American industrial designer Tucker Viemeister has teamed up with software giant Microsoft to build an electronic voting machine that could boost security of paper ballots.
Unveiled at the Aspen Security Forum yesterday, the prototype incorporates ElectionGuard, an open-source Microsoft software created to make elections more verifiable, efficient and easy to complete.
The tech company launched the development kit earlier this year at Microsoft Build developer conference in Seattle, making it accessible to be used anywhere.
Viemeister's machine integrates ElectionGuard within an "easy-to-use" and simply designed package, comprising a tilt-able touch screen that displays the ballot, a base shaped like a "pizza box" and a printer.
"The universal design principal attempts to eliminate barriers by addressing the diversity of user needs and planning ahead," said Viemeister. "How things look matters," he added. "Hardware helps make the use sequence intuitive and forgiving and even enjoyable!"
"Although the physical form is important, the function is critical," he said. "Though any election board is free to use the ElectionGuard software on any cobbled together hardware, this prototype demonstrates an optimal design."
Voters using the ElectionGuard voting machine make their selections on the touch screen, which can be tilted to suit different heights, or even their own auxiliary controller. The system allows vo...