CalmAR: Envisioning calm and intelligent near-future AR experiences

It is widely believed that wearable augmented reality (AR) smart glasses will be the next paradigm of personal  computing. AR smart glasses are so enticing because they offer immediate and ubiquitous access to information. But this  great potential also comes with many possible pitfalls. It will be tempting for users to cram as much information as they  can into the real world, which could lead to information overload, lack of focus on primary tasks, and distraction from  real-world tasks or people. Thus, AR smart glasses need to be smarter about what information they present, and  when/where/how that information is presented. By sensing and/or inferring the context of use, these systems could  make context-aware, adaptive decisions about what is displayed. We see a critical need for careful design of future  intelligent AR systems. The principles of “calm technology” provide a framework for this design. In this project, we  propose to explore the design space of “calmAR,” which we define as intelligent AR interfaces designed using calm  technology principles. CalmAR interfaces are intended to promote mental well-being and a balanced life, by being  unobtrusive, not distracting, not overwhelming, and not dangerous, while still providing utility to users in the form of  enhanced productivity, accuracy, and decision-making effectiveness. While we want to promote the typical user  experience components of usefulness and usability, we will also focus on the emotional impact of the experience.