sketching

Throughout the entire project, I aimed to create a light which expressed the essence of the material given by JCEecaux, I aimed to try to create a light that was just much more than a recycled product of discarded posters, but a product that was stunning and elegant, that is ‘upcycled’.  I had many up and downs along the way, and explore many different concepts and ideas. 

One of the first problems I had was the difference in the properties of polypropylene and paper, having tested my ideas on paper, I soon discovered that those ideas would not translate onto the polypropylene, which only enforced the idea that my design had to be based around the essence of polypropylene to create a successful light. 

Throughout the project I was conscious and aware about keeping it flat packed and to keep wastage to a minimal, so I strived to create my light out of a single sheet of polypropylene with little wastage.  My design is a lamp, which is made out of a single sheet, which requires no clips of any sort, instead it has slots and tabs which connect together to hold the light together.  The light twists at the bottom that allows it to lock in the light bulb holding it into place. 

 Blog comments

Christine Chau -      http://christine-x.blogspot.com/2011/10/upcycled-utility.html?showComment=1318851650984#c669979771535427075

Ben Ma - http://mabenjamin.blogspot.com/2011/10/product-poster_17.html?showComment=1318851812757#c1160908606135723916

Luke Messina - http://idesluke.blogspot.com/2011/10/project-2-upcycled-recycling.html?showComment=1318856268825#c169111019333222160

Doug Cusack -  http://dougcusack-ides1031.blogspot.com/2011/10/blog-post.html?showComment=1318856614004#c3536131401535126575

Ricky Chu - http://starocean01.blogspot.com/2011/10/assignment-2-lamp.html?showComment=1318856789939#c910635255993871602

Blog Comments

Christine Chau -      http://christine-x.blogspot.com/2011/10/upcycled-utility.html?showComment=1318851650984#c669979771535427075

Ben Ma - http://mabenjamin.blogspot.com/2011/10/product-poster_17.html?showComment=1318851812757#c1160908606135723916

Luke Messina - http://idesluke.blogspot.com/2011/10/project-2-upcycled-recycling.html?showComment=1318856268825#c169111019333222160

Doug Cusack -  http://dougcusack-ides1031.blogspot.com/2011/10/blog-post.html?showComment=1318856614004#c3536131401535126575

Ricky Chu - http://starocean01.blogspot.com/2011/10/assignment-2-lamp.html?showComment=1318856789939#c910635255993871602

Bill Moggride!

Bill Moggride, who is the director of the Cooper-Hewitt design museum, gives a wonderful insight, on what is design, Ranging from architecture to industrial design and then goes on to explore the ideas of good design and bad design.  He explains that we wouldn’t recognise a good design, unless we are able to recognise bad designs.  He refers to “smart design” as designs that are suitable for everyone he uses kitchen utensils as an example, where it would be comfortable for a youngster, but also comfortable for the elderly who may even have arthritis. 

He then provides a video of the first lady of the united states, who talks about the education of students in design.  The first lady expresses that  the some a portion of children are “cut off” from America’s rich cultural life. She wants to open up new incentives for younger people to embrace the culture of design that surrounds them in their everyday life. She talks about achieving this through workshops and mentoring sessions like the one she gave her speech at to give direction to those interested and shape dreams.

  He refers to the intel tab as a supposably good design, as it integrates many functions together, and then goes on to bad design where he refers to the i-mode in Japan.  He shows a video where it demonstrates how the i-mode is able to allow you to purchase a drink through your cell phone, in the video it takes approximately thirty five minutes for the lady to finally purchase the drink.  Bill explains this bad design can come from the lack of communication between different aspects of design, in respects to the video he refers to the people who designed the phone and the people who design the web service for the i-mode.  He stresses the importance of prototyping to understand people better in order to achieve success.  There are 3 stages to prototyping; inspire, evolve and to validate

He refers to the  4 factors of design as being :

-physical design

-human and subjective

-Digital design

-Technical and objective

Bill explains to us that there are three expanding contexts that relate to design. Personal, Social and Environmental; all of which play a pivotal role in the design process. On a personal scale, we strive to design to achieve health and wellbeing. Socially, we design for impact, to change something, to improve it. And with environmental we look at how the materials that it’s made up of affect our world. 

This is a great video, which I found to be very insightful in expressing design processes and the flaws of design that we are faced with, and coming up with an approach to combat these flaws.  Bill also emphasises to us that it is important to design for others and not to be selfish and just design for ourselves.

Project One: Experience Enrichment - Rationale

Through extensive research on ice cream scoops, I’ve discovered that the majority of designs are primarily focused on functionality, neglecting aspects of comfort and satisfaction.  In this project I set out upon to redesign a scoop that would not only be function able, but to redesign it into a more pleasurable one that enriches and enhances the experiences of the user while engaging with it.  One of my main priorities of this task was to promote a “living relationship” between the tool and the user.  One of the approaches I took to achieve this was redesigning the scoop ergonomically, to increase the comfort in use.   Using ice cream scoops require a firm grip, the harder the ice cream the more effort and strength that is required to scoop it, a firm grip if required for any other hand tool.  Tissue compression (compression of soft tissue, in this case of the palm and fingers) may lead to obstructing blood circulation, leading to numbness and tingling, it may also lead to the forming of blisters due to the friction of the hand and tool.  The grip of the scoop was redesigned so that it spaces the fingers of the users slightly apart, ultimately to reduce tissue compression, when scooping ice cream, to increase comfort and satisfaction during long term use.  The scoop is primarily made out of stainless steel, for strength.  This allows the rim of the scoop head to maintain, it shape without bending, breaking or distorting its shape, as many other thinner scoop heads can do.  the handle is encased in a thick rubber layer to add grip, and prevent slipping.  The rubber will also create a cushion effect of the handle to reduce tissue compression to increase pleasure.  A bright blue colour was used for the grip, to evoke a feeling of calmness and coolness, which goes hand in hand with the thought of ice cream. 




Peer Comments:

Daniel Foo: http://fooides.blogspot.com/2011/09/blog-post.html?showComment=1315800729815#c7080060621137825260
Toi Shan Chung: http://toishanchung.blogspot.com/2011/09/project-1-experience-enrichment.html?showComment=1315800805552#c582591914360362517
Christina Le: http://christinaale.wordpress.com/2011/09/12/concept-poster-easi-open/#comment-11
Dennis Lee : http://dennisdolee.blogspot.com/2011/09/experience-enrichment-vigo-cheese.html?showComment=1316071583919#c5144654332373875372
Ricky Chu : http://starocean01.blogspot.com/2011/09/project-1-product-poster.html?showComment=1316071910372#c3283362607989515814

CAD Drawing!

Concept poster

Product storyboard!

final model!!!

workshop!

Designs!

The Story of Stuff!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Annie Leonard provides a very insightful and entertaining talk about the process of how products are made and where they come from, what I found to be a very interesting point is that “stuff moves through a system” and she explains to us that it goes from extraction to production to distribution to consumption and then disposal, which all together is called the materials economy.  She explores the limitations of this linear process of production due to our finite planet, where there is a limit of resources.  She runs through the each step of the materials economy pointing out flaws and problems that are present.  The problem of extraction once again goes back to the point of our finite planet, where our resources are limited and nearing towards an end.  In the past few decades she explains to us that 1/3 of the planets natural resource space has been eliminated.  Through logging, mining, cutting, etc.  The problem with production is that we mix and contaminate natural resources with toxins and synthetic chemicals to create contaminated products.  She proposes that the low costs of products comes at the expense of the depletion of natural resources of the planet especially in third world countries and at the expense of workers who have no other choice but to work in hazardous environments that can be detrimental to their health.  She emphasises that we have become a planet of consumers, and of which the worst thing about it is that 99% of the products we buy ends up in the trash after 6 months.  The average U.S person now consumes twice as much as they did as compared to twenty years ago.  This didn’t just happen all just on its own, it was designed to happen through planned obsolescence, which started after world war 2, where products are planned to become obsolete in a planned amount of time to force the consumer to go out and buy a new product.  The only part of the materials economy that the general public see is the shopping side of it, so the extraction production, distribution is unknown to many, making everyone unaware of how much damage we are doing to the planet.  When we dispose of these obsolete products burning these products to dispose of emits the toxins back into the air, and it can also create new super toxins.  Annie Leonards “story of stuff” is insightful and mind opening about the process of how stuff is made and the materials economy. 

My Design Career! =D

There are many reasons for me for wanting to become a designer, at an early age I was very interested and fascinated about how things worked and the process of how things were made.  I was also fascinated about the incredible paste of how fast technology improved. It made me wonder, and it occurred to me that products and technology couldn’t become faster, stronger, and improve on its own, but in fact it was designers who were behind it, they are the ones who put in the effort and hard work, to allow the rest of the world to enjoy the latest technology and designs that we take for granted every single day.  It’s these designs that make our lifestyles more pleasurable and more comfortable, which then stimulated my mind that perhaps I might consider design as a career path rather than a fireman.   At an early age I manifested a liking towards cars, toys and gadgets, which pushed me towards a path of wanting to become a designer, I wanted things to become faster stronger and more intelligent, when products didn’t work the way they were supposed to or broke too easily it frustrated me greatly, or more bluntly said “give me the shits!”.  When the time came it was either industrial design at UNSW or UTS after a while of long hard thoughts, I decided to pursue industrial design at UNSW, because apparently it had better credentials over UTS. At the start of the year I started my four ear course here and haven’t looked back since.  So far I have found the course to be quite insightful in all aspects of design and have found the course to be quite fun and creative, though at times to be quite demanding, in terms of workload. I have taken quite an intense liking for the material and technology course, where we explore all different sorts of materials and there elements and properties and what there specifically used for.   It is quite unclear where I see myself in the future at this present moment in terms of my career path. But hopefully after I complete this course I would like to see myself in areas of work where I would enjoy myself, such as designing in the motoring industry, such as Holden or ford etc, or perhaps in the electronics industry, such as for apple.    

ERGORAPIDO!!!!

Overall I find the Ergorapido Pro to be quite a successful product, it encompasses many features and useful and efficient technology.  It's aesthetics and form give the product a pleasurable and exciting feel, differentiating it from many other vacuum cleaners!

David Kelly!!!

David Kelly suggests that we are becoming more and more focused on human centred design.  It involves designing behaviours and personalities into the productOne example of human centred design is the installation of the interactive wall which is about four stories tall in the London science museum, what’s so wonderful about this design is that it is based on the London subway system.  The goal of the interactive wall was to display feedback back to the public which it has received from the people who had visited the museum. Once feedback is entered into the system it travels around the interactive board like the subways systems and expands once it hits a station where it becomes readable.  It is almost as if we are able to display our thoughts about the museum to everyone and provide feedback to the public.  

Another example of human centred design is where Scott Adams teams up with David and his team to try and design a more human friendly cubicle in order to allow for us to feel more comfortable and unrestricted; they described the normal typical office cubical as restrictive, and simulate several scenarios to try and achieve a more human friendly atmosphere. In the first scenario they set up walls which act as screens for pictures and family photos to achieve a sense of belonging at home.  In the second scenario walls are alive and are able to give hugs, in an attempt to make the cubicle more human, the last cubicle has many subtle features such as colours in which the colour orange is meant to represent the sun.  The cubicle includes fish tanks and many features typical of many households to create a more familiar and comfortable environment.   

Another example of human centred design is the spyfish which allows the user to experience a feeling of being underwater scuba diving, without the under even touching the water.  David explains that although many people have boats they lack the capability or the interest to go under water, and this new technology allows the person to experience what it’s like to go underwater visually.

Through David Kelly’s insightful talk we are able to see that designers are taking a more human approach to design, whilst at the same time incorporating behaviours and personalities into their designs.

Don Norman Reflection!

Don Norman humorously explains to us that good design may not always necessarily refer to functionality and practicality, but also the beauty and emotion that are encompassed in good design.  A good example in which Don refers to is his special edition gold plated Phillipe Starck’s juicer, which in reality is impractical as the acid from juice ruins the gold plating, but rather used as a decorative item for its beauty and emotion.

Don Norman also explains how anxiousness and fear can also be a good thing, where it allows us to focus more and not be distracted.  He suggests that happiness allows for one to think outside the box and improve problem solving.

What I also found to be insightful is the 3 ways Norman explains to make one happy:

The first is the visceral level of processing in which in accordance to biology allows us to adopt preferences, likes and dislikes, it is subconscious and we are unaware of it.  Norman refers to us to having preferences such as bright colours, symmetrical face, dislikes such as loud noises, cold temperatures and hot temperatures. 

The middle level of processing is the behavioural level and is also subconscious and explains our automatic behaviours.   He emphasises that most of what we do and our actions are subconscious and that behavioural design is all about feeling in control, including useability, understanding, feel and heft.  For example a high performance sports car allows the driver to feel in control allowing him to feel perfectly comfortable and automated.

The third level of processing is reflective which Norman refers to as the “Super Ego” which he refers to as like a little part of your brain which has no control over what you do, but is rather like a little voice in your head that is reflective.  It looks over what is going on and your experiences and tells you what decision you should make e.g.  Does this look good or bad? Is it function able or not?             

Don Normans talk is insightful into showing us that good design is able to make us happy, even though it may not necessarily function well or is practical, and that good design encompasses beauty.