8/9/2019 Wiimote Presentation

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ABSTRACT

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WiiMotes as Classroom Tools

We are developing and evalua7ng interac7ve teaching tools

using the Wii hand controller. The controllers for the Wii gaming

console are ubiquitous not only as a gaming device, but as a

hackable interface for physical interac7on. We have iden7fied

a variety of uses for them in classrooms as clickers or as a

remote pointer to draw on a virtual screen from 50 feet or as

means of detec7ng whether people are paying aHen7on. This

project developed a prototype mul7Wii pointer and is conduct

basic usability evalua7ons on them in a classroom seKng. The

evalua7on looks at small groups (less than 8 students) tasked

with agreeing on routes on a map. The project is in partnership

with the Innova7on Space (formerly known as the New Media

Center) that has offered us development space and a classroom

to 7nker with if we need it

Prior WiiMote Projects

Last semester we developed several applica7ons for

the WiiMote to determine possibili7es for its use in

the classroom. We also wanted to test its limita7ons.

Poor Mans White BoardThis project consists of a apparatus that maintains a wiimotes exact posi7on facing a piece of paper. The posi7on of

the wiimote has been calibrated with the soware so that the movements of an IR light pen on the piece of paper will

be recorded by the soware. The apparatus serves to keep the wiimote in the same posi7on rela7ve to the piece of

paper so that there is no soware calibra7on necessary.

The point of this project was to demonstrate that students could use a wiimote to create real handwri7ng input. The

hope was that a professor could have a presenta7on goingand ask students a complicated ques7on that could not be

easily answered by verbal communica7on. The students would be able to get out the apparatus described above and

could write with fine detail the answer to the ques7on. In fact the apparatus is just as easy to use as a pen and paper

and records wriHen input in very good detail. This project could be used with one student or mul7ple students. For

instance if the teacher wanted students to collaborate on a difficult problem the students would be able to pick an area

on the projectors screen using a wiimote where they wanted their input to display. They would then aHach the

wiimote to their apparatus and use their IR pen to draw the input they want to show up on the professors screen.

Mul7ple students could do this at the same 7me and they could collaborate to solve the problem. It would be easy to

see what everyone else was thinking and drawing.

Remote Annota7onThis project allows a user to draw on a computer screen or projected

computer screen using a wiimote. The user can point their wiimote at

the computer screen and a cursor will show up where the user is

poin7ng. The user can press a buHon and start drawing lines. Up to 8

users can currently draw at one 7me, but this limit can be increased.

This project is ideal for in class slide shows. Students can use their

wiimotes to draw on a slide show which would help them more easily ask

ques7ons. Students could also answer ques7ons posed by a professor.

In the event of a discussion students could indicate parts of the slide

show they want to address while talking.

Affinity Diagram Interac7onThis project allows mul7ple users to move around colored blocks on the

screen. The blocks are supposed to represent ideas or objects, they are

different colors and different sizes. You can create new blocks but the

point of the program is to demonstrate that mul7ple users could all work

together to group the blocks.

One applica7on for this program would be an affinity diagram where

mul7ple users group all the notes they have taken into conceptual groups.

This program demonstrates the collabora7on capabili7es of the wiimotes.

It allows many people to collaborate together to accomplish a task.

Grouping objects together with a group of people would be much easier

using the wiimote.

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The WiiMote has a lot of sophis7cated hardware

for its rela7vely cheap price. For our purposes

we have mainly been focusing on its infrared

camera. The camera senses IR light and uses

hardware to track up to four points of IR light.

Its interface provides the x,y center point

coordinates for the IR sources on its camera

screen and also the radius of the light source.

By placing IR LEDs below a screen we can tell

where a WiiMote is poin7ng by looking at the

loca7ons of the IR LEDs on the WiiMotes

camera.

2

These are the IR LEDS that the WiiMote tracks.

We use two standard IR LEDs which can be

tracked by the WiiMote from over thrity feet

away.

3

The WiiMote can be paired with a computer

over Bluetooth. This is how a computer

program can retrieve data from the WiiMote

and figure out where its poin7ng.

4

A computer runs the soware which takes the

data from the WiiMote ,interprets it, and

decides what to do. Our programs all

communicate with a projector which allows

users to visually interact with a screen.

5The computer connects to the projector s o that

output from a computer program can be

displayed. This is how we envision the WiiMote

being used in a classroom seKng.

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WHEN ZOMBIES ATTACK

HOW IT WORKS

We are currently conduc7ng a study to collect data from the use of WiiMotes in a class room seKng. We

hope to determine if our system is easy to use and also look at how students collaborate in a classroom

when given WiiMotes.

For the study there will be a group of eight students broken up into four teams of two. The scenario is

that students are at the duck pond when all of a s udden Zombies aHack. Students will be asked to explain

and indicate with annota7ons what they would do and where they would go from the duck pond. Aer

each group explains the ac7ons they would take to avoid Zombies, they will be asked to explain and

cri7que the ac7ons of the other groups. A map of the Virginia Tech Campus will be displayed on aprojec7on screen. The students will be able to use WiiMotes to draw on the map and point at it to explain

their ac7ons.

Thanks to my Advisors

Steve arrison, Laurian Vega, Deborah Tatar, and Bill

Plymale from the Innova7on Space.

Jeffrey Brabant Advisors : Steve arrison, Deborah Tatar,and Laurian Vega

Tuesday, April 27, 2010