Proactive Instructions for Furniture Assembly

Tennenhouse [1] coined the term proactive computing where humans get out of the interaction loop and may be serviced specifically according to their needs and current situation. In this paper we propose a framework for proactive guidance which aims to overcome limitations of today’s printed instructions. By attaching computing devices and multiple sensors onto different parts of the assembly the system can recognize the actions of the user and determine the current state of the assembly. The system can suggest the next most appropriate action at any point in time. In an experimental case study with the IKEA PAX wardrobe we show the feasibility of the proposed approach. At the end important issues are discussed and future directions are outlined.