Project Stop Touching

PROJECT STOP TOUCHING Summer Danoe | Minor Makerslab 2020

JUNE 2020 Hi I’m Summer! I’m a 3rd year Communication & Multimedia Design student and I’m currently following the Makerslab minor at the Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences. I like to work on both digital and physical products. In this project I tried create produtcts to possibly help prevent the spread of the Coronavirus.

Summer Danoe summerdanoe.nl 500754639

Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences Communication & Multimedia Design Makerslab Minor 2020

Loes Bogers

Micky van Zeijl

Sam Edens

Yuri Westplat

Index Project Stop Touching Do what is necessary Surface contamination Fear of germs Doorhandles No more elbow devices A DIY product Personal devices Stigma The Hook availability of parts The Grabber Trail of Evidence selection

Project Stop Touching COVID-19 is an airborne virus. Therefore we must maintain appropriate distance between each other, and some people wear masks to prevent contamination.

However, there is also another way the virus can spread. What specifically makes the COVID-19 virus so dangerous, is that the virus can survive on surfaces for up to 72 hours. We can infect ourselves and others by touching our faces or mouths with our contaminated hands.

We have two options to fight this method of contamination. We can either disinfect the surfaces that we touch after every use, or avoid touching them all-together. Disinfection can be hard to achieve for frequently used objects in public. Thus, refraining from touching these objects is the safest way to prevent contamination.

A possible solution is to use “personal devices�.

Objects that are an extension of our own body that prevent direct contact with possibly contaminated surfaces, like doorhandles and buttons. In this project explore possible solutions for the spread of the COVID-19 virus through surface contamination, that is accessible to everyone and does not depend on regular production methods.

Do what is necessary As designers, we are often taught to create something that is marketable, on-trend and aesthetically pleasing. With peoples lives at stake because of a pandemic, I don’t believe this is the time to create something profitable. History shows that times of crisis ignite a fire in creators and scientists that result groundbreaking innovations in record speed. As a human, I can not ignore the fact that people are dying, and as a designer, I felt the need to use the skills I have to contribute to a possible solution. Despite what capitalism wants us to believe, I think it is important to create products that are meaningful and fundamental.

Although I have strong believes about purposeful design, I won’t tell you lies about why I initially was interested in creating a COVID-19 related product. The government allowed labs and workshops to stay open, on the condition that you would work on a problem-solving project for the virus.

I secretly hoped that I could still go to the Makerslab. But this was unfortunately not the case.

But nevertheless, as both a human and a designer I felt the need to actively protect the people against this lethal virus in any way possible.

Surface contamination While public places like schools and stores are slowly opening their doors again in Europe, we have to be cautious about how we can limit ways for the virus to spread. We have to suppress our natural tendency to touch the objects that we habitually touch. Many everyday objects require our hands to operate them. Doorhandles, water taps, soap dispensers, buttons and handrails are all things that are not only touched frequently, but by many people in relatively short spans of time.

Instead of franticly trying to clean these objects continuously, we could try to come up with solutions to refrain from touching them with our hands completely.

Fear of germs My father inspired me to make the personal devices.

He has a fear of germs. This means he likes to clean stuff that people usually forget about, like his smartphone and keyboard. He hates the fact that most people do not wash their hands before eating in restaurants. But most importantly, he avoids touching objects in public at all costs. A habit that especially comes in handy during a pandemic.

For years I have seen my father use tissues to use toilet faucets, or his keys to use keypads, and his elbows or feet to open doors. So why not make a product for this specific purpose?

Doorhandles I initially wanted to start with doorhandles. Try and imagine the amount of people that touch a door handle in a public building. Doors have existed since the beginning of human history, and we are used to operating them with our hands.

I tried to come up with an elbow-operated system that can be created at home, and fits on every door.

It turned out to be hard to use something as selfevident as a door, in a different way than we are used to. My idea was to develop a new doorhandle that can be used with your elbow. The way people infect themselves, is by touching their mouths or face with their filthy hands. It is not as likely to infect yourself with your elbow or forearm. Whenever people touch their faces, they tend to do it with their hands.

No more elbow devices I tried the doorhandles on a frequently used door in my house, my bedroom door. Especially now that my family works from home everyone likes to come in and repeatedly annoy me, which gives me the perfect opportunity to test my prototypes. No matter what prototype I had installed, I oftentimes still found myself using it with my hand. Regardless of it being awkward to hold, sometimes i’d even instinctively use both my hands, rather than my elbow which fits comfortably.

I wouldn’t notify my family when I changed the doorhandles. No one knew what they were, how to use them unless I told them how. There was not enough affordance on my prototypes for them to be selfexplanatory. I realized that I had just created another surface area to spread germs on.

From this moment on, I decided to focus on personal devices.

A DIY Product Accessibility is an essential aspect in this project, since I believe that protection against the virus should be obtainable for everyone, and should not depend on your wealth or your accessibility to certain amenities.

Therefore I wanted the possibility to decentralize the production of my devices. Both because the traditional way of mass production (Chinese factories) are currently not available, and I do not want to be a burden on the postal services. The way I wanted to do this, was by creating instructions for people to create this object at home without the use of a fabrication lab. The home improvement stores are open and I figured people could create my product with relatively accessible materials. But In my opinion, relatively accessible is not accessible enough. While working on the door handles, I realized how privileged I am. I own quite the array of power-tools, a spacious backyard to work in and I used a car to transport a 2 meter rain gutter to my home. These are very luxurious amenities, and I do not think your ability to protect yourself from a deadly virus should depend on your possibility to access these facilities.

Personal devices I shifted my research to “personal devices�. These personal devices are extensions of our body that can be used as tools to perform interactions with possibly contaminated surfaces. Not only do they open doors, they push buttons, grab cash, hold cards and carry shopping bags. This way you avoid touching objects that other people touch Upon arrival at home, these personal devices need to be washed. This means the user is responsible for their own hygiene, whereas with the door handle concept a facility manager would have to clean these daily.

Products like these personal devices are not meant to be a solution to the pandemic. There are countless surfaces . The personal devices should not give a false sense of security. After all, the Coronavirus spreads mostly through air. I view these products as just another layer to add on top of existing safety precautions.

Stigma “You don’t want to look like the local wackjob” Laura Mudde Way before the severity of the Coronavirus was announced, wearing masks in public was frowned upon. Most of my friends still share the opinion that actively protecting yourself means you are overanxious. What I want to avoid, is that people think you look like a deluded captain Hook with my products. This could be avoided by using photography with both old and young people using the hooks in day to day life to normalize the use of selfprotection against the virus.

Personally (as a possibly deluded person myself), I would not mind using a product that makes me look like an idiot, if this decreases the chances of me getting sick. Safety precautions that first felt very unnatural are being more accepted, since we have no other choice. I personally think we are still trying to get comfortable with the idea of the “social distancing society”. Overtime people will get used to wearing masks or being separated by plexiglass.

We could possibly further develop the discretion of this product. The small ring prototype I made earlier is not noticeable at all among my other jewelry and could even be made fashionable. The plexiglass versions of my products are barely visible too.

The Hook

Can be cut out of a flat sheet of material.

Double hook can be used for upwards motions on handles, or carrying plastic bags.

STL and vector files available for 3D printing or CNC.

Can alternatively be printed and handsawed. The simple shape can easily be drawn too.

1. Print

2. Stab

5. Saw

6. Sand

3. Trace

4. Drill

7. Coat

8. Done

Availability of parts The production is not the only struggle point.

During the temporary absence of the Chinese manufacturing industry we also have to keep in mind that we do not have every material at hand, and we do not have the ability to create individually tailored parts for our products.

Since the ability to create the personal devices at home is one of the main features, we want to use parts that are as accessible as possible.

For the grabber, I needed a spring of some sorts.

While being quarantined, I started looking around the house for objects that I could use right away.

I stumbled across clothespins. Not only is this an affordable solution, This unit is that is already available, and found in every common household.

The Grabber

Can be cut out of a flat sheet of material.

It features a double hook and an additional clip for grabbing cards and pushing butttons.

STL and vector files available for 3D printing or CNC.

Has to be cut out out of material around 8mm in order for the clothespin to fit.

Trail of Evidence selection

REFRAMING HYGIENE TACTICS AND ACCESSIBLE MAKER CULTURE THROUGH A DIY LENS.