Abstract
This study introduces the "Field Mailbox" and "Dialog Diorama" - two research artifacts designed to facilitate situated dialogues between owners and their everyday objects, exploring the design of personal, reflexive toolkits. Using LLM-based generative AI, the study progressively grants conversational agency to objects within a Research-through-Design approach. Field Mailbox facilitates slow, reflective engagement through postcard-based exchanges, while Dialog Diorama promotes real- time storytelling with RFID-enhanced props. Through the design process and pilot study of these two artifacts, the researchers explored the impact of different stages of AI dialogue integrated into the artifacts. Preliminary research results indicate that the agency driven by GAI behind the objects serves as a bridge, gradually helping participants develop familiarity between humans and objects. It also brings a deep reflective experience. This work contributes to understanding how GAI-enhanced artifacts support progressively reflective relationships and enrich human-object interaction.
Keywords
Everyday Object; Reflexivity; Situated Information; Generative Algorithms
DOI
https://doi.org/10.21606/iasdr.2025.1090
Citation
Wang, C., Yang, Y., Tsai, W.,and Ho, Y.(2025) From Mailbox to Diorama: Designing Reflexive Toolkits for Situated Dialogue with Everyday Objects, in Chang, C.-Y., and Hsu, Y. (eds.), IASDR 2025: Design Next, 02-05 December, Taiwan. https://doi.org/10.21606/iasdr.2025.1090
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License
Conference Track
Track 1 - More Than Human-centered Design
From Mailbox to Diorama: Designing Reflexive Toolkits for Situated Dialogue with Everyday Objects
This study introduces the "Field Mailbox" and "Dialog Diorama" - two research artifacts designed to facilitate situated dialogues between owners and their everyday objects, exploring the design of personal, reflexive toolkits. Using LLM-based generative AI, the study progressively grants conversational agency to objects within a Research-through-Design approach. Field Mailbox facilitates slow, reflective engagement through postcard-based exchanges, while Dialog Diorama promotes real- time storytelling with RFID-enhanced props. Through the design process and pilot study of these two artifacts, the researchers explored the impact of different stages of AI dialogue integrated into the artifacts. Preliminary research results indicate that the agency driven by GAI behind the objects serves as a bridge, gradually helping participants develop familiarity between humans and objects. It also brings a deep reflective experience. This work contributes to understanding how GAI-enhanced artifacts support progressively reflective relationships and enrich human-object interaction.