InSituTale: Enhancing Augmented Data Storytelling with Physical Objects

TL;DR

InSituTale introduces a novel augmented data storytelling system that allows presenters to manipulate visualizations through physical objects, enhancing engagement and interaction by combining physical manipulations with digital visualization control.

Contribution

The paper presents InSituTale, a new system that integrates physical object interactions with visualization control, informed by surveys and workshops with HCI/VIS researchers.

Findings

Participants found InSituTale intuitive and engaging.

The system effectively combines physical and digital interactions.

InSituTale enhances the storytelling experience.

Abstract

Augmented data storytelling enhances narrative delivery by integrating visualizations with physical environments and presenter actions. Existing systems predominantly rely on body gestures or speech to control visualizations, leaving interactions with physical objects largely underexplored. We introduce augmented physical data storytelling, an approach enabling presenters to manipulate visualizations through physical object interactions. To inform this approach, we first conducted a survey of data-driven presentations to identify common visualization commands. We then conducted workshops with nine HCI/VIS researchers to collect mappings between physical manipulations and these commands. Guided by these insights, we developed InSituTale, a prototype that combines object tracking via a depth camera with Vision-LLM for detecting real-world events. Through physical manipulations, presenters can dynamically execute various visualization commands, delivering cohesive data storytelling experiences that blend physical and digital elements. A user study with 12 participants demonstrated that InSituTale enables intuitive interactions, offers high utility, and facilitates an engaging presentation experience.