Interactive tabletop is fundamentally a social entity that allows people to gather around it and to engage in various tasks, individually or in a group. Typically, every table is anchored in an environment and has a single shaped surface, which limits its usage to specific goals and needs. In fact, people will sometime replace tables and move them around according to changing tasks.
We present TransformTable, an interactive digital table that physically changes its position and deform from/into one of the three shapes: round, square or rectangular. Both the transformation and movement functions can be mechanically and electrically actuated via a simple surface interface or an external computer program. The table surface can be transformed to match different tasks, social settings or content, allowing users to have the workspace that best matches a specific task. TransformTable can also progressively perform self-actuated transformation and movement, which guides users’ spatial behaviors and interactions to help them better handle the space surrounding it.

Presenter(s)

Yusuke Asari, Research Institute Of Electrical Communication, Tohoku University
Kazuki Takashima, Research Institute Of Electrical Communication, Tohoku University
Yoshifumi Kitamura, Research Institute Of Electrical Communication, Tohoku University