Modern workplaces often provide limited opportunities for physical recovery and sensory reset during daily routines. This project explores how a familiar surface could support short moments of movement, tactile comfort and contact with nature.
How might a familiar surface offer quick emotional relief without interrupting the working day?
WORKPLACE SCENARIOUser research / Design insight
THE WALL WAS ALREADY PART OF THE BEHAVIOUR.
Interviews and observations showed that workers already lean against walls, stretch against door frames and use nearby surfaces during short breaks. This reframed the office wall as an overlooked high-frequency contact surface and built on familiar recovery behaviours instead of introducing another task or device.
Embed a flexible interface that can sense user actions on the office wall. Through bionic tactile feedback, guide scientific stretching. Transform fragmented time into an immersive and therapeutic experience for the mind and body.
01
Effortless
No setup, instructions or dedicated exercise equipment.
02
Embodied
Use touch, pressure and movement instead of another screen-based wellness tool.
03
Ambient
Fit into existing office architecture and the rhythm of short breaks.
Form
SHAPED LIKE AN EMBRACE, NOT A MACHINE.
Early concepts explored leaning, wrapping and seated postures. The final asymmetric form supports stretching at different heights while keeping the interaction legible from across the room.
FORM STUDIES / LEANING, WRAPPING AND SEATED POSTURES
flat and rigidinflated wallasymmetric final form
Physical interaction
THREE MICRO-STRETCHES SHAPED THE SURFACE.
The form was evaluated against compact upper-body movements that can happen beside a desk. Each posture gave the wall a different job: provide a reachable cue, support contact and leave room for the body to move.
A 1:10 pneumatic module combined a touch sensor, pump and pressure sensor to test how the surface responds to contact. Pillow stand-ins were then used to compare hugging and leaning postures, back support and arm comfort.
User interaction→Sensor detection→Pneumatic feedback→Visual guidance→Stretching experience
Preferred inflation height during early comfort testing. Short one-to-two minute sessions were used to check even back and arm support.
Visual guidance
LIGHT TURNS A STRETCH INTO A LEGIBLE SEQUENCE.
TouchDesigner translates contact into a moving field. Direction, posture and release are communicated without adding instructions to the wall.
MOVING HEAT-MAP / TOUCHDESIGNER TEST
01
Approach
Light wakes as the user enters the interaction zone.
02
Follow
A moving green field indicates the direction of stretch.
03
Hold
The field turns red when the target posture is reached.
04
Release
The signal shifts position to guide the next movement.
Interaction
A quiet sequence led by the body.
01
Approach
The wall-mounted form invites contact without demanding setup.
02
Embrace
Touch and pressure activate the inflatable cushions around the body.
03
Stretch
Heat-map visuals indicate where to reach, hold and release.
04
Reset
The interaction ends as a short sensory pause before returning to work.
Material
A SOFTER, MORE NATURAL SURFACE.
Ramie / silk / cottonThin woven woolCotton / silk
Visual
Irregular plant-dyed markings prevent the inflatable surface from feeling clinical or manufactured.
Tactile
Wrinkled, bark-like texture creates a layered surface that visually and physically invites touch.
Outcome
A SHORT RESTORATIVE INTERACTION BUILT INTO THE WORKPLACE.
Inflatable cushions respond to physical contact while TouchDesigner visual guidance supports stretching exercises. Together, tactile and visual feedback turn a familiar office wall into a brief moment of embodied recovery.
Testing → What I learned
THE NEXT ITERATION NEEDS TO FEEL IMMEDIATE, COMFORTABLE AND EASY TO ENTER.
Early feedback focused the next iteration on four areas: intuitive guidance, tactile comfort, stronger multisensory immersion, and easier integration into short workplace breaks.
Guidance
Make movement cues readable without explanation.
Comfort
Refine pressure, duration and support across body types.
Immersion
Strengthen natural cues through touch, scent, light and sound.
Integration
Reduce setup, footprint and privacy friction in shared offices.
Next iteration
FROM ONE INSTALLATION TO RESPONSIVE BIOPHILIC ENVIRONMENTS.
A future version could extend the same touch, pressure and visual feedback system across shared office spaces, allowing walls and planting zones to support different forms of short physical recovery.
