Posts tagged: HCI

Our OpenAtelier AI tool for learning Dutch on the work floor in the news

An AI tool that helps non-native speakers learn Dutch on the work floor

We held a press event at the Noord-Limburgs Open Atelier where we showed our AI-supported tablet tool to the press. We built a tool for Open Atelier that helps non-native Dutch speakers learn the language while they work, and it was picked up by several regional and national outlets.

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Turning Papers into Interactive Posters with Claude

Experiment: Turn Papers into Self-contained Interactive Posters

I have been experimenting with Claude to turn some of our recent papers into interactive “poster pages”: single, self-contained HTML pages that summarize a paper, explain it in plain language, and let a reader play with a live in-browser demo of its core idea.

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EICS 2026 in Patras: a fun and interesting week

EICS 2026 in Patras πŸ‡¬πŸ‡·: what a fun and interesting week!

The ACM SIGCHI Symposium on Engineering Interactive Computing Systems (EICS 2026) brought our community together once again, this time from 30 June to 3 July in Patras, Greece. I could not be prouder of what our Digital Future Lab (UHasselt / Flanders Make) team and colleagues shared there.

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From embeddings to exploration: Engineering interactive latent space visualizations for AI model sensemaking

Machine learning systems are often inspected through 2D projections of high-dimensional representations using techniques such as t-SNE or UMAP. While these visualizations provide useful overviews of clustering and similarity, they are inherently static: they display only the existing data points and do not allow users to interactively explore a model's decision space. We present an interactive exploration system that uses a Variational Autoencoder (VAE) as a generative proxy over a model's training distribution, turning the latent space into a navigable workspace for model sensemaking. Unlike static embeddings, the proxy provides an explicit decoding path from latent coordinates to inputs, enabling interaction patterns such as continuous sampling, interpolation between anchors, and region probing. We operationalize these capabilities through a set of interactive probes that augment a familiar scatter-plot overview with generative overlays for comparing transitions between classes and examining sparsely populated regions. A within-subject formative study (N=16) comparing an interactive VAE-based method to a static t-SNE baseline shows that generative interaction substantially improves counterfactual reasoning and influences how users assess model behavior in sparse or uncertain regions, while static embeddings sometimes provide clearer boundary perception. From these findings, we derive concrete design guidelines and architectural considerations for engineering interactive AI model exploration systems using generative latent representations.

BeatriXR: Comprehensive and adaptive feedforward support for guidance in virtual reality

Virtual Reality (VR) environments present significant obstacles for users due to the sheer diversity of input devices, numerous interaction modalities, and varying user interface designs, which contribute to a steep learning curve. To address these complexities, feedforward is essential as it informs the user about the anticipated result of their actions, easing the learning process through contextualized previews of required interactions. However, designing and implementing effective direct feedforward, particularly without dedicated tools, can be tedious. We introduce BeatriXR, a comprehensive, reusable, and adaptive toolkit that provides extensive support for creating all possible configurations of direct feedforward to enhance user understanding and performance in VR. BeatriXR is an integrated system combining a modular VR toolkit with intelligent support derived from Large Language Models (LLMs). It supports the creation, visualization, and customization of direct feedforward using virtual avatars and two visualizations: an in-world representation and an on-screen comparison of interaction alternatives. This toolkit is mapped onto an established feedforward design space, covering phases such as Triggering, Previewing, and Exiting. To overcome the challenge designers face in determining optimal configurations, BeatriXR integrates an LLM-based adaptive decision support layer that proposes context-sensitive configuration alternatives. This guidance can be used both at design time to help domain experts select optimal configurations, and at runtime to adapt to the user's context and environment, such as recommending a change from a default partial avatar preview to a full ghosted avatar when a trainee shows uncertainty. We conducted an exploratory review with XR domain experts who rated the UI interface the final user can use to modify the feedforward settings, and the output of four LLM models customised for use in BeatriXR that would interact with procedure creators, providing insights on how to improve the UI experience and LLM answers. The results indicated that none of the evaluated models consistently outperformed the others, suggesting that the tested LLMs can be used interchangeably. Additionally, participants' feedback provided valuable insights for improving both the user interface, generally perceived positively, and the quality of the LLM-generated responses.

Paper accepted at EICS 2026: Interactive Latent Space Visualization for AI Model Sensemaking

From Embeddings to Exploration: Engineering Interactive Latent Space Visualizations for AI Model Sensemaking

Our paper "From Embeddings to Exploration: Engineering Interactive Latent Space Visualizations for AI Model Sensemaking" (PDF) has been accepted at EICS 2026 and will appear in the EICS issue of Proceedings of the ACM on Human-Computer Interaction. This is work by Sebe Vanbrabant together with Jarne Thys, Gilles Eerlings, Gustavo Rovelo Ruiz, Davy Vanacken, and myself.

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Paper accepted at EICS 2026: BeatriXR for Direct Feedforward in Virtual Reality

BeatriXR: Comprehensive and Adaptive Feedforward Support for Guidance in Virtual Reality

Our paper "BeatriXR: Comprehensive and Adaptive Feedforward Support for Guidance in Virtual Reality" (PDF) has been accepted at EICS 2026 and will appear in the EICS issue of Proceedings of the ACM on Human-Computer Interaction. This is work by Valentino Artizzu together with Gustavo Rovelo Ruiz, Lucio Davide Spano, and myself.

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Late-Breaking Report accepted at EICS 2026: Visual Analytics for Nuclear Test Verification

RaDIA: Visual Analytics for Systematic Sample Association in Nuclear Weapon Test Verification Workflows

Our late-breaking report "RaDIA: Visual Analytics for Systematic Sample Association in Nuclear Weapon Test Verification Workflows" (PDF) has been accepted at EICS 2026 in Patras, Greece. This is work by Stian Verherstraeten together with Christophe Gueibe (SCK CEN), Gustavo Rovelo Ruiz, and myself.

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Making It Work Is the Work: attempts to progress HCIxFabrication research from the lab to the market

Making It Work Is the Work: Engineering Maturity as Epistemic Work

We contribute some reflections on our attempts to progress HCIxFabrication research from the lab to the market in a short paper "Making It Work Is the Work" (to be discussed at the RealFab'26 workshop at CHI 2026 in Barcelona). This is work with my colleagues Danny Leen, Stig Konings, and Raf Ramakers at the Digital Future Lab (UHasselt – Flanders Make).

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Extended Abstract accepted at CHI 2026: Teaching Cobots What to Do by Watching an Expert

DELEGACT: Let the Robot Watch, Then Decide Who Does What

Our extended abstract "Learning to Delegate and Act with DELEGACT: Multimodal Language Models for Task-Level Human–Cobot Planning in Industrial Assembly" has been accepted at CHI 2026 in Barcelona. This is work by Bram Verstappen together with Dries Cardinaels, Danny Leen, and Raf Ramakers at the Digital Future Lab (UHasselt - Flanders Make).

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