Week 9 Formative assesment feedback - Killing our baby

MILESTONE:

After presenting our public installation concept during the formative assessment session we re-examined the feasibility and direction of our design. We felt that our project did not meet the project criteria to the fullest extent. We decided that after weeks of developing the concept in different directions without us achieving the desired goals, it was time to let this concept go and redirect our attention towards another concept that had more potential. After we received our initial and individual concept marks back we started evaluating these designs to the CRA.

Week 9 New concept and possible design freeze

MILESTONE:

Ass we weren't happy with last weeks design concept we

decided to go back to our original concept of a public installation, and explore this more, but change the context in which it would operate.
 

We designed a grid of tiles meant to be installed in hostels or hotels. When a guest checks in he/she gets a key to their room with a small recorder and USB (included in deposit). As the guest goes on trips and explores the citi and surroundings he/she can record bit, sounds and voices (own or others). When back at the hostel he/she can upload this recording to the tile-carpet and this recording gets a designated section. This recording will play when someone steps on the section. The connected computer recognizes a part of the recording and gives the tile-carpet a visual appearance that fits with the recording (e.g. water, beach, grass or similar). The carpet shows this interactive image for the duration of the recording. The sequence of use and scenario can be seen in the video below and the following snap-shots below taken from this video.

 

Here is some inspiration for the interactive tiles:

This video show an interactive floor carpet with leaves and flowers cover the screen. As the user walks over the surface the leaves 'blow' aside revealing white space. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hp9F8PwW5M8&NR=1

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ji6VvA3YiqY
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xnjRG7QO2aY&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VOV0awqIdCc&NR=1

Here are a few snapshots from some of the YouTube videos:

Week 8 Research on concept aspects

During last weeks tutorial we brainstormed and decided to focus on a sustainable public water fountain installation, with a system based on memberships symbolised by bottles that could be refilled and communicate water usage through the bottle itself. Therefore I had a look at existing water fountains, plastic bottles and flasks for inspiration.

 

Week 8 New concept and in- class film exercise

MILESTONE:

During the tutorial our group got together to discuss further development of our project. After getting input in our different groups (object, scenario and behaviour) we decided to re-design our concept, as we felt that the concept needed more meaning. We wanted to give our 'interactive design installation' more purpose, a reason for people to interact and get something valuable back. We started brainstorming and throwing ideas back and forth. Eventually we headed towards an idea og public water consumption awareness. We wished to design an environmentally friendly water bottle. They way our product was to differentiate itself from the other bottles, was through a system of awareness.

The users would purchase a unique water bottle. It could take the shape of a flask, but also be able to collapse when empty. They can fill it up with water at home if they wish. At any point they can approach any of the drinking fountains located all over the city to re-fill their bottle. The unique thing about these water fountains is that they are installed in the walls and only these bottles fit under them, supplying the user with fresh clean water. The bottles have a cover surrounding them containing electronic ink. This ink will get activated when placed under the water fountain. The more often the bottle is filled the more the leaves/tree pattern/vines grow (the more green on the bottle) showing your support for this sustainable concept. The bottle becomes a statement for the user. The station itself provides the user with feedback regarding the general water level/usage and how many plastic bottles are being saved/ NOT purchased because of the re-fill stations.


During the in-class exercise we each filmed a coffee-cart at campus. Then we analyzed the video, cut out a few crucial frames and interpreted the actions and situation in each one, to develop video-cards. We also did a few other exercises to investigate and compare actions related to the activities surrounding and involving the cart.
Here are the videoframes made in to video cards:

People are lining up to order, but there is no clear line or system, visual indication or order to indicate where to stand, who is waiting or who has already ordered.






Next in line, approaching counter, greeting. Placing order and paying to the staff-member  in the coffee-cart.









Lining up with friends. Waiting to receive order,  not knowing where it will be delivered or how long the wait will be..

Still waiting for the order to be called out, taking a seat near the pickup counter, due to the long wait.

Order being called out, recognizing that it is the correct one, approaching a different counter and receiving her coffee.








Here is one of the video's I shot during the tutorial exercises.

By identifying actions associated with the video and interactions I came up with some themes in accordance with the in-class exercise:

Forceful:

- When the barista stamps the coffee into the handle-bar for ground beans.

- Knocking the milk jug into the counter to get rid of larger air-bubbles.

- calling out coffee-orders in a noisy environment

Complex:

- Perceiving, writing down, recognising and calling out correct orders. 

- Handling money and cards

- Socialising and adjusting to different customers 

- Multitasking, keeping an eye on food that is being cooked, customers, coffee and supply levels or different kinds.

- Interacting with staff and moving around behind the counter, between furniture and customers. 

Delicate:

- Presenting food.

- Making the coffee; feeling the temperature of the jug with milk, measuring 

- Pouring milk and creating beautiful patterns

- Balancing liquids without spilling

-Wiping around intristic parts

- Dealing with hot surfaces and liquids

Accurate:

- Measuring ingredients

-Handling money

- Hearing and replying to correct information

- Coffee orders

Crucial:

- Correct orders

- Input and output regarding needs of coffee machine and recipes 

- Handling money and cards

Interactive:

Week 8 Further development on design brief

MILESTONE:

Due to our continuously changing design concepts I decided to investigate what the brief should contain and how we could develop our design more efficiently. I identified that there is going to be a hierarchy between requirements and user needs and this should be explored and mapped out at a later stage.I also developed a few 'how to' statements about the needs of the users as shown at the end of this blog. This lead to a design statement aimed at guiding our further design.

When Can You Make a Design Specification?

Normally, a design specification is constructed during the problem analysis, the result being some finished list of requirements. However, a design specification is never really complete. During a design project, even during the conceptual designing stages, new requirements are frequently found because of some new perspective on the design problem. Therefore, a design specification should be constantly updated and changed.
 
Possible procedure

List as many requirements as possible. Roozenburg and Eekels state that to arrive at a complete design specification, different points of view can be taken into account. Choose one, or several, of these points of views (stakeholders, aspects, or process tree) to help generate requirements. You can also use a checklist, for example by Pugh.
Make a distinction between hard and soft requirements (between hard requirements, which are quantifiable, and wishes).
Eliminate requirements which are in fact similar or who do not discrimate between design alternatives.
Identify whether there is a hierarchy between requirements. Divide between lower-level and higher-level require ments.
Operationalize requirements: determine the variables of requirements in terms of observable or quantifiable characteristics.
Make sure that the programme of requirements fulfills the following conditions:
Each requirement must be valid.
The set of requirements must be as complete as possible.
The requirements must be operational.
The set of requirements must be non-redundant.
That the set of requirements must be concise.
The requirements must be practicable.

Tips and concerns

Be careful: do not make the possibilities for your design too limited by defining too many requirements.

Distinguish between measurable requirements and non-measurable requirements.
Give your requirements numbers in order to be able to refer to them.

http://www.wikid.eu/index.php/How_to%27s :

What Are How To's?

Figure 1: Example of H2's
‘How to’s’ (see figure 1) are problem statements written in the form of “How to…” (How to’s are often written as H2 for short). Examples are: H---ow to carry luggage in the airport? How to transport deep-frozen food in a shop? How to supply people with beverages at a festival?

The “How to..” way of phrasing is dynamic and inviting. The idea is to create a wide variety of problem descriptions. In this way different perspectives are briefly shown, and the problem is described from these different points of view. There are rules in force such as ‘postpone judgment’, ‘associate on the ideas of others’ and ’strive for quantity rather than quality’. The How to’s are open questions that stimulate your creativity almost immediately. The various “how to” questions give a comprehensive overview of the problem that you are working on.


Here is my interpretation:
There is an increasing need for connecting to other people you care about, however often this interaction is restricted or limited through physical distances, time constraint and differences and an increasingly independent and busy lifestyle.

How to's:
- How to connect to loved ones through a tangible interaction?
- How can users communicate and feel social presence through an external aid?
- How can two or more people be connected through a convenient interaction complementing instead of limiting the participants lifestyle?
- How can people communicate and get fundamental needs covered without physically being in the same location?
- How can an external aid encourage and promote real time interaction without loosing vital elements and cause confusion and frustration?
- How can a new design cover a broad range of needs in a more efficient and better way than any existing media or social network?

Common elements:
- Connectivity
- Function efficiently across a distance
- Cover fundamental needs of communication and feeling togetherness
- Promote real time interaction in a better way than existing media

End statement:
- Designing an object that promotes socializing through real time, tangible interactions between people, regardless of physical and limiting conditions.