What you Sculpt is What you Get: Modeling Physical Interactive Devices with Clay and 3D Printed Widgets

We present a method for fabricating prototypes of interactive computing devices from clay sculptures without requiring the designer to be skilled in CAD software. The method creates a "what you sculpt is what you get" process that mimics the "what you see is what you get" processes used in interface design for 2D screens. Our approach uses clay for modeling the basic shape of the device around 3D printed representations, which we call "blanks", of physical interaction widgets such as buttons, sliders, knobs and other electronics. Each blank includes 4 fiducial markers uniquely arranged on a visible surface. After scanning the sculpture, these fiducial marks allow our software to identify widget types and locations in the scanned model. The software then converts the scan into a printable prototype by positioning mounting surfaces, openings for the controls and a splitting plane for assembly. Because the blanks fit in the sculpted shape, they will reliably fit in the interactive prototype. Creating an interactive prototype requires about 30 minutes of human effort for sculpting, and after scanning, involves a single button click to use the process.