Google Nebula was a collaboration with Sara Ferris and Jiacheng Yang during a Google sponsored studio at Art Center College of design.
The prompt was to design tools for creators in the year 2025 using AR and VR.
Nebula allows any physical toy or object to act as a controller for things in a digital space.
Kids between the ages of 4 and 8 naturally use common objects to imagine and create stories. Nebula builds on this natural trait to create a new digital experience utilizing physical objects.
USER FLOW: SETTING UP A SCENE AND A TOY
Nebula allows any physical toy or object to act as a controller for things in a digital space.
Kids between the ages of 4 and 8 naturally use common objects to imagine and create stories. Nebula builds on this natural trait to create a new digital experience utilizing physical objects.
USER FLOW: SETTING UP A SCENE AND A TOY
User taps 'New World' to begin
"Nebula, we are in space!"
Using their voice the user sets the scene's environment
The system recognizes when they place a water bottle onto the mat asks to scan it into the scene.
The user taps the scan button and begins scanning the toy
The system uses both the phone and television screens to guide the user through the scanning process
A 3D model of the object is created and placed into the scene.
The user decides to change it's appearance so they press the 'change skin' button on the phone
"Nebula I want a dragon!"
The user is taken to a library of 3D meshes from Google poly. They use their voice to specify their desire for a dragon character
A menu of dragons appears and they tap on the dragon they like
They now can see the dragon in the scene and are able to move it around using their physical water bottle.
Conductive fabric enables movement through the digital environment
SYSTEM DIAGRAM
PRODUCT SKEMATIC
USER FLOW: CREATING AND SHARING A STORY
Nebula YouTube curates public content that was created using the Nebula mat
PROCESS
We started by making an audit of upcoming tech and experimenting with newer technology that is available in the market.
We found the a tracking physical objects in a digital space to be a very rewarding and unique experience.
After ideation and deciding on a concept, we explored the relationship between the phone and television screen using paper prototypes
User Testing
We conducted two sessions of user testing with a 8 and 12 year old child
Key Insights
When discovering ability to edit scene with voice kids can ask for outrageous commands. Our interface had to slow down that flow enough to not over load the processor but also maintain the users' interest
Users quickly expect mat to be able to track any object and will start grabbing things to see what they can do on the screen.
Mat has to be strong enough to hold during aggressive swiping yet soft enough to invite that interaction
