Use of tangible marks with optical frame interactive surfaces in collaborative design scenarios based on blended spaces

[EN] Teamwork is habitual in engineering and industrial design projects, and it is particularly beneficial in the early stages of design in which the creativity plays a major role. In fact, many creativity techniques only make sense if they are developed in multidisciplinary work groups. In these early stages communication and exchange of ideas between the members of a team plays a key role, and therefore a major concern in this first working sessions is to avoid introducing barriers that may impair the communication process. Technology undoubtedly improves the exchange of information between team members, however sometimes can be a barrier in the early creative stages where communication must be direct and personal. Meetings where designers sit around a table to discuss or generate new ideas following some method of creativity (brainstorming, etc...) are usual. In this way the systems based on Natural Interfaces play a determinant role by enabling to hide the technology, making it transparent to the users, avoiding learning curves and thus interfering as little as possible in the creative process, but nonetheless exploiting the advantages that technology offers.