Taifūrin: IoT sound installation as a typhoon warning system

Conventionally, digital disaster warnings are delivered through either map interface applications or with systems that provide alerts through either an application or cell broadcasting. Although recent map applications have become more accessible due to the emergence of platforms such as Google Maps, accessing disaster information often requires some knowledge of web or software applications more broadly. To explore an unconventional way of delivering typhoon information, we created a sound art system that utilises a traditional Japanese wind-chime with an LED attached. This device retrieves a data feed of active typhoons from the Internet. If a typhoon is within a range <1000km of the device, the wind-chime will ring and the LED will flash, with the colour based on the category of the typhoon. Despite its ornamental nature, this work can act as a warning system. In developing this work, we have aimed to demonstrate that geospatial information can be presented to people in ways that move beyond traditional map interfaces. We also aim to demonstrate that the Japanese philosophy of wabi-sabi can be applied in interaction design.