Concept

Luci Lab is a mixed reality experience for girls (8 -10 years) that seeks to spark curiosity in STEM-related topics through interactive storytelling. By building physical prototypes and interacting with voice-driven AR characters, girls can explore in a fun way and work on their self-confidence with the help of the main storyteller Luci.

The experience is expressed by telling engaging stories, stimulating physical-digital play, encouraging exploration, and empowering young girls. The two main components are the Luci Lab App where girls can select different stories and the Luci Lab Booklet where they can find cardboard templates to build with based on the selected story in the app.

Context

Due to strong gender stereotypes, many girls in Latin America don’t identify with STEM subjects. This makes it more difficult for them to select careers in these fields in the future. This becomes a factor that increases the gap in gender equality and economic growth, especially in more vulnerable communities.

Luci Lab is an exploration to address this challenge.

Process

For the research process, interviews were conducted with public and private schools, technology programs for kids, designers in the toy industry, parents, and girls between 7 and 12 years old with varying experience in technical skills. The prototyping process involved co-creation sessions with girls, designers in the toy industry, and technology educators.

AR and voice interactions were built in Unity and Vuforia. 3D modeling and animation were done in Maya and Mixamo. The cardboard templates were 3D modeled in Maya and saved as a cardboard template with the Unfolder.