Boston Children’s Hospital Interactive Wall is an interactive installation whose goal is to empower physically or emotionally ill patients, hospital visitors and their families through experiential storytelling. The interactive media wall allows visitors to interact with scenes, characters, sounds and other experiences displayed on a two-story LED screen (27’ x 18’) located in the lobby of Boston Children’s Hospital in Boston, Massachusetts. Characters and sounds react to visitors movements and gestures captured using Kinect sensors communicating with scenes in Unity.

A visit to the hospital can elicit all kinds of emotions in children. It’s normal for them to feel anxious or confused about their diagnosis and treatment. What’s unusual for any child who walks through hospital doors is to feel a sense of control.

Boston Children’s Interactive Media Wall, part of its lobby renovation, is designed to put some power back in the hands of children. The system is a 20-foot tall media screen that uses motion sensors and optical cameras in concert with computer programs to generate a digitized 3D model of each guest.

The project is a collaboration between the Digital Media Center, Digital Media & Design Department and Center for Health, Intervention and Prevention at the University of Connecticut and Boston Children’s Hospital.

The Boston Children’s Hospital Hero Wall opened to the public in November of 2014.

Concept art, plans and storyboarding began in September 2012. Research, development, animatics, scene building and testing continued into 2014.

Press

• Kinect for Windows - Sick children get a dose of Kinect-enabled empowerment

• Thriving: Boston Children's Hospital Pediatric Health Blog - Interactive Media Wall captivates visitors

• UConn Today - Hospital’s High-tech Wall Opens Doors to Imagination

• Connecticut By the Numbers - Boston Children’s Hospital Delights with Interactive Wall Developed at UConn