Technology for Classroom Orchestration - New Science of Learning - page 526

Fig. 26.5 TinkerLamp: a tabletop tangible simulation in the domain of logistics. Left : four
TinkerLamps used concurrently in a classroom. Right : a closeup of a small-scale warehouse
designed by apprentices. Information is projected on the floor and on top of the shelves
The physical small-scale model is augmented through a video projector placed
above the table (Fig. 26.5). All objects (shelves, pillars, cardboard) are tagged with
fiducial markers (similar to a 2 dimensional bar code) which enable a camera to track
their position on the table (Fiala, 2005) and enable the system to project graphical
representations (augmentations) on top and around the objects. The physical lay-
out of the warehouse is used as input to configure a simulation. Projected forklifts
represent the movement of goods in and out of the warehouse.
The simulation is controlled by a paper-based interface called TinkerSheets
(Fig. 26.6). Small tokens can be placed on a paper form which is recognized by the
system and allows users to set parameters like the type of warehouse management,
the number and type of forklifts, or the type of augmentation which is displayed.
Master sheets allow setting the main parameters relevant for a particular logistic
Fig. 26.6 TinkerSheets. Left : a master sheet from the official curriculum is used to parameterize
the warehouse simulation. Right : a companion sheet is used by an apprentice to visualize different
types of surfaces in the warehouse