Main Project: Social Objects
Some objects are more socially enabling than others. Some are even intentionally designed to be social, to be shared and shape the interaction between people, or things around which conversation is based. Christmas cards for example, or telephones, or facebook. It’s not the objects themselves that are important, but how they represent the people around them and how they form social relationships and networks. They often work as platforms for conversation or signaling. Computers operate with binary and quantifiable signals, but as designers we can translate and present that data into something meaningful. You have gotten some practice with this type of data manipulation already, and you know how easy it is to “shape” numbers into whatever message, meaning or action or you want. You have had control over the medium, the timing and exact context, and the message that you’ve wanted to convey. In this last task you will not be able to control the message as much as before, but you are going to design the platform, and thus the framework on which the messages are sent. You will design objects that act as intermediaries or communication channels, not as products that are ends or messages in themselves. You are going to build a closed communication platform, and need to carefully design both how the input and the output is experienced as something social.
Use all your skills within design, including product design, interaction design, electronics and code to make expressive connected objects. The objects are connected privately and directly to each other through a wireless connection to the internet. You will work in pairs, creating one set of social objects. Agree on the level of individual involvement for each project part. Find a concept that acknowledges an interesting human behavior, need, relation, action, or habit. This can be something mundane, small, minute and seemingly insignificant. Try not to solve large and complex issues, for example regarding mental health. Consider the objects’ interactive model – are both equal? Explore both one-way and two-way communication. Design your chosen i/o in a meaningful way, so the end result elevates the data and electrical components, to a behavior that embodies a character and a defined tone of voice.
The objects will be designed specifically for the home. They will be static objects, more or less for an intended room/ location (e.g. the hallway, a windowsill, breakfast table, kitchen counter, nightstand, etc.). The user interaction tells a story about two connected households. The households could be neighbours or in completely different countries. Users Not defined, neither needs to be specified, unless necessary.
Use the Particle ‘Photon’ (Wi-Fi connected). Each group will be given 2 Photons. Code in build.particle.io (you can/ should practice and prototype with Arduino) Choose available input and output components.
Focus on one input and one output (supplementary i/o could be included, but be aware of unnecessary complexity and concept dilution). Explore and consider the inherent properties of your chosen i/o components. Make something with a pleasant, humorous, thought provoking, or otherwise engaging, angle. No strictly utilitarian concepts. Don’t find obscure target users (e.g. no aid devices for deaf-blind people). The audience, viewing your final design proposal, need to understand and relate to the concept, at some level. User input doesn’t need to be an explicit action, but could be part of activity people already do at home (e.g. step on doormat). Design for multiple user scenarios. What if the receiver is not home upon event? Different timezones? Different moods? Level of intrusiveness? What is the default state? What about losing connectivity? How would the use pan out/ change over time? Wi-Fi is a material. Sending and receiving data over the internet requires exploration. Avoid IoT clichés, like “the hug shirts” and “the smart fridge” (also, avoid buzzwords like “IoT” and “smart”). What are the benefits of having this physical (i.e. not on your phone)? You have to be able to build it, within the time frame.
You will be assessed on the following criteria
Your explorations and your willingness to experiment, to be inventive about quick and assessable prototypes, to iterate and to then more onward.
Your ability to create novel experiences which people can relate to.
Your ability to create a set of objects that are appropriate to their environment and to their users, in their appearance and their interactions.
All the traditional skills of a designer need to be evident throughout the project. Your attention to detail, your dialogue with colleges and others, your engagement and participation in presentation and discussions, your critical self reflection on the project etc . The final presentation will be assessed by an external examiner in discussion with the rest of the course team.
One set of experience prototype, high-end finish.
Video describing the objects and user scenario (less than 2 min long).
Photos, both ex- and in-situ.
100 words describing what your design is (non-ethereal).
germansingergirl
gummygunk
vaporwave
annaxmalina
jacobvanloon
theartofmadeline
jbbartram-illu
tangentwithtanner