Proverbial Wallets: financial sixth sense.
Exhibited at Ars Electronica 2009
Opportunity
We have trouble controlling our consumer impluses, and there's a gap between our decision and the consequences. This gap has widened as our physical money becomes virtual. When we're shopping, do we know what our bank account balance is, or whether we're over budget for the month? Our existing senses are inadequate to warn us.
Solution
The Proverbial Wallet gives us that financial sense at the point of purchase by un-abstracting virtual assets. Tactile feedback reflecting your personal balances and transactions develops a subconscious financial sense that guides responsible decisions. These wallets use Bluetooth to get personal financial information via your smartphone's Internet connection.
In concert with Daniel Leithinger, Jaekyung Jung, Danny Bankman, and Emily Tow.
Bumblebee
The wallet buzzes through a vibrator motor whenever your bank processes a transaction. This encourages a conscious connection between handing over your credit card and your hard-earned money being harvested from the bank, and alerts you to fraud when you get a buzz without making a purchase.
Mother Bear
The wallet protects the money within it when you need to be thrifty with a shorted motor in the hinge that resists opening. It promotes saving to weather out financial winters.
Peacock
The wallet appears to grow and shrink using a servo to reflect the balance in your accounts. Your assets will be on display to attract potential mates.
Publication
Boston Globe, “Sci-fi becomes the new reality,“ July 5, 2010.
John Kestner, Daniel Leithinger, Jaekyung Jung, Michelle Petersen, "Proverbial wallet: tangible interface for financial awareness," Proceedings of the 3rd International Conference on Tangible and Embedded Interaction, pp. 55-56, 2009, doi:10.1145/1517664.1517683