Pillows as Adaptive Interfaces

Pillows as Adaptive Interfaces in Ambient Environments [1]


This paper describes use of electronically-augmented pillows to provide increased human-computer interaction.


  1. The research described in this paper attempts to take the context in which the user is working, measuring parameters in an unobtrusive way, into account to adapt the user's interface to the computing environment.
  2. They reference Donald Norman's model of “Seven Stages of Action”, which is from his book, The Design of Everyday Things.
  3. Uses a center-of-gravity style computation over taxels in the pillow to classify the kind of interaction the user is having. An “event” is defined to be what occurs between times when the taxel center of gravity is equal to the actual center of the surface.
  4. They use a finite state machine model to control the adaptation process of interaction between the user and the pillow. Pillow states include "sleeping", "gaming", and "device" (remote control). Transitions include "waking up", "tune in", and "fading out".


  1. The system attempts to “improve” the user's experience by suggesting a game when it detects boredom.
  2. The user doesn't interact with the pillow in a natural way: It is no longer just a pillow, but one that is touch sensitive and includes a display and vibrator.
  3. The language is awkward in places, making meaning difficult to determine.
  4. The only evaluation is a qualitative elicitation study.
1. Frank Nack, Thecla Schiphorst, Zeljko Obrenovic, Michiel KauwATjoe, Simon de Bakker, Angel Perez Rosillio, Lora Aroyo, Pillows as Adaptive Interfaces in Ambient Environments.