M-015
Information Sharing Environment with Tangible Devices Equipped with a BLE-module for Proximity-based Group Formation

Shingo Otsubo・Yuki Shikauchi・Takehiro Koretsune・○Hideyuki Takada・Ian Piumarta（Ritsumeikan Univ.）

As digital terminals such as tablet devices and smart-phones spread into our lives, opportunities are increasing to use these devices to share information during co-located collaborative work. When sharing information, it is necessary to form a group within which the information will be shared. We describe an environment in which users use tangible devices to form a group for information sharing between their tablet terminals. Each tangible device is equipped with a Bluetooth communication module, and groups are formed by bringing these devices together on a table top. The strength of signals emitted from the Bluetooth module is used to identify if the devices are placed closely or not. We describe a prototype system implemented with a small BLE (Bluetooth Low Energy) module paired with Apple's iPad.