Airhockey over a distance: a networked physical game to support social interactions

  • Authors:

  • Florian 'Floyd' Mueller;Luke Cole;Shannon O'Brien;Wouter Walmink

  • Affiliations:

  • Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation, ICT Centre, Canberra, Australia;Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation, ICT Centre, Canberra, Australia;Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation, ICT Centre, Canberra, Australia;Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation, ICT Centre, Canberra, Australia

  • Venue:
  • Proceedings of the 2006 ACM SIGCHI international conference on Advances in computer entertainment technology
  • Year:
  • 2006

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Abstract

In modern society, people increasingly lack social interaction, even though it is beneficial to professional and personal life. Airhockey Over a Distance aims to work against this trend by recreating the social experience and rapport facilitated by physical, casual game play in a distributed environment. We networked two airhockey tables and augmented them with a videoconference. Concealed mechanics on each table allow for a physical puck to be shot back and forth between the two locations, creating a perceived physical shared space between the participants. The hitting of a fast-moving, tangible puck between the two players creates a compelling social game experience which can support social interactions and contribute to an increased connectedness between people who are physically apart.