Experiential Design / Task 1: Trending Experience
2025.04.22 - 2025.05.18 Week 1 - Week 4
Teh Ming En/0364908
Experiential Design-Bachelor of Design (Honours) in Creative Media--Taylors University
Instructions
Class Activity
Week 2: Creating User Journey Map
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| Fig 1.1 Journey Map of Sunway Lagoon |
The class activity on Tuesday was to create a user journey map. Our group
chose the journey in Sunway Lagoon. When creating the user journey map, it
allowed me have a better understanding about visitor experience from start
to finish. It helped me to identify the key points, emotions, and pain
points that users might face during their journey.
Fig 1.2 User Journey Map - Miro Board
Week 3:
Activity 1: Explore AR 3D
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| Fig 1.3 Explore AR 3D in Google |
The Wednesday class activity had three parts. The first activity was
exploring AR. We had to search for animals on Google and click on the AR
viewing mode, and we could see the realistic 3D models of the animals.
This activity was fun and engaging. It was interesting to see how
augmented reality can bring digital models into our real environment
through a phone screen. It gives me a base of AR technology that can be
used for interactive learning and entertainment.
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| Fig 1.4 AR Scenario Design Presentation |
We were asked to imagine a scenario in a specific place and design an AR
experience for it. We also had to consider what could be useful and what
emotions we wanted the user to feel. The place that we chose was gym room.
Scenario:
A beginner walks into the gym feeling unsure and overwhelmed. They put
on AR glasses or use a smartphone app. There will be a friendly
virtual gym trainer who appears in front of them and invites them to
start the journey.
The user will see a menu of muscle groups, which include legs, chest,
back, abs, and arms. They can choose the menu, and the AR trainer
guides them to the correct machine.
The Features include:
- AR Personal Trainer
- Workout Assistant
- Form Checker
- AR Challenges & Games
- Body Progress Tracker
Extended Visualization / Virtual Reality Features:
- Live posture correction using skeletal tracking
- Heatmaps to show muscle engagement
- Progress badges, leaderboard, and daily streak counters
Targeted User Emotions:
- Motivated
- Confident
- Excited
- Proud
- Focused
This activity allowed us to creatively explore how AR could enhance the
gym experience, especially for beginners. We combined interactive features
and motivational elements to design the concept that supports users both
physically and mentally, and made workouts more engaging and less
intimidating.
Fig 1.5 AR Scenario Dedsign - Canva Slides
Activity 3: Learning Unity
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| Fig1.6 Display 3D Content |
First, we learned how to create a license in Vuforia, then upload a photo to it. After that, we imported everything into Unity. Through a series of steps, we placed a small cube on the photo, which could then be seen in AR mode.
This activity helped me to understand how AR markers work in real applications. It was interesting to see how a simple image could be used as a trigger to display 3D content.
Week 4: Learning Unity
Fig1.7 Cube Bouncing Video
Fig 1.8 Cube Stop & Play Animation Video
This activity helped me better understand how AR elements can be made more interactive and dynamic. Instead of just displaying static 3D objects, we now have the ability to create user-controlled animations, which opens up more creative possibilities for storytelling, education, and product visualization in AR.
This session particularly exciting because I could see how simple interactions—like pressing a button—can significantly improve user engagement.
Task 1: Trending Experience
We are required to explore current and popular trends in the digital content market through a series of exercises. This exercise aims to provide students with a better understanding of emerging technologies and the knowledge needed to create content for those technologies.
My Reflective Report:
In today’s rapidly evolving digital landscape, keeping up with emerging technologies is crucial for designers and developers. Through our recent class activities, I had the opportunity to explore trending technologies such as Augmented Reality (AR), Google AR experience, and Unity. This hands-on experience not only expanded my technical knowledge but also deepened my understanding of how these tools can be applied to create engaging and meaningful user experiences.
Our first activity involved exploring Google 3D AR animals. By searching animals like "tiger" on Google and selecting the AR view, we could place a 3D animal model into our real-world surroundings using a smartphone. This activity demonstrated how AR can make information more interactive and immersive. It showed how accessible AR has become, especially for educational and entertainment purposes, requiring no app installation—just a smartphone and a browser.
The second activity involved imagining a practical AR scenario. My group chose the Gym Room as the setting. We designed an AR experience called Smart Gym Buddy, targeting gym beginners. In our scenario, a user enters the gym and wears AR glasses or uses an app. After that, a virtual personal trainer will appear and offer a menu. The trainer will guide the user to the correct equipment after the user selects the menu. This scenario helped me realize how AR could enhance motivation for beginners.
In our third hands-on session, we worked with Vuforia and Unity to create an image-based AR marker. We started by registering and generating a license on Vuforia’s developer portal. Then we uploaded an image to act as the AR marker. Inside Unity, we imported the Vuforia engine and linked the image marker to a 3D cube. When viewed through an AR-compatible device, the cube appeared on top of the image in real-time. This exercise taught me the fundamental workflow of AR development.
AR Experience Example: Pokémon GO
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| Fig 2.1 AR Experience Example - Pokémon GO |
Pokémon GO is a location-based augmented reality mobile game. It overlays virtual Pokémon characters onto the real world using a smartphone's GPS and camera. Players walk around in real life to find and catch Pokémon that appear in their surroundings through the AR view.
Its key features include:
- Real-world map integration with GPS to locate Pokémon and game points.
- AR camera mode to see Pokémon appearing in real environments.
- In-game events, gym battles, and collaborative raids.
- Customizable avatars and social features for interaction.
One of the key strengths of this application is its highly engaging use of augmented reality (AR), which effectively combines physical activity with interactive gameplay. It transforms ordinary environments into dynamic play spaces to make the experience both physically active and entertaining. The application also as a successful example of gamified AR that has managed to reach a global audience, showcasing the wide appeal and scalability of this technology.
However, there are still limitations. This game will drain battery life and requires constant internet and GPS access. Additionally, although AR is a core feature, players have the option to disable the AR view. The requirement for players to be outdoors may also pose challenges, especially in unfavorable weather conditions or in areas with safety concerns. Despite these limitations, the user experience goals are clearly centered on creating immersive gameplay by seamlessly blending the digital and physical worlds. This game aims to promote physical activity and foster social interaction, while also evoking a sense of discovery and excitement among users.
Group Work
3 Potential Ideas:
1. AR Foodie Lens
Problem Statement:
Travelers and food lovers often face difficulties when identifying unfamiliar dishes, understanding their nutritional value, or knowing whether the ingredients align with their dietary restrictions or allergies. This lack of accessible and engaging food information can hinder both enjoyment and safety when exploring local cuisines.
Concept:
Users scan a plate of food (real or printed) to instantly learn what's
inside — calories, ingredients, origin, or even fun facts about the dish —
overlaid in AR. Perfect for food education, dietary awareness, or tourism.
User Experience Flow:
1. Open app and scan a dish (e.g., Nasi Lemak, ramen, croissant).
2. AR overlay pops up with the name of dish + country flag, ingredient list,
nutritional info or allergy warnings, and fun fact or history (e.g. This
dish originated in Malaysia in the 1800s.)
3. Optional: Tap for recipe link or "Save to Cookbook"
Target Audience:
Tourists and local food lovers.
2. AR Cultural Object Explorer
Problem Statement:
In exhibitions or daily life, cultural relics and traditional objects often lack contextual explanations. This leads to a disconnect between people and the stories behind these items. This gap makes it difficult for visitors, especially younger audiences, to appreciate and understand the cultural significance and personal narratives tied to these objects.
Concept:
Users scan traditional objects (e.g., batik pattern, fan, musical
instrument, festival decoration), and the app reveals cultural stories or
animated visual explanations.
User Experience Flow:
1. Scan a cultural object or visual (can be printed or real)
2. See an AR card that pops up with Name + cultural origin, 2D animation
showing how it’s used (e.g. how a kompang is played), and short story or
quote from a real person (e.g. This fan was used in my grandmother’s
wedding.)
3. Optional: Collect or save stories
Target Audience:
Visitor in museum.
3. Traditional Wear AR Showcase
Problem Statement:
Traditional clothing is rich in cultural meaning, but is often misinterpreted due to a lack of engaging and educational resources. Museum visitors may have difficulty imagining how these garments were worn or understanding their historical and cultural context.
Concept:
An AR fashion exhibition — users scan visuals of traditional clothing
(like batik, cheongsam, kurta, kimono, etc.) and see a model wearing it in
AR along with cultural background and styling notes.
User Experience Flow:
1. User scans a poster or clothing image.
2. AR will show a 2D/3D avatar wearing the outfit, cultural background info
(e.g., occasion, origin, meaning), option to rotate the view, or switch
patterns.
Target Audience:
Visitors in the museum.
4. AR Campus Companion
Problem Statement:
When new students navigate the large university campus often experience confusion and stress because they are in unfamiliar buildings or services. Traditional campus maps and signboards can be overwhelming or insufficient. Additionally, students may miss out on helpful tips or engaging experiences that could ease their transition and foster campus connections.
Concept:
An AR app that helps new students navigate campus by scanning key landmarks
(e.g., library, cafeteria, classrooms) to get instant guides, facts, or
helpful tips.
User Experience Flow:
1. User scans a building or QR marker near location
2. AR will overlay shows the building name, information of the building
(e.g.Cafeteria peak hours: 12–2PM, avoid for faster service.)
3. Navigation arrow to next spot (e.g. From library to E7.14 classroom)
4. Playful Feature: After scanning a location, users will see the yellow
duck, a treasure, or a little monster appear. They can tap to collect them,
and after collecting a certain amount, they can earn badges of varying
levels.
Target Audience:
Taylor's students, visitors, and staff.
Final Idea: We decided to go with my idea #4.
Reflection
In this experiential design activity, I learned about new technologies like Augmented Reality (AR) and Unity, which I found very interesting and fun. Using Google’s 3D AR animals showed me how AR can bring virtual things into the real world in a cool and exciting way. When designing an AR gym experience, I thought about adding a virtual trainer and workout assistant to help users feel more confident and stay motivated. Later, we used Unity and Vuforia to create AR markers, which helped me understand how AR works behind the scenes. Overall, this experience helped me see how important it is to design with the user in mind and make the experience useful, enjoyable, and meaningful.
Feedback
Week 2:
After discussing our ideas, we narrowed them down to three concepts. The first, ‘Everyday Magic,’ lacks information, so we didn’t present it in much detail. The second idea involves scanning an object, like headphones, to reveal the user’s playlist， but we realized it’s quite similar to just opening Spotify directly. Finally, the idea of scanning clothes was more complex and would be difficult to execute using 3D elements, making it less practical to proceed with. We were suggested that come up with three new ideas that are more applicable to real life and manageable within our current capabilities.
Week 3:
This week, we came up with three additional ideas. Mr. Razif suggested that we focus on Taylor's Guide app as the main project, with the others as backups.
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