Harmony Pendant - By David In order to design a device specifically for Bente all previously generated knowledge was reviewed to create and refine a design brief that was both coherent with the project vision, prior decisions, the core features of the product family - and at the same time takes the specific needs of Bente into consideration.
Refining the brief Existing knowledge from the shared CRIGS description of Bente was summarized and analyzed and the previously created scenario was iterated to create a more open one. This was done to further align the two and make interactions with other family members have a real effect on Bente’s daily life. At the same time, emphasis was put on avoiding forcing Bente into a certain role that was outside of what might be considered general parenting. See Appendix M.
Fig.21: At-a-glance overview. Feeling of being in control
Design Opportunities Bente likes to fill her time with both work and hobbies. She desires to spend more time with her family. What stands in her way is a combination of her general life-style and a lack of ability when it comes to time management. She needs a companion device to help her manage and reassure her that daily chores are taken care of and family life and plans are on track. Her needs are encapsulated in the following two themes: • Overview: Bente needs a way of establishing a quick overview of the general state of the home and her agreements with family members • Adaptation: She needs a way of managing and rescheduling her own time as family life is not a routine. She needs to able to change her mind.
Value mission It was noticed that the identified themes are hierarchical in nature - both in a functional sense, meaning that no adaptation is needed if nothing is planned but also, more importantly, in the sense that what Bente needs is at-a-glance functionality that can provide her with the overview she needs and create a foundation from which to adapt. To steer the design process in the right direction a value mission was created, inspired by (Lerdahl, 2008), to ensure that these abstract goals are reflected in device functionally, structure and design (Figures 21 and 22).
Fig.22: Adaptation to non-routine life. Manipulation of details
Value level 1
Value level 2
Other
Additional requirements and development
Input shared event within one week (day, hour, minute)
View stored events Requirement: Individual touch to product family aesthetics
The personal characteristics, the scenario and the hierarchical nature of the value mission was condensed into additional requirements (Figure 23) to ensure that the general-purpose product family device was enhanced to specifically address Bente’s needs. Concept proposals were then developed through iterative sketching (Appendix N) and a flowchart (Appendix O) was developed to further specify functionality and prepare for implementation in a physical prototype (Figure 24).
Portable in size and by design
Delete stored events
Lock to prevent Wish: Input unwanted input personal reminder Fig.23: Requirements derived from analysis of Bente’s needs
Wish: Edit stored events
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