The Augmented School Desk is a smart artifact which integrates AmI technologies in the classroom learning process
The Augmented School Desk was designed as an additional piece of furniture that can be added to fit typical school desks of standard dimensions according to EU normative. In order to make the desk compatible with the school of today, it was designed so as to support paper-based learning materials and the use of handwriting, by adopting vision techniques on the front part of the desk and integrating a smart pen. In addition, the desk supports multi-touch interaction and shape recognition, and integrates a variety of applications targeted to the heart of the learning process. The “Augmented ClassBook” augments the physical book by integrating handwriting and supporting the learning process through context – aware content sensitive assistance. Elements of interest within a page are selectable and upon selection relevant content is dynamically gathered and displayed. Likewise, the “Exercise Assistant” enables students to solve an exercise electronically whilst context-sensitive help is available to assist them to accomplish their tasks. To develop critical thinking skills, help is presented gradually and the auxiliary “Multimedia Viewer” can also display relevant multimedia content to facilitate comprehension.
