AFFECTIVE TRANSLATION

Affective Translation is a series of textile soft robots and their augmented-reality counterparts, which enable us to investigate how motion, material, and design impact emotional engagement. Each of the four textile robots features a soft outer structure with embedded actuation, motors, servos, and pneumatic chambers, all controlled via networked custom microcontrollers, to evoke natural rhythms such as breathing, stretching, and pulsing. The same motion data from the actuators in physical sculptures is used to drive the virtual models, allowing a direct comparison between physical and digital experiences. Participants interacted with either the physical or virtual systems and reported how qualities like liveliness, calmness, and curiosity were perceived across conditions.

Each robot employs unique actuation systems (motors, spools, pneumatic chambers, or servos) controlled via microcontrollers and randomized timing, generating lifelike unpredictability. The AR twins are animated using recorded motion data, reproducing the same temporal signatures within a spatially aligned immersive environment.

Preliminary data from the physical installation show participants found the experience pleasant, natural, and alive, evoking calmness and curiosity. Future stages will include the virtual-twin dataset and integrate biometric sensing (heart rate, skin conductance, pupil dilation) to deepen understanding of emotional resonance across modalities.

Paper Under Review: Affective Translation: Material and Virtual Embodiments of Kinetic Textile Robots. In Proceedings of the Eighteenth International Conference on Tangible, Embedded, and Embodied Interaction (TEI ’26)