Architec Tradure

Category: product design and theory.

  • 29NovA guide to evaluate Universal Design performance

    If you’re new here, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed to receive the latest Architectradure’s articles in your reader or via email. Thanks for visiting!

    I found a guide to evaluate the universal design performance of products.
    Evaluating the Universal Design Performance of Products, EUDPP, Molly Story, James Mueller, and M. Montoya-Weiss, 2002 from the Center for Universal Design.

    Paper in .pdf format

    Their definition of universal design

    Universal design is the design of all products and environments to be usable by everyone regardless of age, ability or situation. Achieving usability by people of all ages, abilities, and situations is very difficult, but it is a goal well worth striving for. As universal design performance is increased, so are usability, safety and marketability for all users.

    In sum, the 6 principles of universal design are:
    1. Equitable Use
    2. Flexibility in Use
    3. Simple and Intuitive Use
    4. Perceptible Information
    5. Tolerance for Error
    6. Low Physical Effort
    7. Size and Space for Approach and Use

    The Universal Design Performance Measures are not intended to be used as a “scoring” device, nor as a substitute for real-world testing by individuals with personal experience of aging or disability. Product developers with some knowledge of the issues involved in aging and disability will find this tool helpful in:
    • Evaluating product usability throughout its life cycle: packaging, instructions, set-up, use, maintenance, and disposal;
    • Developing product testing and focus group methodologies for use with individuals of diverse ages and abilities;
    • Promoting the universal design features of products to potential customers;
    • Identifying universal design features of products for design competitions and award programs.

  • 29NovA guide to evaluate Universal Design performance

    If you’re new here, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed to receive the latest Architectradure’s articles in your reader or via email. Thanks for visiting!

    I found a guide to evaluate the universal design performance of products.
    Evaluating the Universal Design Performance of Products, EUDPP, Molly Story, James Mueller, and M. Montoya-Weiss, 2002 from the Center for Universal Design.

    Paper in .pdf format

    Their definition of universal design

    Universal design is the design of all products and environments to be usable by everyone regardless of age, ability or situation. Achieving usability by people of all ages, abilities, and situations is very difficult, but it is a goal well worth striving for. As universal design performance is increased, so are usability, safety and marketability for all users.

    In sum, the 6 principles of universal design are:
    1. Equitable Use
    2. Flexibility in Use
    3. Simple and Intuitive Use
    4. Perceptible Information
    5. Tolerance for Error
    6. Low Physical Effort
    7. Size and Space for Approach and Use

    The Universal Design Performance Measures are not intended to be used as a “scoring” device, nor as a substitute for real-world testing by individuals with personal experience of aging or disability. Product developers with some knowledge of the issues involved in aging and disability will find this tool helpful in:
    • Evaluating product usability throughout its life cycle: packaging, instructions, set-up, use, maintenance, and disposal;
    • Developing product testing and focus group methodologies for use with individuals of diverse ages and abilities;
    • Promoting the universal design features of products to potential customers;
    • Identifying universal design features of products for design competitions and award programs.

  • 30NovMichael Graves and universal design

    If you’re new here, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed to receive the latest Architectradure’s articles in your reader or via email. Thanks for visiting!

    Discussing about Universal Design with my research group, Amanda showed us the fascinating work of Michael Graves featured in Metropolis magazine.

    “People who become disabled have to radically redesign their outlook about the physical world,” Graves says, remembering the first days after he was out of danger and learning to live with paralysis. “They redesign their sense of privacy and their sense of independence. Yet in the products they have to use, design has abandoned them.”

    The following is a very nice cane-bag combo, cane that can be hidden at any time.

    This model folds into a built-in padded nylon bag. The latter was developed after Peschel and his team noticed that people often like to keep folding canes out of sight in a bag or purse. Getting it manufactured, however, was tricky: the designers ultimately had to find one factory to make the bags, then a second to assemble the cane into it.—M.C.
    Courtesy Michael Graves Design Group


    Shower Heads

    Graves Design developed two handheld shower-spray products, both in white injection-molded plastic with blue overmolded rubber grips. The smaller one was designed to fit in the palm of the hand; people with arthritis or dexterity problems can comfortably use it without a tight grip. A swivel connector at the base allows the unit to spin without twisting the attached hose (it also fits into standard shower holders). —M.C.
    Joe Andris/courtesy Michael Graves Design Group

  • 30NovMichael Graves and universal design

    If you’re new here, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed to receive the latest Architectradure’s articles in your reader or via email. Thanks for visiting!

    Discussing about Universal Design with my research group, Amanda showed us the fascinating work of Michael Graves featured in Metropolis magazine.

    “People who become disabled have to radically redesign their outlook about the physical world,” Graves says, remembering the first days after he was out of danger and learning to live with paralysis. “They redesign their sense of privacy and their sense of independence. Yet in the products they have to use, design has abandoned them.”

    The following is a very nice cane-bag combo, cane that can be hidden at any time.

    This model folds into a built-in padded nylon bag. The latter was developed after Peschel and his team noticed that people often like to keep folding canes out of sight in a bag or purse. Getting it manufactured, however, was tricky: the designers ultimately had to find one factory to make the bags, then a second to assemble the cane into it.—M.C.

    Courtesy Michael Graves Design Group



    Shower Heads

    Graves Design developed two handheld shower-spray products, both in white injection-molded plastic with blue overmolded rubber grips. The smaller one was designed to fit in the palm of the hand; people with arthritis or dexterity problems can comfortably use it without a tight grip. A swivel connector at the base allows the unit to spin without twisting the attached hose (it also fits into standard shower holders). —M.C.

    Joe Andris/courtesy Michael Graves Design Group


  • 25JanInteraction design from product design

    If you’re new here, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed to receive the latest Architectradure’s articles in your reader or via email. Thanks for visiting!

    In Sept. 2006, I referred to the work of Tom Djajadiningrat. Tom Djajadiningrat is both industrial designer and researcher. He works on interaction design and considers product design methods.



    Figure extracted from the paper on Rich Interaction: issues.

    I selected two other papers of his that look at interaction design from a product design point of view.

  • Frens, J.W., Djajadiningrat, J.P., & Overbeeke, C.J. (2004). Rich Interaction: issues. EUSAI2004, pp.271-278.

    Abstrat The topic of this paper is rich interaction. Rich interaction borrows from tangible interaction and the concept of affordances. This is achieved through integral design of form, interaction and function of products. It is applied to interactive consumer products. A digital camera with a rich user interface (RUI) was designed and compared in a user study to a digital camera with a more conventional user interface. Several issues concerning rich interfaces are discussed.

    Link

  • Wensveen, S.A.G., Overbeeke, C.J., Djajadiningrat, J.P., & Kyffin, S.H.M. (2004). Freedom of fun, freedom of interaction. Interactions Magazine, september + october, pp.59-61.

    Introduction The modernist tradition still drives our society and our scientific endeavors. Modernity stood for technology push, progress through industry, linearity, money, the abstract, and the logical. But it has resulted in a feeling of uneasiness, even coldness. That is why, we think, there is now such a drive to get human and societal values back in the equation: Think of human-centered engineering, the experience economy, funology, and the like. In this article we give an exam- ple of the direction interaction-design research might take. We describe an approach that exploits all human skills, including perceptual-motor and emotional skills. We then reflect on the question of why industry has been slow to adopt this approach.

    Link


  • 25JanInteraction design from product design

    If you’re new here, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed to receive the latest Architectradure’s articles in your reader or via email. Thanks for visiting!

    In Sept. 2006, I referred to the work of Tom Djajadiningrat. Tom Djajadiningrat is both industrial designer and researcher. He works on interaction design and considers product design methods.



    Figure extracted from the paper on Rich Interaction: issues.

    I selected two other papers of his that look at interaction design from a product design point of view.

  • Frens, J.W., Djajadiningrat, J.P., & Overbeeke, C.J. (2004). Rich Interaction: issues. EUSAI2004, pp.271-278.

    Abstrat The topic of this paper is rich interaction. Rich interaction borrows from tangible interaction and the concept of affordances. This is achieved through integral design of form, interaction and function of products. It is applied to interactive consumer products. A digital camera with a rich user interface (RUI) was designed and compared in a user study to a digital camera with a more conventional user interface. Several issues concerning rich interfaces are discussed.

    Link

  • Wensveen, S.A.G., Overbeeke, C.J., Djajadiningrat, J.P., & Kyffin, S.H.M. (2004). Freedom of fun, freedom of interaction. Interactions Magazine, september + october, pp.59-61.

    Introduction The modernist tradition still drives our society and our scientific endeavors. Modernity stood for technology push, progress through industry, linearity, money, the abstract, and the logical. But it has resulted in a feeling of uneasiness, even coldness. That is why, we think, there is now such a drive to get human and societal values back in the equation: Think of human-centered engineering, the experience economy, funology, and the like. In this article we give an exam- ple of the direction interaction-design research might take. We describe an approach that exploits all human skills, including perceptual-motor and emotional skills. We then reflect on the question of why industry has been slow to adopt this approach.

    Link


  • 26JanEmotional relationship with products

    If you’re new here, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed to receive the latest Architectradure’s articles in your reader or via email. Thanks for visiting!

    McDonagh D, Bruseberg A, Haslam C. (2002) Visual product evaluation: exploring users’ emotional relationships with products. In Appl Ergon. 2002 May;33(3):231-40.

    Abstract This paper discusses an industrial designer’s approach to eliciting user perceptions and emotional responses to products through visual evaluation and stimuli. Whilst the authors accept that product functionality is crucial for product success, the appearance, use of materials, shape and form provide the most immediate product data for the user. Less tangible issues such as emotional bonding of users with products, cultural perceptions and social value systems, provide valuable insights for the product developer to help expand knowledge and understanding of the users’ need beyond the functional. This paper presents product personality profiling as a new technique for design researchers/designers, and discusses it alongside other emerging approaches such as mood boards and visual product evaluation. The authors have used these techniques during focus group sessions with users to elicit individuals’ needs and aspirations towards products. Such a user-centred approach is fundamental to applied ergonomics. Experiences, benefits, and limitations of these techniques are outlined as well as the opportunities for further development.

    Paper


  • 26JanEmotional relationship with products

    If you’re new here, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed to receive the latest Architectradure’s articles in your reader or via email. Thanks for visiting!

    McDonagh D, Bruseberg A, Haslam C. (2002) Visual product evaluation: exploring users’ emotional relationships with products. In Appl Ergon. 2002 May;33(3):231-40.

    Abstract This paper discusses an industrial designer’s approach to eliciting user perceptions and emotional responses to products through visual evaluation and stimuli. Whilst the authors accept that product functionality is crucial for product success, the appearance, use of materials, shape and form provide the most immediate product data for the user. Less tangible issues such as emotional bonding of users with products, cultural perceptions and social value systems, provide valuable insights for the product developer to help expand knowledge and understanding of the users’ need beyond the functional. This paper presents product personality profiling as a new technique for design researchers/designers, and discusses it alongside other emerging approaches such as mood boards and visual product evaluation. The authors have used these techniques during focus group sessions with users to elicit individuals’ needs and aspirations towards products. Such a user-centred approach is fundamental to applied ergonomics. Experiences, benefits, and limitations of these techniques are outlined as well as the opportunities for further development.

    Paper


  • 26JanNew product development

    If you’re new here, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed to receive the latest Architectradure’s articles in your reader or via email. Thanks for visiting!

    Anne Bruseberg and Deana McDonagh-Philp (2001) New product development by eliciting user experience and aspirations International Journal of Human-Computer Studies, Volume 55, Number 4, October 2001, pp. 435-452(18)

    Abstract Industrial design training is embracing the need for designers to elicit user needs in order to support the development of successful new products. This paper highlights the collaboration of an ergonomist and two industrial designers in the development of a range of mainstream domestic consumer products. It documents the experiences gained in applying and adapting focus group techniques to inform the designing process directly, and illustrates how a variety of techniques (e.g. product handling and product personality profiling) can be incorporated to elicit user needs, aspirations and emotions.


  • 26JanNew product development

    If you’re new here, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed to receive the latest Architectradure’s articles in your reader or via email. Thanks for visiting!

    Anne Bruseberg and Deana McDonagh-Philp (2001) New product development by eliciting user experience and aspirations International Journal of Human-Computer Studies, Volume 55, Number 4, October 2001, pp. 435-452(18)

    Abstract Industrial design training is embracing the need for designers to elicit user needs in order to support the development of successful new products. This paper highlights the collaboration of an ergonomist and two industrial designers in the development of a range of mainstream domestic consumer products. It documents the experiences gained in applying and adapting focus group techniques to inform the designing process directly, and illustrates how a variety of techniques (e.g. product handling and product personality profiling) can be incorporated to elicit user needs, aspirations and emotions.