Tag: Creative Confidnece

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The Journey Continues…

Thinking back to the time when I was applying to be a part of the course, I realized how far I have come since then. I remember being excited yet nervous about taking the course. As someone who lacked self-confidence in my own technical abilities, I was looking forward to learning different skills, such as using a 3D designing tool and 3D printing a product. However, I was nervous that I would fall behind. You can see how nervous I was from the post I wrote in the past. Little did I know then that I would be spending hours taking a lead in cleaning up 3D scans and printing them for the team by the end of the semester.

Before the course began, I didn’t know what to expect from it. All I wanted was to gain more technical skills that I can continue to use even when the course wrapped up. However, I quickly came to realize that the course provided far more than the hard, technical skills.

Upon hearing the stories of the mentors, I realized that the course is very unique in the sense that it has many opportunities to leave an impact on society. That’s when I began to develop my desire to do something more than simply developing technical skills. Even if I could not complete an idea by the end of the semester, I wanted to leave an idea behind that other people can be inspired by.

Since the course had a main focus on developing ideas around the subject of accessibility, it was critical for us to understand the process of designing and developing prototypes. This was when I learned about the term “design thinking” or “human-centered design.” I realized that this idea can be applied to everywhere in any profession, not just in the space of designing. By constantly keeping the customers/clients in mind and being open to their feedback, you have the best chance of providing something for their needs. This is one of the most valuable ideas that I learned from the course.

As we continued to learn about different skills and qualities necessary to be successful at developing ideas, such as failing early and often, we began to learn the technical skills that I was looking to learn as well. Unlike my worries, I was able to absorb the information quickly and even take a step beyond what was taught in the course.

I remember the first time watching the 3D printers at work in awe as my work on the computer came to life in a tangible form. Although I have always wanted to try it before, due to the lack of confidence, I kept on convincing myself that I don’t know how to do it, so I never have until this point. This class allowed me to break the barrier and become comfortable with the idea of exploring the unknown.

In addition to the 3D designing and printing programs such as Fusion 360 and Ultimaker Cura, I also learned other skills that I did not expect, such as using Inkspace, laser cutting, sewing machine, and Arduino. I also discovered Fablab and its resources, which I am interested in exploring further in the future. I did not realize that we had access to such resources nearby and I am grateful to have met even more amazing people who are ready to help with anything within their capabilities.

The real fun began when I was able to apply these skills to develop my own idea with the team. We faced many challenges throughout the semester from trying to figure out the opportunity we wanted to pursue to making advances in the prototypes. However, we continued to push through and persevered in the end.

Through the Make-a-thon and a couple of weeks after the event, we were able to develop on the prototypes rapidly. It was amazing to see how quickly we were able to make advancements during these three weeks. I was even more surprised to discover how much I could do with Fusion 360 and Meshmixer to 3D print the scan. This experience built my confidence in my abilities to learn and apply the technical skills.

Wrapping up the project, I cannot believe how much I learned from the course. Not only have I gained more technical skills than I expected, but I also learned about different ways to interact with people of varying needs and mindsets. It was also very exciting to be able to see other people’s passion and to watch their ideas become tangible products. I never considered myself an innovator and did not think that I would have an opportunity to work with people of varying backgrounds to develop on a new idea, but this experience demonstrated to me that I have what it takes and I just need to dive into it, past the self-doubt stage. This course has really allowed me to build the self-confidence and passion that I need to pursue after different opportunities beyond my comfort zone. Not only am I excited to see where this experience will lead me to, but I am also looking forward to seeing everyone else continue to grow and reach their dreams!

Thanks everyone for such a wonderful semester! Also a big shoutout to the mentors and judges who provided so much valuable inputs and feedback!
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Make-a-thon

This week we got an introduction to the Make-a-thon. The participants of this event go beyond our Digital Making seminar course. Its expanded to Industrial design students from Dr. Deana McDonagh and Jim Kendall’s course, as well as students from Jeff Ginger’s Makerspace. This pre-event to the actual Make-a-thon gave us a general overview of what was going to take place leading up to the weekend long event. Later during the session there was a panel of a few returning experts and a few new ones. Some new faces were Isaac, John, and Steve. They all spoke about their disabilities and the daily frustrations they face. The panel even discussed some of the unique ways they’ve adapted to make the best of their situations.

John’s sock with three attached loops
Joh’s sock with three attached loops

Above is an image of one of John’s sock. I thought this was so simple, yet very effective. Apart of John’s condition is very minimal grip strength. So task like putting on socks or buttoning a shirt is difficult to him. A simple life hack he came up with was sewing loops on the outer edge of his sock, which he can fit around his fingers and pull on the sock. It crazy to think this is all it took and it making a huge difference.

Steve from the panel also gave us an overview of Clark Lindsey, which is a  premier retirement community for today’s accomplished adults. From the presentation he gave I found there to be quite some opportunity in this specific sector. He put a heavy emphasis on fall prevention. Maybe we can design some sort of new innovative thing around this opportunity.

The last part of the Make-a-thon pre-event was a social portion. This time was for everyone to meet and talk amongst each other. Since we’ve been working on our project for sometime  used this portion to to talk with some of the new experts and students to see if any wanted to get involved. We did meet a potential new team member from Jeff’s makerspace seminar. She seemed very interested in what it was Solestice is trying to do. After this It really just turned into a team meeting where we mapped out what we needed to from the session up until the Make-a-thon itself.


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FabLab 2.0

Inkscape vector file of watch to be laser cut

This week we returned to the FabLab. We continued to familiarize ourselves with all the tools and tech the lab has to offer. We specifically learned a vector editing software called Inkscape. Through this workshop we learned how to create basic shapes, manipulate them, and produce more. After learning the basics of the software we learned to transform images into vector graphics. These skills were then applied to a customized watch. The watch is a device that allows patients who have to do bicep curls and rotation in wrist during rehabilitation. The base of the watch consist of 3 wooden circles, two of which have rectangles on each side. I thought it would be help patients if the watch had small arrow indications of which way the device goes. The top layer rotates, so I designed an arrow pointing in the direction of proper rotation.

3 layered watch with electrical components

After this we moved into sewing. Unlike most of my peers I have experienced sewing. My sophomore year I sewed a jacket with a sleeping bag attachment completely from scratch. So during the tutorials and walkthroughs I was a couple steps ahead. We all picked the fabrics we wanted our wristband for the watch to be and then cut it to scale.  We sew it right sice in and sewed the seam. This created the sort of sack like appearance of the band. Getting it right side out was a hassle, it required us to use these thin wooden rods to pull the fabric through. We finished up by attaching velcro strips to the band to ensure a comfortable and secure fit to the wrist.

Images showcasing the process of sewing and creating the band for the watch

The second half of class each group presented to Milestone Labs and Adam Bleakney. We’ve made a lot of progress since last speaking with them. We got a lot of insight from this conversation. We realized we hadn’t thought everything thoroughly. Our design is solid but we have to really hone in on the attachment aspect of it. The overall ease of use should be convenient for the user. They also asked a lot of questions regarding materials of our device. We are currently scheduling a time to interview a material science professor here at the university. This week I have scheduled a virtual interview with my physical therapy. We also have a meeting this monday with my professor who handmakes shoes. We plan to do a bunch more research structured around our opportunity and project idea.

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Week 5

This week we were introduced to four guest speakers: Sneha Subramanian from the Illini service dogs, John Hornick author of “ 3D Printing Will Rock the World”, Jeff Ginger from the CU Community Fab lab, and the Illinois Informatics Institute. We began with a brainstorming session with the Illini Service Dogs. We specially were looking at areas of opportunity with improving disabled users independence with service dogs. Ideas bounced around and some really interesting things came from this. After the brainstorming session John Hornick brought so much of the 3D printing industry to our attention. There are so many trends out there, but John emphasised 3 main trends. One of which is that 3D printing spurs innovation, it also increases democratization. Lastly 3D printing is full customizable. I personally really enjoyed all the different innovative projects globally that John mentioned to us.

Jeff from CU community Fab lab gave a very energetic and passionate overview of the lab itself. He told us of all the resources and network we have here on campus. He then went into showing some of his personal projects, all produced at the CU Fablab. He designed this really cool solar power laptop case that charged his laptop. He also created this octopus dongle sort of thing that has every plug in port you could think of. Jeff seems to really be passionate about innovation and I though his overall presentation was inspirational.

After the guest presentation we were given on from our TA Mehmet Aydin on Design Thinking. During his presentation he introduced us to the Design Thinking Modules. You have Inspiration- Ideation- Implementation model. You then have Empathy- Define ( we focus on defining the opportunity from an empathetic standpoint. Then you have Prototype- Test phase. Mehmet also mentioned the idea of diverging, converging and repeating the entire process. You have to just do it. It kind of ties back to last weak guest Mike Henson statement of, “ Fail early, fail often.” The design process is a process of decision making and doing things. You have to ideated on an idea and act on it. Fail and fail and through each failure new innovation ill emerge.

Once Mehmet’s presentation  we broke off into our teams to do a “Stories & Experience” exercise. The task of the exercise was for us to look at our interview Q/A and diverge deeper insight from them.We were able to really figure out our users frustrations, emotions, limitations, pretty much the good and bad. Solicestice in particular, was able implement the experiences of the user to create more value with our potential product. It gave us a framework to further structure of customer discovery and validation of the idea itself.



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Finding Creative Confidence and Inspiration

Finding Creative Confidence

One of my biggest concerns of taking the Digital Making Course is my ability to be creative. There is so much fuss around the world about needing to be innovative; about how we should be changing the world. However, I never truly believed that I have the ability to leave such an impact through a creative idea. This lack of confidence caused me to feel nervous about the course. Yes, I wanted to learn about the overall process of designing a product. Yes, I wanted to learn how to use computer-aided design (CAD) software. Yes, I wanted to learn how to use a 3D printer and successfully be able to print an object. But I wanted to do more. With the help of the mentors, the professor, and the fellow students, I wanted to design a product that will bring a positive impact on someone else’s life. Yet, how am I supposed to do that when I do not even believe in my ability to do so?

Thankfully, the course began with learning about different mindsets necessary to be a successful designer, one of which was “Creative Confidence.” The concept of this mindset is that a designer needs to believe in oneself’s ability to have big ideas and act on them. Throughout the journey of designing, there will be many ambiguity and failure, but that doesn’t mean I should give up. I just need to continue to explore different ideas and learn from the failures. It may be easier said than done, but learning about such mindsets allowed me to be less nervous and be more excited about the journey.

Finding Inspiration

With my upgraded mindsets, I was eager to meet the mentors and learn about their stories. I was ready to be inspired. The meeting began with Adam, who showed the class around the Disability Resources & Educational Services (DRES) facility.

At DRES facility, you can find a wall of Paralympians who have competed in wheelchair racing.

It was amazing to see the training equipment that is used, a timeline of racing wheelchairs showing the evolution hanging from the ceiling, and a workshop where innovative ideas to help the athletes come to a reality. Along the tour, we were introduced to Ariel, who shared her story of 3D printing the wheelchair racing gloves and distributing them around the world at a more affordable price for the customers. Afterward, we were introduced to Ryan, Jenna, and Ron, who openly shared about their experiences with wheelchairs, prosthetic legs, and meeting others with similar experiences.

Even before meeting them, I knew that I would gain inspiration from them. But they surpassed my expectations. I wasn’t aware how much of an inspiration they would provide. I felt that every single experience that they shared were valuable, leaving me frantically taking notes throughout the whole session. One of the most important points that were brought up during the conversation was the problem of affordability. It is mostly not the technology or the idea that is lacking in today’s word, but it is more so that these innovative products are not really affordable right now to the majority of the people who they are created for.

From the conversation, I was able to immediately come up with several ideas that I would like to explore down the road. Not only did it raise my eagerness to dive into the project, but it also raised my confidence. Unlike my worry before, I was already developing multiple ideas, demonstrating that I am more creative than I think.

The conversation also changed my perspective about innovation. It’s not about changing the world. Rather, it’s about improving someone else’s world. Even if it makes a difference in a few people’s lives, that is completely fine. As long as you design for the people and create an idea or a product for them to improve an aspect of their lives, you are an innovator. After all, isn’t that what human-centered design is all about?