Jonathan Ive

"You're seldom intimidated by something that you can feel"

Screen shot of a Google image search for 'touch'... meh.

Beautiful...

I love these, both for the product and for the presentation.  Without any dialogue the concept is communicated clearly and emotionally.  Both products provide lovely interactions in how they are meant to be used, and with the materials used to create them.


Sniff from Timo on Vimeo.

And beautifully simple...


Skål from Timo on Vimeo.

Week Three: Introducing the supercharged electric razor powered boat with wheels and a propeller??

Well in the end it didn't technically come together, but some good collaboration revealed interesting possibilities.
Our task this week was to 'deconstruct' old electronic gadgets and material items, then using these individual components, create something completely different.  It was about understanding the interactions and developing new possibilities... An old remote control car, boat and helicopter with an electric razor, a couple of batteries, blue-tac, a rubber band and Voila! Well... sort of...

 Our gadgetry

The batteries were rechargeable, but no longer managed to charge...
As you couldn't get to them, it rendered the shaver useless. 

After smashing it to pieces and replacing the batteries, the motor started without hesitation.

The 'Altantic '95', the wonderful green boat seen on the right, was brought in by another group &
provided the perfect vessel for our rejuvinated motor...

The intention...

Our motor had great potential, but the best part of the exercise happened when two groups came together to share ideas and materials.

Love a good model...

In this age of user-centred design, we are encouraged to consider the 'fit' of products, (and I say products from a marketing perspective - meaning anything, tangible or intangible, that meets a need).  Not only, Does it work? but -  Can I use it? and -  Does it solve my problem?  Your product may scratch very well, but does it scratch where there is an itch?  For me, one of the interesting tools presented during our Lifetec visit was the HAAT model (Cook & Hussey, 2002).  Given that most designers of AT are unlikely to require the products themselves, models such as these are particularly important as they guide designers to an understanding of their users requirements and the barriers to independence.

Figure 1. Human Activity Assistive Technology Model 

The CAT model further develops the HAAT model, to organise end-user information, Figure 2, and design specifications, Figure3.

Figure 2 CAT Model -  End-user information

Figure 3 CAT Model - Design Specifications

 Figure 1. Cook, A. M., and S. M. Hussey. 2002. Assistive Technologies: Principle and Practice, 521. 2nd ed. St. Louis: Mosby).
Figure 2 & 3 Hersh MA. 2011. The Design and Evaluation of Assistive Technology Products and Devices Part 1: Design. In: JH Stone, M Blouin, editors. International Encyclopedia of Rehabilitation. Available online: http://cirrie.buffalo.edu/encyclopedia/en/article/309/

Week Two: Lifetec & Assistive Technologies (AT)

This week we were fortunate to have first hand experience with numerous assistive devices and technology at Lifetec Queensland.  Many thanks to the staff for sharing their time & knowledge. A few things stood out for me from the visit... One, just how medical everything felt; perfectly suited to a high-care facility or hospital ward, but not a home. And two, how expensive some items were. $1500 for a Parkinson's walker that felt as though it didn't offer any more than a BMX in its technology or design... (except perhaps for the laser). And $63 for a potato peeler? I mean really?




Parkinson's Walker $1500

 



BMX ...yours for about $400.

Some items were cleverly simple in their design solutions, however many felt somewhat incomplete or unrefined. 

Rocking knife, provides a more secure grip and requires less dexterity



Bowl tipper, self-explanatory, but looks as though it was made in a highschool shop class.
Imagine trying to secure those little ocky strap clips?



Personal alert devices, stylish bracelets or pendants that connect to a response system in the event of an emergency - for falls and the like.  You just have to remember to wear it - and really, would you want to?

 We spent ages 'playing' with nifty little gadgets and wheeling around in motorised chairs, all the while your conscious is saying, 'This is not supposed to be fun, this is supposed to be serious, imagine if you had to put up with these things everyday?' We learned that 50% of AT is abandoned, and no wonder really.

Inclusion through technology...

Happened across this Australian website tonight,

 http://www.mediaaccess.org.au/

... haven't had a proper look as yet, but it seems as though it may provide us with some useful insights into the level of media access for people with disabilities, and the efforts to increase this access...

Mind mapping

Beginning to explore assistive technologies...