed in partnership with Toyo Metro and other rail lines.

My final contribution to this effort was to imagine applications for this technology in a post-COVID-19 world. A world where we still want to travel, but without the health risks associated with many people interacting with just a few people. I’ve never been a fan of an overly automated future, so I tried to imagine human-in-the-loop applications for touchless technologies.

In my home studio, I have the same production capabilities as I did when I produced these renderings, animations and prototypes. From animation to 3D printing, I have the knowledge and equipment to do the job elegantly and efficiently.

TL;DR

I used a multidisciplinary approach to improve, explain, and ultimately ignore an important new technology.