معرفی
Associate Professor Tham Piumsomboon is a prominent researcher at the University of Canterbury's School of Product Design within the Faculty of Engineering. With a PhD in Computer Science from the same institution, their work bridges gaming, human-computer interaction, and immersive VR/MR/AR technologies to enhance user experiences and redefine lifestyle interactions. As founder of the QUADRIC Research Group, they lead initiatives addressing Aotearoa's agricultural, mental health, and sustainability challenges through intuitive intelligent user interfaces.
Research focuses on the intersection of human qualia and technological design, emphasizing experiential learning, cognitive modeling, and ethical AI alignment. Key research thrusts include 'Agents' (AI autonomy levels), 'Humans' (IUIs for XR collaboration), 'Augment' (enhancing human perception), and 'Aotearoa' (local solution development). Their publications reveal strong trends in spatial interaction techniques, remote collaboration frameworks, and mental health applications of XR technologies.
- ACM CHI 2018 Best Paper Award for 'Pinpointing' research
- New and Emerging Researcher Award 2022
- Extensive editorial service for IEEE TVCG, ACM SIGGRAPH, and UIST conferences
As principal investigator for three major grants including 'Tōku Hoa: A Personalized Agent for Mental Health' (MBIE, 2022-2025) and 'Navigating Well-being' (Child Well-being Research Institute, 2024), they direct significant research funding toward mental health and agricultural technology. They supervise over 15 graduate students across diverse XR projects from locomotion techniques to therapeutic applications. The QUADRIC Research Group serves as their primary laboratory environment, fostering interdisciplinary collaboration between computer science, design, and clinical domains.
