The impact of haptic devices on designers and the design process

The recent advent of haptic devices (one of the tangible user interface technologies for design) offers designers a new and more intuitive way to interact with their digital design representations using sensory feedback. However, there is limited empirical evidence about the impact of these new devices on the effectiveness and creativity of design. This project aimed to explore the impact of haptic devices on two designers and the design process, and to compare the changes in behaviours and outcomes when designers move from traditional design environments to a haptic device setting. Using protocol analysis, the designers were videorecorded performing similar design tasks in four design environments: Clay modelling; CAD; a haptic interface, and both sketching and haptic. A unique coding system (capturing physical, perceptual, functional and conceptual cognitive design levels) indicated the most frequently demonstrated action categories were Physical and Perceptual. No substantial differences were observed between the actions of each designer in each design environment (intra-and inter-participant), showing that haptic devices as new design interfaces support the four types of design actions. This preliminary study provides valuable directions for future research into these devices and their effects on the design process and on types of design.