Fluent transitions between focused and peripheral interaction in proxemic interactions

Proxemic interaction is a vision of computing that employs proxemic relationships to mediate interaction between people and ensembles of various digital devices. In this chapter, we focus on aspects of peripheral interaction in proxemic interactions. We illustrate how to facilitate transitions between interaction outside the attentional field, the periphery, and the center of attention by means of the Proxemic Flow peripheral floor display. We summarize and generalize our findings into two design patterns: slow-motion feedback and gradual engagement. We propose slow-motion feedback as a way to draw attention to actions happening in the background and provide opportunities for intervention, while gradual engagement provides peripheral awareness of action possibilities and discoverability and reveals possible future interactions.