TOTEM APP
I designed this app as a side project while doing research on the way humans create relationships with inanimate objects.
totem mobile
Create physical totems for your digital memories
Problem :
At the heart of modern technology, music, photos, letters and other documents are digitised in the hope of ensuring their long-term survival. We need to preserve old software and hardware in a way that out-of-date files can be recovered no matter how old they are.
We capture our memories into digital files on digital devices, but how will we be able to experience those memories in the future if they get lost on old technology.
Solution :
Totem is a personal cloud storage management app that allows you to give digital files a physical location. By using NFC stickers, users can turn everyday objects into access points for your most beloved digital memories or important documents. These objects become “totems” as a result of their gained value and importance in the user's life.
What would you take with you if your house was burning?
How do our digital devices represent and reflect the memories of their place in our lives?
We once had hand-me-down clothes, leather photo albums, and antiques that showed their use and were full of memories from the lives of their users. The objects we use everyday become loaded with intangible value as they hold a place in our lives. What if this value could be controlled or even created?
Photos from www.theburninghouse.com, a blog where users post the items they would choose to take with them if their house was burning.
Near Field Communication (NFC) Technology
NFC technology allows smartphones to wirelessly communicate with other devices. It is allows users to swipe their phones at a pay station to wirelessly pay for groceries or to download apps from a digital advertisement. Using NFC programmable stickers, we can create location-based tags throughout our physical environment that trigger various actions on our digital devices.
User Workflows
Wireframing
Prototyping
Initial Login
Create an account with totem storage space or an existing cloud storage account, such as Google Drive or Dropbox.
Searching for totems
After the initial login, every time the user opens the app it will search for nearby totems. If no totems are found, the user will receive an error message.
Accessing Personal Information
If there are nearby totems after launching the app, they will appear on this dashboard. From here users are able to activate new totems, add and edit information, and adjust settings.
User Narrative
"I use TOTEM to organize my class assignments so I can access them quickly while I am in the studio. I just hold my phone over my notebook, and I am immediately shown my working documents for that class. I used to always find myself forgetting which folder important documents and pictures ended up in, but now I hold my phone over my notebook for Psychology class and I can save my documentation for a study I am working on."
- Louis Ghanem
NFC Sticker