This week we did not meet during our usual class hours. Instead, we meet on a Tuesday with students from other classes, our mentors/expert users and FabLab members. In this meeting, we discussed ways to prepare for the next 3 weeks which we will spend preparing for the Make-a-thon.
The extreme users gave us great prompts to consider. One of my favorites was to focus on improving aspects of everyday life for everyone. I found this to be great advice because when working with a client it can sometimes be tempting to solely focus on solutions for them. This can be slightly difficult because it can be hard to shift one’s perspective to see from another. I find it easier to start with a perspective that I identify with and then alter a proposed solution to cater to other perspectives. At the beginning of the semester MileStone Labs shared with us a story of how a group of engineers and designers came together to create a product for a person with a disability. They thought they were creating a solution to what they believed to be a problem but soon found out that what they saw as a problem was not what the client saw. I believe this same situation could be true for those participating in the Make-a-thon if the sole focus is on trying to improve the lives of clients. Not having the same perspective may lead to misidentifying issues.
Another part of the session that I found to be helpful was seeing John demo for how he puts on his socks. John struggles with his mobility which makes it hard for him to do things such as put on his socks. Therefore, his mom sewn loops onto his socks so that by placing one finger in each loop he can easily put on his socks. This type of simple innovation is what I and my team are looking to incorporate into our design for protecting the joystick of powerchairs from the rain. After all the presentations, we had a brainstorming session. In class, we’ve had plenty brainstorming sessions so my team basically reaffirmed our goals and steps for the work that we would complete for the Make-a-thon. I am excited to see all of the innovative work that everyone produces at the Make-a-thon.
Hi Brianna,
I like your point about looking at things from another perspective. As a business student, I have very little experience with product design. I was unaware that empathy is so important in product design, but I have learned that it is critical at each step of the design process. Furthermore, I had always thought it was best to target products to specific markets, so I found it difficult to think about expanding our products to different user bases initially.
Hi Brianna! I thought your point about looking at our problem from multiple perspectives was very insightful. My group is working on a protective cover for Jenna’s leg and a first I thought the mentors in class wouldn’t be able to provide much perspective on our design because none of them have prosthetics. However, after talking to the representative from Clark-Lindsey we learned about how they deal with protecting their residents when they fall and there was some clear similarities between their methods and our prototype designs.
Hi Brianna,
I like how you guys were inspired by John’s customized sock. I thought it was cool that you guys wanted to create a simplified version of the water protection for the joystick power-chairs. I agree and you guys are definitely going in the right track. Maybe you can ask John or Isaiah about the connection mechanism for the water protection. I feel like you can find a way, so people with weak hand strength can use this product as well. Keep up the good work!
Hey Brianna,
This was really cool to see how inspired you were by John’s customized sock. I think its awesome that youre taking John’s simplified approach to the power chair issue. The simplified plan you had in place for your water protection of the joystick I think is a brilliant idea. Good luck with your teamwork this week.
Hi Brianna, I really like your idea of thinking from a different perspective. It’s really hard for us to think about a question from different perspective since we’ve already sunk into our own way of thinking. I’m glad to know that you find an easier and more comfortable way for you to think from another perspective. I also find the socks with the loop really innovative and effective. Sometimes what matters is whether the action or the product can help people or not, even though it just helped a little. It also applies to us. We just need to create something that can help others. It doesn’t have to be a life changing product. Hope we all can have a great experience in the Make-A-Thon
Exciting stuff for all audiences