FrameTalk: Human and Picture Frame Interaction through the IoT Technology

The concept of frame plays a significant role in art design. However, traditional picture frames do not offer human interaction. To create a new dimension of graphic artwork demonstration, we utilize the Internet of Things (IoT) technology to develop human and digital frame interaction. Specifically, this paper uses IoTtalk, an application-layer IoT device management platform, to quickly establish connections and meaningful interactions between IoT devices. The interaction between human and frame is accomplished by implementing an output device of IoTtalk called FrameTalk, which allows the input devices to control the dynamic graphics on a digital frame. The FrameTalk device can be exhibited in specific frame hardware or the screen of any computing device. We illustrate the functional block diagram of the FrameTalk device and its default applications. Then we demonstrate two FrameTalk application examples. The first example is CalligraphyTalk, where an audience can interact with the frame to write Chinese poems. The second example is PortraitGuess that allows an audience to play the historical figures portrait painting guess game by the frame. We measure the delays between the smartphone and the FrameTalk device, and develop both analytic and simulation models to investigate the user experience of the FrameTalk applications. Our study indicates that good user experience can be achieved in FrameTalk.