The Imaginarium

The Imaginarium differs from a usability lab, its purpose is to transform into any space to evaluate ‘living’, ‘playing’ and ‘working’.

The goal is to focus on putting people within a familiar environment to co-design, co-implement and co-evaluate technological innovations. By empathising with people in this way, we can better understand their motivations, needs and behaviours.

The Imaginarium transforms the concept of a static lab where usability tests take place into a reconfigurable space. This allows us to rethink people’s needs and expectations to develop processes, frameworks, and prototypes.

It provides a platform for teaching, research and knowledge exchange in the fields of (but not limited to):

Ubiquitous Computing
Human-Centred Artificial Intelligence (AI)
Robotics for Social Care
Mixed Realities (Augmented and Virtual Reality)
Mobile Games
Internet of Things
Digital Health
Smart Homes

Develop platforms, applications and services that are functional, usable, playful, and accessible. The facility provides you with the opportunity to simulate a real-world experience. Whether that is to explore smart homes for the elderly using sensors, new digital pedagogical approaches or designing with children to better understand childhood. The Imaginarium creates a space for studies to be designed, facilitated, evaluated and iterated.

The facility has a reconfigurable space, which you can customise depending on your needs. Think IKEA, where you discover a range of experiences in their superstores exploring a defined vision of living. These pop-up living spaces influence shoppers on style, affordability and become a way of trying before you buy. The Imaginarium works in a similar way. Situated within a studio - a room for designing, making, and playing. The facility is a pop-up installation that is a flexible space for controlling, observing, and evaluating. Surrounding the pop-up room are workbenches that provide a space to design and make. The space is a combination of a maker space, usability lab, living lab and user experience lab.

An example of the types of activities conducted in the space include:

User-Centred Design – emphasising and understanding user needs
User Experience – testing, evaluating, and researching (cognitive, behavioural and usability; analysis and mapping)
Co-design – co and participatory design materials including whiteboards, LEGO, and Maker Tech
Implementing – dedicated equipment such as PC, screens, mobile devices, HoloLens

Teaching

This space explores how research-informed, and industry engaged teaching goes beyond the real world into the classroom. This high-quality learning experience pushes the boundaries of the leading modern learning environment. You'll have the opportunity to create your own spaces for projects. As well as receive first-hand experience of co-design processes, and observational and evaluative studies.

Research

The facility allows for applied research and innovation with real impact on the communities studied. The space becomes a facilitator to foster collaborations both within academia and industry. These collaborations are at the forefront of promoting interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary working within the Research Centre for Digital Life. The centre's core aim is to respond to challenges and real-world impact starting with the people of Preston.

Knowledge Exchange

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Our imaginarium facility allows you to integrate smart technology into a home setting.

The Imaginarium assists in transforming lives. By understanding people, their needs, motivations, and behaviours to flourish in education and life. By re-creating real-world environments to learn, study and play.

Detailed information

Availability

On request

Location

The The Imaginarium can be found in CM225 of the Computing and Technology Building

General enquiry

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