Overview
I led the design and development of a multi-user, touchless exhibit experience inside NC State’s D.H. Hill Jr. Library — part of a broader effort to transform the library into an “Experiential Library”. The challenge: create an installation that’s both flexible and interactive in a room where the tables move and touchscreens aren’t practical.
Designing for a Moving Target
Because the tables in the space needed to remain mobile, we couldn’t rely on traditional hardware like mounted touchscreens. Instead, I developed an application that using ceiling-mounted projectors to display the interface on a 120″ x 60″ area and Intel RealSense depth-sensing cameras to detect hand gestures across the table surfaces. This allowed for a clean, touchless experience that could adapt to the layout of the room.
Each of the four tables ran a unique instance of the application, supporting up to 8 simultaneous users per table — letting students, faculty, and staff explore projects and research in an engaging, collaborative setting.
My Role
As team lead, I was responsible for the creative and technical direction of the project from initial client meetings through installation. I facilitated brainstorming workshops and content audits, led information architecture and UX strategy, oversaw the visual design direction, and developed the front-end application in Unity3D. I also worked closely with A/V Integration teams to get everything calibrated and functional on-site.
I didn’t just manage the work — I was hands-on throughout, contributing directly to UX, UI, and code.
Building for Change
From the outset, our client wanted to highlight the creative and innovative energy that is found all across the unversity’s campus — not just finished work, but also process and context. That meant the application needed to support a wide range of content types and storytelling approaches. To solve this, I led the design of a flexible module system that could accommodate everything from linear and inverative videos (360) to long form and short from text to in-progress prototypes and 3D renderings.
Over the course of the project, those modules — and how they were structured — evolved significantly. It pushed me to think deeply about how to chunk content into reusable frameworks that could scale with changing needs.
Impact
The installation was extremely well received — both by the university and by peers in the library and tech communities. We were invited to present at two industry conferences to share the value and technical achievement of the work, encouraging other institutions to explore similar possibilities.
The success of the project led to an ongoing partnership with the university, as we continued developing new modules and iterations after launch. On a personal level, this experience helped sharpen how I think about modular design, content flexibility, and building systems that are just as easy to maintain as they are to use.
Technical Challenges
The biggest hurdle was interaction fidelity. With ever-changing content, shifting table positions, and the need for a natural-feeling experience, calibrating the depth sensors was a moving target. I had to find a balance — sensitive enough to detect hands but not so reactive that the UI triggered false gestures.
I created a custom calibration approach and a set of usage guidelines to ensure interactions felt consistent, even as the layout or content changed. I also designed the UI animations and layout with those constraints in mind — using clear spatial cues to help guide user interaction without overwhelming them.