Logo for the Convergence Design Lab at Purdue University

Keywords

Maker Culture, Block Programming, Live Programming, Internet of Things

CCS Concepts

• Human-centered computing → Open source software; User interface toolkits.

Abstract

Microcontrollers are a popular tool to use when designing electro-mechanical devices with low-level functionality, and those with more complex, high-level functionality. Block-based programming interfaces are ideal environments to program physical computing devices, lowering the barrier of entry for novice programmers. The advent of live programming yields a more engaging and thorough process of programming such devices but leaves much to be desired due to primitive functionalities or high barriers of entry. To understand the impact of live programming on designing complex electro-mechanical devices, we developed a plug-and-play electronics module and an accompanying block-based live programming environment. We conducted an evaluation study with 4 expert users to elicit critical feedback and validity, followed by a user study with 15 youths (age=11-18). The results show that our system helps reduce the barrier to entry for youths to create electro-mechanical devices with advanced functionalities and a novice understanding of the field at baseline.

This work is currently under review for the CHI 2022 submission cycle. For further details, please feel free to contact me directly!

Teaser figure from the IoT Maker Paper that shows how the system works.
IoT Maker is a web app that uses live programming to simulate various electronic devices. Users (a) drag-and-drop blocks of code into the programming environment and (b) watch their code execute in real-time on the screen, while interacting with sensors via sliders, buttons, and color pickers. Once the user has a sufficient understanding of the functionality of their code, they can (c) upload the code to our customized iBoard, and (d) connect their phone, tablet, or computer to the iBoard, and control the electronics via WiFi.