Back
Interactive Design
PROJECT BRIEF
Inflated is a wearable device that turns the echo chamber into a physical sensation. Connected to the wearer's browsing history via an API, the inflatable collar monitors the diversity of information they consume. When the wearer keeps returning to a single type of content, the device responds by slowly inflating — tightening around the neck and shoulders until the feeling of being informationally "trapped" becomes bodily real. Printed with real web pop-up graphics, the inflating airbags also crowd into the wearer's field of vision — pop-up ads made physical, obscuring sight the way they clutter a screen.
Only when the wearer actively explores new and varied information does the device gradually deflate and loosen — a physical release that mirrors finding an exit from the algorithmic bubble. By translating an invisible cognitive condition into pressure, constriction, and relief, the piece asks: what if we could feel our own filter bubbles closing in?
How It Works
The device works through an air pump that inflates a series of airbags, causing them to expand and press against the wearer. Conceptually, each airbag acts as a physical pop-up window: as they inflate, they crowd the wearer's field of vision, turning the visual noise of the internet into a spatial, bodily obstruction.
Process & Iterations
To make this reference explicit, we printed real web pop-up graphics onto tracing paper and mounted them at the center of each airbag — a material chosen for keeping the content legible while preserving the airbags' translucency.
Structural Framework Design
Web Pop-Up Graphics Design
The structural framework went through several iterations. Early prototypes used laser-cut foam board, which proved too weak to hold the inflating forms; the final version uses laser-cut transparent acrylic, which provides the necessary durability while keeping the structure visually light and consistent with the piece's translucent language.
Final Product
Model: Shiyuan Tian