About Yo-Yo Machines
It’s important to stay in touch while physically separated, but teleconferencing tools like Zoom and Teams can be a lot of work. What if you just want to send somebody a wave, or a smile, without demanding too much attention?
That’s what Yo–Yo Machines are for. Simple devices you can make yourself, they connect across the Internet to let you send a signal that you’re thinking of somebody, and give just enough control to play around, or maybe invent a secret language.
We will be releasing a number of Yo-Yo Machines over the next few months. Some will use light, others sound, or movement, or possibly more complex displays. All will be easy to use, and most will share the same hardware, so keep checking back for new designs.
Who we are
We’re from the Interaction Research Studio, a team of designers and technologists at Northumbria University. UKRI is supporting us to develop Yo–Yo Machines to show how research can have real-world impacts. We’re not making any money from the Yo–Yo Machines, so you can build them for the price of the parts. We benefit from knowing how people use the Yo–Yo Machines (so let us know!) — and the satisfaction of helping out during the crisis.
Visit our Yo-Yo Machines Website for more information about the project.
Contact us via email interactionresearchstudio@gmail.com of share you designs in the Answers Forum.