Wearable Computer Projects: Kiva Smart Room: Interactive Physical and Digital Workspace

Asim Smailagic and Dan Siewiorek, Human Computer Interaction Institute

The Kiva is a web-based, asynchronous collaboration tool.  By providing the digital equivalent of dedicated project rooms, multiple teams can share non-dedicated physical interactive spaces, saving and restoring specific project rooms at the "flip of a switch."

A Kiva has both physical and digital aspects. Non-dedicated physical Kiva rooms, enhanced with many digital tools and novel interactive devices, support co-located group collaboration. Persistent virtual representations of group project rooms create dedicated workspaces that can be restored for seamless in-room or mobile work (where ever and whenever necessary). Powerful Kiva Tools support the generation, organization, sharing, storage, and retrieval of group project and meeting information. Shared "thinking" and "presentation" surfaces support multiple modes of collaboration: knowledge generation and knowledge transfer. Furthermore, the Kiva supports the nomadic character of today's project teams. Mobile extensions facilitate remote collaboration as well as individual work outside the context of group meetings.