Dougie Mann

Solo project, TypeCase

TypeCase is an all-in-one gestural chorded keyboard that allows you to control your smart devices more efficiently and smoothly. It synthesises and condenses the functionality of a keyboard and mouse, facilitating effortless use - and all this with just one hand. 

To create a device which didn’t evoke stigma for disabilities, an emphasis was placed on smart, stylish, inclusive design principles. By embedding this technology into phone covers, one can operate their mobile without even looking - bringing back tactility and providing an intuitive gestural control. In mobile applications it frees up the whole screen, permits typing without looking, useful in poor weather conditions, and reintroduces physical feedback when typing on phones. 

Although initially designed for one-handed users such as amputees, stroke victims and hemiplegics, this concept extends to the blind by providing them with a novel physical typing mechanism. TypeCase also has the power to reduce repetitive strain injuries, speed up text input, and rethink how we control our computers.

Group project, VoiceBlox

Voice Blox is the first language learning tool that embodies pronunciation as a simple physical form, allowing users to explore their accent with their hands. 

Voice Blox will finally get people to speak with a local accent. Mandarin speakers always demonstrate tones with a small finger gesture. This is because humans have an innate ability to relate body motion to sound - due to the close neural connections between the brain’s motor and auditory networks. We have found a way to teach everyone this intuitive gestural language using simple shapes to guide a learner’s hand. Over 1/3 of students learn best from a hands-on experience, but typical lessons don’t cater for these people. Voice Blox reaches visual, auditory and tactile learners in a multi-modal experience which increases neural activity, resulting in stronger and longer-lasting memory recall.