deeplocal: Design and Development for Humans and Machines

As if a trash-talk-robot that prints directly on soccer balls wasn’t enough, Deeplocal and Nike’s ad agency, Wieden + Kennedy have collaborated again for the campaign “Write the Headline,” a spin-off of the campaign “Write the Future.” Inspirationally titled and grand in scope, this project is causing everyone to look to the sky, in a literal and figurative way.

Soccer fans from all over the world can submit messages (does this sound familiar?) about which player they think will dictate the headlines by carrying his team to World Cup victory. Messages can be submitted via various web platforms: Facebook app, Twitter (hashtag #NikeFuture), QQ (a Chinese chat program) and Mxit (a South African instant messaging app). The messages are showcased in an LED-display on two sides of Johannesburg’s Life Centre building, one of the tallest in the city. After the text is displayed, it morphs into an animation of the players.

Here’s Nike’s fast-paced video for Write the Headline.

Although the message is small (57 characters max), the impact is huge: the image and text can be seen from 2.5 kilometers away. These futuristic headlines are displayed on the Life Centre building from 6pm until 6am in 12 different languages. The person who submitted the message also receives a picture of the message displayed on the building.

Parts of this big-technology venture may sound familiar–Deeplocal and Nike’s Wieden + Kennedy have been working to create a presence at the World Cup. And it seems to be working. The idea behind “Write the Future” is similar to the campaign “Balls to the Brits, Balls to the Yanks“. Fans submit a message (whether it sounds like a headline or a threat), which is run through a moderation system, and then tossed out or up (onto a ball or a building).

Deeplocal developed the mechanic that allows people to submit messages (such as the Facebook app) and the system that moderates them.  Nike personnel around the world choose the messages to be displayed.

These campaigns are reminiscent of the Nike LIVESTRONG Chalkbot, although the sporting events are quite different. With Chalkbot, fans and supporters submitted messages via web and social networking platforms, they were filtered through a moderation system, and then chalk-painted onto the course. Deeplocal is continuing its involvement in projects that allow sports fans to get closer to the players and the game, without the cost of travel, but with their own words.

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Trash talking and soccer, (or at least sports in general) go hand in hand—the taunts and the jeers, the ragging on the other team, the threats and the promises of victory.

The energy around the FIFA World Cup continues to build. Deeplocal partnering with Wieden+Kennedy Portland found a way to capture that energy, the trash talking, and the physicality of the game with their campaign “Balls to the Yanks, Balls to the Brits produced for EA Sports.”

In less than three weeks, a team of three people created the only known Twitter-powered portable ball printing robot in the world. The robot takes in messages from a variety of sources (iPhone, iPad, web submittal, and Tweets) and then our web-based moderation system filters the messages before they’re printed on the soccer balls.

If you’ve heard about the Nike Chalkbot (and you probably have by now, it’s received enough press), you’ll understand the excitement around Balls to the Yanks, Balls to the Brits. Soccer fans in America and Europe can submit a message, which is printed on the soccer balls with acetone-based ink that dries in seconds. Then the ball is propelled into the crowd using a steel, spring-loaded mechanism.

Cheering crowds were able to get their hands on these trash-talk-coated balls at EA’s one day event in London and Los Angeles. On both sides of the ocean, fans submitted their message via iPad, it was printed on the soccer ball in the opposite city, and hurled into the crowd. The back and forth of trash talk came alive that day. Check it out: EA’s Balls to the Brits, Balls to the Yanks on June 12

The technology behind the campaign is Deeplocal through and through—taking the digital world and propelling it into the physical world. The Nike Chalkbot took messages of hope and inspiration from online venues (Tweets, web submittal, etc.) and painted them directly on the race course of the Tour de France. Then, the Chalkbot snapped a picture of the message and sent it back to the submitter, complete with GPS tracking coordinates, merging the physical back with the digital world.

For “Balls to the Brits, Balls to the Yanks,” we took the print head technology that’s traditionally used for industrial applications and repurposed it. There are 15 digitally-controlled spray nozzles and the same web moderation software, called Handlr, as the Chalkbot. The robot is powered by a Linux Netbook that pulls the submitted messages from all over the world, and they’re printed in real-time. Designed from scratch, the robot is made entirely of steel and can be adjusted to paint on different types of sports balls. And there are two of them that speak to one another.

Much like Chalkbot, the project focused on feedback. Printed balls were photographed in a tongue-in-cheek setting and sent back to users, documenting their printed ball arriving in the opposing team’s homeland. Evan Andy Sanberg got in on the action in LA.

Deeplocal has more tricks like this one up its sleeve—we love projects (often involving robots) that use technology and art to link digital technology to things you can hold in your hands, or bike across on the ground.

Look for our next post on the project we just launched with Wieden+Kennedy Amsterdam for Nike in Jo’Burg.

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For the past year, Chalkbot has received some pretty awesome recognition. You’ve probably read all about how Chalkbot worked- it was a tweet-fed, chalk-spraying robot that printed messages of hope and inspiration for the Livestrong foundation on the course of last year’s Tour de France. You’ve seen the videos of the robot in action. But you may not know much about the technology that made Chalkbot work.

The Chalkbot was built in seven weeks by an artist-led team of engineers in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The overall project was a collaboration between Deeplocal, Wieden + Kennedy Portland, and Standard Robot Co. Testing was done in Deeplocal CEO, Nathan’s back alley, as well as a testing facility near Carnegie Mellon University, appropriately called “Robot City.” I’ve had the pleasure of assisting in getting Chalkbot ready to print each morning at the Tour de France, sacrificing my toothbrush to scrub its paint nozzles, directing traffic for French drivers (despite speaking no French), and capturing heartfelt messages and moments after printing. Now, we’d like to give you a sneak peak at some of the technology that was used and the testing that was done during the building of the Chalkbot.

 
Pneumatics Allowed Chalkbot to Paint

 
Chalkbot’s Machine Control Code

 
Printing Test Sprays

 
Testing the Chalkbot in Robot City

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Today marks the beginning of my summer internship here at Deeplocal. I have been hired to assist with various marketing tasks for RouteShout, Chalkbot, and Deeplocal itself. I’m currently a senior journalism and mass communication major at Point Park University scheduled to graduate this upcoming December.

I was unsure of what to expect for my first day at Deeplocal. I didn’t know whether I’d be jumping in head first writing press releases and other promotional material or if I would be performing menial tasks.

Upon entering Deeplocal’s refreshingly modern and minimalist office this morning, I was not assigned to anything marketing-related nor gofer errands. Instead, I was instructed to help Nathan and Chloe with packing up the office in preparation for the move from the sixth floor to the fourth floor.

After a trip in the rain with Chloe and Heather to the Wine & Spirits store for boxes, Chloe and I packed everything from office supplies to Tupperware amidst the sound of various rap mash-ups. In between packing the contents of the shelves and the kitchen cabinets, I read-up on Deeplocal press.

Although I was already familiar with Deeplocal’s innovative work that merges the technological world with real-world experiences, I wasn’t aware of just how far Deeplocal’s projects extended into the global marketplace. I read press from not only Pittsburgh based media outlets but also international news organizations such as CNN that lauded the innovations of Deeplocal.

Despite the fact that I have yet to be actively involved in any Deeplocal marketing endeavors, I’m excited to be a part of such a creative team of people for the summer.

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Although we were up against some tough competition at this year’s Webby Awards, our Chalkbot project still managed to take two Webbys, for “Best Integrated Media Plan” and “Online Campaigns.”

So who gives out Webby Awards and why do they matter? The International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences select the nominees for both awards in each category, as well as the winners of the Webby Awards. Members of the organization include “musicians Beck and David Bowie, Internet inventor Vint Cerf, political columnist Arianna Huffington, Real Networks CEO Rob Glaser, “The Simpsons” creator Matt Groening, R/GA Founder and Chairman Robert Greenberg, Virgin Atlantic Chairman and Founder Richard Branson, and The Weinstein Company Co-Founder Harvey Weinstein. Members also include writers and editors from publications such as The New York Times, Wired, Details, Fast Company, Elle, The Los Angeles Times, Vibe, and WallPaper.”

For Deeplocal, a small studio in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, this is a pretty amazing group of people to be recognized by. Of course, we had amazing partners in Wieden+Kennedy Portland and Standard Robot Company- truly a collaborative effort that resulted in an industry-changing campaign and the chance to introduce ourselves to the advertising world.

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This year we were proud sponsors of the Pittsburgh Marathon. We had the pleasure of meeting Patrice Matamoros last summer and she got us involved as technology/mapping sponsors. Not only was it a pretty cool thing to know that we contributed to the success of this great event, but we also got the VIP treatment, from a party at Enginehouse 25 in Pittsburgh’s Lawrenceville neighborhood to a VIP tent at the finish line of the race.

Unfortunately, due to injuries (two stress fractures for me), there weren’t any Deeplocalers participating in the race this, but our good friend, Scott Bricker from BikePgh ran his first half-marathon with an excellent time- way to go Scott!

Nathan often talks about the important role that running has and continues to have in his life. For me, running (or other forms of exercise) makes me feel in control of my life, even if everything else is unpredictable and fast-changing. If I’m having a bad day, I can still go out and have a great run.

With that, we look forward to sponsoring and hopefully also participating in the Dicks Sporting Goods Pittsburgh Marathon again next year!

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I am in NY now at AdAge Digital. I speak tomorrow about Chalkbot and Gutter Tech. So far, nothing great to report. Twitter’s COO announced their ad platform (I won’t share my opinion here). The best part is Heather and I met Jason Fried of 37 Signals. We got to talk briefly. Personally, I have a lot of respect for 37 Signals and I think Deeplocal shares a lot in common with the company. I don’t have much to report other than Jason got one of the first copies of a really nice booklet that Chloe designed in the office. Again, Deeplocal takes the DIY approach to marketing! So even at AdAge DIgital, where we are the smallest company presenting, we can make a splash with our nifty little red books!. Thanks Deeplocal for holding down the fort. I’ll be back in Pittsburgh soon! We also bumped into Nick Parish of Contagious Magazine yesterday which was a lot of fun! In other news… TheMotherhood.com (which we just relaunched) is up for a Webby Award! Please vote for TheMotherhood here.

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Dimitry and Lindsey have been working hard with our partners TheMotherhood.com to relaunch their site yesterday! We don’t produce a lot of straight websites here but TheMotherhood has been much more than a site, they are really two great moms themselves building a business around what they love. We like to be able to help when we can. Dimitry really owned this project (and I mean that in the best sense). It makes me want to reiterate to all start-ups that the people you are working with and depending on matter so much more than technology or markets. Dimitry was a true entrepreneur on this one from making design decisions, keeping the client informed, and delivering within timelines. Great job. Go check out TheMotherhood.com and leave a note about the new site for Emily and Cooper. TheMotherhood is a split-city effort by the way. Emily is in NYC and Cooper is here in Pittsburgh. Yea for Pittsburgh!

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Tim White and his wife Susan had a baby today. It’s the first ever Deeplocal baby! This is a major step for the office. Welcome to the world Clare Elizabeth.

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Last week Chloe and I went to Context, AIGA Pittsburgh’s annual exhibition and award night. It was great to see Pittsburgh’s design community gathered in one place—namely SPACE gallery Downtown—to share the fruits of our efforts. I remember earlier years (okay, I’m not that old; it was like 3 years ago) when the featured work was mostly print design and, as a student, my “experimental narrative” project sat meekly in the corner on a laptop with a small handful of other interactive and digital projects.

I’m pleased that the range of work has become increasingly diverse, and this year was no exception. Screen printed posters hung alongside with digital projections, along with shelves of all sorts of design artifacts. I’m also very pleased to announce that both of Deeplocal’s featured pieces—Nike LIVESTRONG Chalkbot, and the 2009 Pittsburgh bike map—received awards of distinction at the show. For me, it’s a nice message of acknowledging both high-tech interactive work and more traditional printed work.

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