︎


Canopy




Have you ever wondered what's above ground on the metro?


A daily commuting routine on an underground railway cuts out the perception of place, movement or passage of time. Canopy is a dynamic display system on the ceiling of a train that renders a new perspective of the passing environment overground. Non-reflective e-paper display panels are fixed to the ceiling, allowing for an unobtrusive display.

Artists are invited to illustrate the environment on ground with an exaggerated 3-point perspective suggesting depth of the train. Landmarks indicate location and journey progress, while an indicative sky offers visual continuity. Real-time travel information and contextual advertising helps travellers explore the city while engaging with the journey.


Canopy was finalist at the RSA Student Design Awards 2012 under 'The Good Journey' category

Collaboration with Matt Batchelor and Emma Laurin. © Royal College of Art








Focus Area

Sometimes just thinking of a crowded subway commute can evoke sadness in even the most optimistic among us. Realizing how an underground railway cuts out the perception of place, movement or passage of time, we decided to focus on addressing this need.

Exploration
Immersing ourselves into a series of journeys on underground trains, we mapped the sensory deprivation that we perceived. This starting point guided us through various systems that could be redesigned for better travel experience. Simultaneously, we studied research and experimentation previously executed by designers in this space.

Opportunity

The lack of a visual connection to reality on ground level presented the most promising opportunity in the context of the London tube. Combining TFL’s efforts of bringing art to the tube and emerging advertising technologies, a clearer picture emerged.

Immersion

We revisited underground stations and repeated our journeys along the various lines, this time specifically to understand the visual dimension missing. In addition, we conducted various experiments through wall, floor and ceiling projections that surprised onlookers. 

Prototyping & Testing
Testing various visual elements and perspectives on our full-scale prototype train, we finalized on visualizing the built forms along the train path in real-time. Buildings, trees, and other urban paraphernalia would be presented in an exaggerated perspective, almost as if we were able to look upward through the train roof.

These animations were coded in javascript using processing and plugged to an arduino for physical interaction. We returned to the underground to test the popularity of these animations.

Service Model
With successful user validation, we pursued the business case for the system. Leveraging Google’s AdWords advertising model, we projected a break-even time for the investment in display materials within the carriages.

Working Prototype

We built a full-scale working prototype with representative materials as a final deliverable for the project. Non-reflective e-paper display panels are proposed for the ceiling display. Real-time travel information and contextual advertising helps travellers explore the city while engaging with the journey.