A LoCoS-based tool capable of providing a clue for idea generation

Recalling us of something important (e.g., a birthday, anniversary, appointment, and homework assignment), or idea generation in general, is a key for success in our community. It is expected that a computer is of much help to such purposes. A lot of trials have been investigated so far. However most of them support putting and summarizing ideas. We propose in this paper a new type of idea generation tool which is capable of giving a clue to a user, or hopefully of making a spark of inspiration. Pictorial symbols provided in the LoCoS visual communication language are used as a means of hooking ideas hidden in his/her brain. Three different prototypes have been implemented and are described extensively. In addition, we present a result of the experiment.