BotaniMate is a mixed reality (MR) widget that visualizes realtime IoT plant data through an expressive virtual character and a dynamic terrarium interface. By translating temperature and soil moisture readings into environmental changes within the terrarium and corresponding character behaviors, the system fosters emotional connection and intuitive understanding of plant data monitoring and care. Users interact using natural hand gestures and navigate historical data through spatial UI elements. Integrating IoT sensing, cloud storage, and Unity-based MR visualization on Meta Quest 3, BotaniMate transforms abstract sensor data into playful, affective experiences—enhancing empathy, memory, and engagement in everyday plant care.







The IoT system continuously monitors soil humidity and temperature, synchronizing the data to cloud storage every five minutes, where it is then reflected in the MR spatial widget. A virtual MR terrarium is overlaid above the physical plant’s location, as pre-registered by the user, ensuring spatial alignment between the virtual and real-world environments. Environmental conditions are visualized through ambient spatial cues. Temperature is expressed through color gradients in the terrarium environment—shifting between warm and cool tones. Humidity is reflected through changes in atmospheric density, vegetation growth, and cloud volume.

At the center of the interface is an interactive companion character that responds to changes in the plant’s condition through expressive behaviors: when humidity is high, it jumps energetically; when moderate, it runs and hops lightly; and when low, it lies down and exhibits tantrum-like gestures to signal distress. These allow users to emotionally interpret plant conditions at a glance. The character can be picked up, moved, and repositioned using natural hand gestures—such as pinch and grab—enhancing user engagement and interactivity. BotaniMate transforms sensor data into emotionally resonant “memory moments.” Users can explore historical data through a mailbox-style UI panel by poking left and right arrow controls, allowing them to navigate through past days and revisit previous states of their plant’s environment.







The IoT sensor system is built using a NodeMCU board with a Wi- Fi module, programmed via the Arduino IDE. A soil humidity sensor and a temperature sensor continuously track environmental conditions, with data automatically synchronized every five minutes to Google Sheets for cloud storage. This real-time sensor data is then retrieved in Unity and rendered as an immersive MR experience on the Meta Quest 3. Meta Quest 3’s Depth API enables realistic occlusion, allowing virtual elements to appear naturally within the physical environment—for example, behind furniture or the user’s hand. The system also supports natural, controller-free interaction through Meta Quest’s hand-tracking and Unity’s Hand Grab Interactor, enabling users to intuitively pick up, move, and reposition the virtual character. The virtual terrarium environment is modeled in Blender, while the character model and animations are created in Maya.







The authors wish to thank Chaewon Shin for her contribution to the development of the initial prototype. This work was supported by Korea Institute for Advancement of Technology(KIAT) grant funded by the Korea Government(MOTIE)(RS-2025-02304167, HRD Program for Industrial Innovation).