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THE MICRO KITCHEN BIG IDEAS FOR SMALL SPACES
PROFESSOR CHRIS QUINN VISUALIZING THE HUMAN EXPERIENCE
DREW CURRY M.A. INTERACTIVE DESIGN LINDSEY WILSON COLLEGE
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TABLE OF CONTENTS 3 - PROJECT INTRODUCTION 4 - USER RESEARCH 6 - SOLUTION RESEARCH 8 - DEVELOPMENT 12 - PROTOTYPING & USER TESTING 14 - SOLUTION PRESENTATION 16 - CONCLUSION
3 MILLIONS IN METROPOLITAN AREAS ALL OVER THE WORLD FACE THE ISSUE OF SPACE. NO WHERE IS THIS MORE EVIDENT THAN IN THEIR KITCHEN, IF THEY EVEN HAVE ONE. I WAS TASKED WITH ACCOMPLISHING TWO THINGS. FIRST, DESIGNING A KITCHEN THAT CAN FIT IN A RECESSED AREA OF A SPACE OF 7’X25”. THE OTHER, DESIGNING AN APPLICATION TO RUN THE KITCHEN AND ALL THE APPLIANCES LOCATED WITHIN. THROUGHOUT THIS DESIGN DOCUMENT I WILL SHOW THE PROCESS OF HOW I REACHED MY FINAL DESIGN DECISIONS.
PROJECT INTRODUCTION
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USER RESEARCH THE IMAGE TO THE RIGHT SHOWS THE IDEAOLOGY WE FOLLOW WHEN SEEKING TO DEVELOP A USER CENTERED APPLICATION. THIS DOCUMENT WILL WALK YOU THROUGH ALL BUT THE FINAL MEASURE STEP. ON THE LEFT YOU WILL FIND THE PERSONA OF SOMEONE WHO IS LIKELY TO NEED AND USE THE FINISHED APP.
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SOLUTION RESEARCH THESE ARE IMAGES I FOUND OF TINY KITCHENS FROM MAJOR METROPOLITAN AREAS LIKE NEW YORK CITY.
7 I FOUND THESE PICTURES TO SEE WHAT THE CURRENT REALITY FOR THE PEOPLE THAT LIVE IN A CRAMPED SPACES IS LIKE. THESE IMAGES AND OTHERS LIKE THEM HEAVILY INFLUENCED THE DESIGN OF THE KITCHEN CONCEPT THAT YOU WILL FIND IN THE FOLLOWING PAGES.
8 KITCHEN DESIGN SKETCH
SKETCHES SHOWING DESIGN OF KITCHEN ITSELF, INCLUDING PROPORTION MEASUREMENTS FROM FRONT AND TOP DOWN VIEWPOINT
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APP DESIGN SKETCHES
PRELIMINARY DESIGN AND LAYOUT SKETCHES FOR THE APP THAT WOULD SERVE TO CONTROL THE APPLIANCES.
DEVELOPMENT
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MEDIUM FIDELITY WIREFRAME
FIRST DIGITIZED REPRESENTATIONS OF THE ORIGINAL DESIGN SKETCHES ABOVE. WIREFRAMES USED IN INITIAL USER TESTING PHASE.
UPDATED MEDIUM FIDELITY WIREFRAMES
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UPDATED MEDIUM FIDELITY WIREFRAMES WITH INCLUDED SIDEBAR NAVIGATION. DEVELOPED AFTER USER TESTING FEEDBACK.
DEVELOPMENT CONT.
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PROTOTYPING & USER TESTING
ON PAGE 10 YOU SEE THE INITIAL PAPER PROTOTYPE USER TESTING BEING PERFORMED. ON THE OPPOSITE PAGE YOU WILL SEE USER TESTING OF THE FINAL VISUAL SKINNED VERSION OF THE DIGITAL PROTOTYPE.
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I LEARNED A LOT ABOUT MY APPLICATION THROUGH THE USER TESTING PROCESS. TEST RESULTS FOR THE INITIAL PAPER PROTOTYPE ONLY LEADING TO AROUND A 60 % SUCCESS RATE. I REALIZED THAT NAVIGATING BETWEEN PAGES WAS NOT INTUITIVE OR EASY WHICH LEAD TO SOME OF THE CHANGES I MADE TO THE FINAL VERSION. I SAW THE RESULTS TO WITH AN INCREASED SUCCESS RATE IN ASSIGNED TASK TO OVER 80 % ACROSS USER TEST.
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SOLUTION PRESENTATION IN THESE TWO PAGES YOU WILL FIND MOST OF THE FINAL COMPOSITIONS FOR MY KITCHEN APPLICATION. ON PAGE 12 YOU SEE MANY OF THE FINAL MOCK-UPS AND HOW THEY WOULD LOOK IN THE APP. THE TINY BLUE NUMBERS ON THE PICTURES ARE INDICATIONS OF HOT SPOTS WHERE YOU CAN CLICK AND INTERACT WITH EACH OBJECT. ON THIS PAGE TO THE LEFT YOU WILL SEE THE CHANGE OF STATE THAT ONE SUCH INTERACTION COULD BRING ABOUT. IN THIS INSTANCE THE USER WOULD CLICK THE UP ARROW TO INCREASE THE OVEN TEMPERATURE. THIS WOULD IN TURN INCREASE THE TEMPERATURE ON THE SCREEN BESIDE THE BUTTON, AS WELL AS CAUSE THE PREHEAT BUTTON TO COME ON AS WELL.
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16 IN CONCLUSION, I SAT OUT TO DESIGN A KITCHEN AND APPLICATION THAT WOULD WORK FOR A CONDENSED SPACE IN A METROPOLITAN AREA LIKE NEW YORK CITY WHERE SPACE IS VERY LIMITED. THROUGH RESEARCH, SKETCHING, WIREFRAMING, AND USER TESTING I BELIEVE I HAVE ARRIVED AT A VIABLE SOLUTION TO THE ABOVE PROBLEM. AN APPLICATION THAT ALLOWS YOU TO CONTROL THE MAJOR APPLIANCES OF YOUR KITCHEN FROM THE PALM OF YOUR HAND. WHETHER YOU LIVE WHERE SPACE IS LIMITED OR SOMEWHERE WITH TONS OF SPACE I BELIEVE MY APPLICATION COULD BE THE APP THAT ALLOWS YOU TO LINK YOUR KITCHEN TO YOUR DIGITAL LIFE.
CONCLUSION