MARSUI: malleable audio-reactive shape-retaining user interface.

MARSUI is a hardware deformable prototype exhibiting plastic (shape-retaining) behavior. It can track the shape that the user creates when deforming it. We envision that a set of predefined shapes could be mapped onto particular applications and functions. In its current implementation, we present three shapes that MARSUI can be deformed into: circular band, flat surface and sharp bent. These shapes map respectively onto the following applications: wristwatch, mobile phone and media player. Since the malleable interface can also take other forms, feedback plays an important role in guiding the user towards the predefined shapes. In this paper, we focus on investigating the possibilities that auditory feedback could offer in guiding the user towards reaching the intended shapes.