Wednesday, 31st of August 2011 - Burning the candle at both ends (will it be a distraction)

1. 3
   Go into the room your studying and take out all things that distract you.
2. 4
   Light candles or spray something to help make you relaxed while studying this will help you be less forgetful.
3. 5
   Once you are relaxed, organize everything you need to study and lay it out in order from hardest to easiest that way you do the harder ones first so if you get tired you'll know them already.
4. http://www.wikihow.com/Avoid-Distractions-While-Studying

 It may actually be benificial to have the candles present in the room to keep a relaxing environment for people that are involved in the group study - it can deffinately be seen as a motivator to keep going even if it just so you know/sense someone is with you helping you do your study.

For each situation that has been mentioned, a bobbing candle may well be benificial if the right variables are controlled - ie. speed of the bobbing, intensity of the flame and light/ intensity of the heat.

Tuesday, 30th of August 2011

"Burning the candle at both ends..." is the name of the concept that was chosen today by the group to further explore. The loose definition is as follows:
burn the candle at both ends Fig. to work very hard and stay up very late at night. (One end of the candle is work done in the daylight, and the other end is work done at night.) No wonder Mary is ill. She has been burning the candle at both ends for a long time. You'll wear out if you keep burning the candle at both ends. 
OR

burn the candle at both ends to get little sleep or rest because you are busy until late every night and you get up early every morning (usually in continuous tenses) She'd been burning the candle at both ends studying for her exams and made herself ill.

Basically referring to working too hard at a particular activity. However, other areas can be explored - 

• Work/study - Can we use the concept to motivate or inspire each other to keep working late in the night by literally burning the candle at both ends... Will it affect the study or working as a possible distraction or something to send someone to sleep?
• Romantic setting - How will the couples react with something bobbing up and down in front of them? How can it stimulate the senses - Aromas? Level of light?
• Competitive - Can it be seen as a timer? How long has the other been racing etc. A varied intensity and speed can tell who is winning. Are there other variables? 
• Music rehersal - The bobbing candle could adhere to being useful in musical practice - particularly with music having such a dependence on  tempo and timing. Is there also a way of having the candle applied for tuning purposes? - evening out when the right note is played or when the right notes are played. A simple input is the music being played but with the output at the other end..? Evens out with harmony?
• Artists and writers - Co-authors may need to ability to easily know the progress of another writer - input may have to come from either "time spent" or a computer plug in for word processing. For artists it would be as simple as whether a piece has been created dependant on the artwork type.
• Insomnia and sleeping issues - Due to the candles relaxation properties it could be used to help with various sleeping problems such as insomnia. Inputs would be - noise monitoring - movement (micro & macro) - breathing patterns. The output at the other end would reflect the sleeping pattern of another person - erratic or slow and relaxed. May be able to calm each other down if they know someone else is sleeping calmly.

Monday, 29th of August 2011

Group work: We have elected our groups and with a team of three the tasks are split into three categories - Behaviour,  Scenario, and Object. Each of these categories related to a different part of the interaction of the product we are designing. Behaviour will relate to how the users will behave and interact with the product when using it - this could be how they feel, what they do, dependent on the other two categories as well though. Scenario will deal with the context in which the product will be used and how the product will relate to that context. Finally object will relate to the more physical side of the design of the product: ie. shape, form, colour, components, manufacturing, engineering etc.

The group members are Michael Coleman, Kahlia Lickevicz and John Nissen (myself). Michael will be covering the Behaviour side of the product, Kahlia will be covering the Scenario side of the product and I will be covering of Object side of the product. My focus will be on the technology and manufacturing and how we can physically bring this product onto the market in an efficient and cost effective way. Dependent on the product chosen in the next class by the group I will be looking into materials, technology, manufacturing methods, transmission methods, and ergonomics. Another factor that will need to be considered is the safety side of the product (this is considering Michael's concept using flame). All of these aspects will be looked at and analyzed to make sure the best method for manufacture and design is chosen.

Effort will also be made that input from all group members to their other respected aspects (Behaviour, Scenario and Object) will be considered to make sure the group is happy with each members direction.

Tuesday, 23rd of August 2011

Presentation day review. Today we saw the group present their concepts. There were some interesting concepts that arose from the interaction research that the class carried out. Interestingly, in week 2 or 3 a group of us were in conversation with the tutors about the general direction that people seem to go in when these projects arise all seem to be roughly in the same direction, and that it takes some time to get away from that particular direction to really find an innovative solution - in this case the general direction was wristband concepts. Everyone seemed to want there input and output to be in a wristband form.

This brought into question other matters - should EVERYONE steer clear of the "wristband concept" or is it really a solution worth processing. This in fact brings an idea into question as to what the "wristband concept" really is. Metaphorically it is the meaning of the stereotypical, the generic and the normal designs that come out into the world after what it seems is much research and development of a product. So how can we criticize such products when it is clear that this seems to be what people want and seems to be what comes out of user research? The point of the matter is after seeing such an interesting and broad range of very innovative and excellent solutions to the brief, who is going to be the one that designs the "wristband concept" that the public seems to want at the moment? Who will design the toaster that looks like a toaster, sounds like a toaster and actually toasts bread?

Over the next couple of weeks we will be developing the chosen group product into an innovative interactive device.We will see next Tuesday the feedback from the tutors and decide which product we will be developing.

Friday, 19th of August 2011

Once a concept has been chosen to push forward with it was time to figure out a way to present it in a matter that would successfully represent it's tangible interaction. The concept that was chosen to develop was the impression interaction board which would allow the users to make a physical impression on someone else around the world. The term impression in this case, is not referring to a feeling that is lefet upon a person when meeting or having a personal interaction with them but is referring to a physical three dimensional compression of an array of pins or buttons to create an image. The idea stems from having the ability to leave a "message" for a person to whome which can reply to when they see fit. It is a simple and pure form of interaction that can be stemmed to so many applications, not just in the social interactive stream.

The idea did not come from seeing an impression art board however, but the idea of an international game of tic tac toe. Being able to push a button here and having the same button pushed wirelessly somewhere else in the world. this idea then stemmed to the user having the ability to push more buttons than those present on a tic tac toe board; for example, an array of buttons each with a symbolic or metaphorical meaning to convey the message that is wished to be implied. This again developed even further to the extreme to having the ability to have thousands of smaller scale buttons to which one could write a message or leave and imprint or "impression".

**Video draft #1

 Making a video was the chosen method to best represent the idea or leaving an impression on the other side of the world. The video shows how two people can physically leave an impression on one another anywhere in the world.

Tuesday, 16th of August 2011

Another concept explored through the concept bomb activity was task three: design a tangible interactive device that allows friends to see what each other is doing. This could be seen as a broad range of activities so I went with adventuring: or more specifically, climbing and diving.

The concept I came up with was a device that measures, records and transmits altitude readings to your fellow climbers and divers. It could be used either by several people at once who might be climbing or diving at the same time as a safety measure, or even as a competition to see who can record the highest or lowest altitudes over a certain time period. This will motivate friends to get out and try and beat their friends by climbing and diving which are both very good physical exercises.

This interactive device will allow friends to connect on a whole new level whilst engaging in physical activities. The product will work by using a combination of GPS as well as air pressure monitoring to allow an accurate as possible recording of altitude. As a safety indicator the device will be able to alert someone when there is a sudden change in altitude if someone has for example fallen from a climb.

Tuesday, 16th of August 2011

On Tuesday it was time to apply our design knowledge to a concept bomb exercise. This involved exploring several short design briefs related to interaction design. The first task: was to design a product that would shorten the geographical distances between close friends through a tangible interactive device. The second task: was to design a product to connect couples that are not able to be in contact with each other. And the third task: was to design a product to allow friends to have a sense of what each other is doing eg. physical exercise, work etc.

This exercise allowed us to think more towards a direction needed to move forward in the project. Given the specific tasks also made it easier to narrow in on a particular user group and product specification. For example, for the first task of designing a product to shorten geographical distances, my idea was to have the ability to "leave your impression" on the other person. And I mean a literal "impression"..

The idea started as a physical way of sending a message through button elevations and symbols - but this idea moved to creating any symbol the user wanted to through the use of thousands of "buttons". By utilizing the current pin impression board technology - physical impressions could be sent through the internet channels to a partnered device to create a physical 3D communication between two parties.

The actual manufacture of the communicative side of the device may prove to be difficult though as such movement tools as solenoids aren't yet small enough to group in such a way to move individual pins. Hence an exploration into magnetic power boards will follow if this concept is to be explored.

Tuesday, 9th of August 2011

Is it just me, or do industrial designers love to pull apart old crap, recycle working components and use them to create ludacris, Frankenstein-like devices?

Today we had the opportunity to go into the workshop and do just this. A small group of use each had different products from clippers to RC boats, cars and helicopters to electric tooth picks to pedometers. The idea was to pull these products apart and see how they worked, what controlled them, what kind of user input was required to create an output. We would first have an estimate of possible ways certain outputs could be achieved, which were then either confirmed or questioned once the product was in pieces.

The task however didn't stop at learning about how these products worked. It was the brought upon us that some of the components in these old products were still functioning quite well. "Why not "fix" a few of these products?" Through the exercise of replacing motors with bigger ones, retrofitting wheels and magnets, the aim led to trying to create and propeller powered boat on wheels.
First however, we needed to pull apart a particular object - 

Pull apart the removable parts of the Object without breaking it.

Find some tools! The beauty about these mass produced products is there standardization within the manufacturing process - basically every screw that holds it together is the same.

Taking apart the main body of the object can reveal a lot in terms of the simple mechanisms of how it works - in this case using polystyrene foam to add buoyancy to the object as well as water protection???

How is the mechanical "DRIVE" components held in place? In this case more standardized screws that keep the RC boat together!

It is reletively simple to see how the electronic circuit board can control and route the radio frequency input into mechanical outputs

Find the mechanical output components and figure out how they work together to create the effect of - in this case - moving a boat across the water.

What are the brains behind this movement (excluding the user)? The circuit board acts as a router path for the electronic currents to follow and find it's final destination at the mechanical operators.

Finally the boat is pulled apart to its barest form (or that that is possible from a screwdriver). We can see how all the mechanical components are linked together to receive the desired output from the controller.

We find the problem with the broken boat and come up with a simple solution. Some kind of universal joint was missing from connection between the electric motor and the drive shaft. A simple replacement was fabricated out of balsa wood which served as a viable means of bringing the boat back to mechanical working form.

At first look this particular mechanism wasn't understood. However after further taking it appart....

A simple electromagnet contrained on a swivel point is enough to give the boat a full movement using a rudder system, not unlike those found in real boats.

An exploded view of the mechanism can be seen to show how the rudder system of the boat works.

Creating this pointless product actually gave us the insight needed to explore interaction design further. We can continue to ask questions such as.. "What do I want my products output to be?" "How can I achieve the output?" "What sort of input will it need?" "What kind of user interaction does this create?" These are the things we need to be thinking about when developing a interactive product.

Tuesday, 9th of August 2011

Lifetec allowed us to become informed, view and experience the various assistive technologies available on the market for users ranging from minor accidental injuries to major quadriplegic lifestyles. It was shown that with the help of these technologies, people with major disabilities are able to perform tasks they normally wouldn't be able to do. Being able to experience these products gave us the insight needed to really get behind what is needed in future assistive products.

However, there were two problems with the products that stood out: 1. With some being very technologically advanced, a lot of the products seemed as though they have been "thrown together" our of some spare material to make life a little easier. 2. When a product comes along that does seem to be well thought out and well made, it is far too expensive for such users to afford. This was later explained as a lack of government funding towards assistive technologies. Private industry is probably not interested in funding such products as the return would be either next to nothing or negative.

I do not believe anyone is at any particular fault for these problems, but it does outline what needs to be fixed in this particular design industry. Products designed for the, for lack of a better word, disabled, shouldn't be treated as a business venture but as pro-bono work for those who have already given so much to their community.

In terms of the products themselves, being able to use them in a way that they would be meant to gave us designers an opportunity to gain an understanding of what is required when considering these users in interactive products. We may want to design an interactive product that requires certain motor functions to work at a strong scale, where some people may find it difficult to complete such a task. Having this knowledge in the back of our heads means it will always be considered in not just our interactive product design but in our future designs.