Playware technology for physically activating play

Abstract

We present and use the robotic building block concept to create playware. Playware is the use of intelligent technology to create the kinds of leisure activity we normally label play, i.e., intelligent hard- and software that aims at producing play and playful experiences among users. The technological concept of physical building blocks with processing, input, and output (including communication) is derived from embodied artificial intelligence that emphasizes the role of interplay between morphology and control. We exemplify the building block concept with the tangible tiles that we created as components for a new kind of playground on which children can experience immediate feedback on their motions. Hence, this kind of playground allows the implementation of games and plays that demand physical activity amongst the users, and thereby contribute as a new tool in the fight against obesity. The tangible tiles are homogenous building blocks, which gives assembly, substitution, and production advantages. However, we may also create a system of heterogeneous building blocks, e.g., by adding special-purpose tiles such as loud-speaker tiles. We performed tests with the tangible tiles placed at a school for 2 months' continuous use.