Rapid Smart Environment Prototyping for Early Conceptual Design

Smart environments involving various IoT devices and people in large spaces have become popular yet challenging subject matters of design. Prototyping smart environments reflecting user experiences is expensive and time consuming. Few methods and tools have been investigated to address the needs of the iterative rapid prototyping of the design subjects involving complex interactions in the early design phases. This doctoral research involves investigating methods and tools for rapid smart environment prototyping in the early phase of a design process. Experimental prototyping systems based on conceptual frameworks for dealing with people's interactions in smart environments are proposed and evaluated with professionals in the design field. This research will add to the knowledge on prototyping tools and methods for designers and will contribute to the professional practice of designing inter-connected interactive systems that multiple users use in spaces.