Posted on by Emily Sherwood

UR Haven

Team

  • Miguel Yakouma
  • Koshala Mathuranayagam
  • Joey Chan
  • Sophea Urbi Biswas

Hubs Model Link

https://hubs.mozilla.com/K2u7nXR/main-entrance

Abstract

At the main entrance we have a representation of the yellow jacket with the image of Rocky to create a space that reminds people of campus. The intersection in front that leads to the place symbolizes an ecological environment to welcome everyone. There’ s Pee Wee Herman, the American comedian who will share a word of welcome to everyone on the way to the building. It’s about putting a smile on everyone’s faces and making the place a relaxing and accessible environment. After passing by the actor, there is only one door that leads to this magnificent and collaborative place.

Dining Room

The dining room is an area for people to dine, study, relax, and play all in one cafe. The room’s flooring is covered mostly by dark wood except for the studying zone and the gaming zone to provide an amiable environment for the users. When users first enter the room they will see two employees that will greet them. There is a seating area in the middle of the room with chairs of various materials to accommodate the users’ different tastes. We created a buffet table with a variety of food that allows people to gather and dine. Soft piano music playing from the jukebox is added for a relaxing touch. There is also a space for users to sit and chat around a warm fireplace and TV to make the space feel homey. In the gaming area people can play board games such as monopoly or chess, or hang out with their friends and play some tic-tac-toe on the whiteboard or hangman by using the pen tool in Hubs. All of these activities make the virtual scene interactive and helps people feel connected. There is also a quieter study area that will allow users to use the desktops if needed combined with the whiteboards to express their ideas and collaborate with others.

The Clover Theatre Room

The theatre room, or as we like to call it, the Clover (because it’s shaped like a 3-leafed clover ☘️), is a space where people can go to play online games or watch movies and TV shows together while virtually being in the presence of other people. The dark room simulates a theatre setting for our movie lovers and doubles as an arcade for our videogamers. People can interact by finding a seat and sharing their screen to simulate watching a movie together. The architecture of this room provides many benefits to the people using it. The multiple booths allow for many different screenings to be going on at the same time. The curved walls of the booths provide a level of privacy for watchers so other screenings don’t distract them. The clustered seating allows people to gather in small groups and have intimate conversations, encouraging the feeling of connectedness. When a person first walks into the room, the floor is designed in a way that they can easily survey who and what is at each booth and decide where they would like to go. The abundant space in the middle allows people to easily switch between booths, interact with their friends, or make new ones! The Clover’s architectural design promotes ease of movement, the feeling of connectedness and intimacy, and the opportunity to bond with others over shared interests.

Rooftop

The rooftop not only gives you the opportunity to  relax and enjoy snowfall but also offers 4 interactive games for you to have a good time with your friends. In the snowman building area, you can build snowmen by selecting objects and dragging them up, down, sideways, towards and away from you. You can put the pieces together and decorate your own snowman with accessories (don’t worry about running out of pieces, you can build an unlimited number of snowmen fully geared with their bright colored caps and sunglasses! ). There is only one rule to follow in this game- say ‘Hi’! to the person next to you and start a conversation. The instructions board for the snowman building area promotes this lively attitude and helps people connect. The next area is an interactive snowball fighting zone that allows people to pick up the balls and have a snowball fight. The area following is the Snow-Castle-building-area that offers you the chance to be creative and build your own snow castle with friends. In the seating area you can chill and enjoy the snowfall, have a good conversation with friends (or people you just met) and at the same time roast marshmallows. You can even hear the fire cackling. Being close to nature means being in a relaxing environment to have a meaningful conversation with your closest friends. This reminds the students of the times when they were on campus and enjoyed a chilly day out with friends by the fireplace, roasting marshmallows. A deep dive into nostalgia.

Our UR Haven allows students to watch movies in the Clover, dine with friends in the cafe, and interact virtually through snowball fights, snowman building, and marshmallow roasting. The diverse environments of UR Haven promotes connectedness.

Sources

UR Haven Abstract PDF