Product Sketching

PEER COMMENTS (TAKE 2)

http://romanradoczy.blogspot.com/2011/09/final-final.html?showComment=1317286674927#c1827233233657546661

http://fooides.blogspot.com/2011/09/blog-post.html?showComment=1317286790052#c1833460944702563237

http://jacquelinebui3377777.blogspot.com/2011/09/hero-shot.html?showComment=1317286840706#c4409129894597799388

http://maxglanvillez3333044.blogspot.com/2011/09/product-usage.html?showComment=1317286865908#c3985736524545237338

http://sunprit.blogspot.com/2011/09/e-xperience-e-nrichment-rationale-i.html?showComment=1317286903713#c2761629449861584989

Peer Comments

http://romanradoczy.blogspot.com/2011/09/final-final.html?showComment=1315907098884#c4795839094590062531

http://fooides.blogspot.com/2011/09/blog-post.html?showComment=1315907124246#c1884330832766312881

http://jacquelinebui3377777.blogspot.com/2011/09/hero-shot.html?showComment=1315907262858#c5972876352756654877

http://maxglanvillez3333044.blogspot.com/2011/09/product-usage.html?showComment=1315907395775#c5571605034865748053

http://sunprit.blogspot.com/2011/09/e-xperience-e-nrichment-rationale-i.html?showComment=1315907530109#c6242166169103373558

Experience Enrichment - Rationale

The paint scraper has always been a fairly primitive and uncomfortable tool to use. There have been several different revisions of this product, yet the general shape and concept have continued to be the same: a rectangular blade area connected to an uncomfortable handle that requires a large amount of force from the wrist and thumb. In recent years, there have been new designs that incorporate a larger handle and less blade area (proving more comfortable and ergonomic) but even then, the way the product is used is still uncomfortable to use for longer periods and do not enrich the experience of the user at all.

My concept eliminates all of these negative features and replaces them with a product that is not only extremely comfortable to use and work with in any environment, but it is also extremely aesthetically pleasing, as a result of using simple organic shape that is uninterrupted throughout. I believe that through the combination of perfect ergonomics and an aesthetically pleasing shape, the human experience with product can be highly enriched.

The main problem with current variations of the paint scraper is that it requires a very large amount of force from the wrist and the thumb as they provide the most strength when scraping paint from the surface (as shown in Fig 1). Another problem that results from this is the blade bending a lot of slippery surfaces and not gripping the paint at all, hence eliminating all functionality aspects and making all applied forces powerless (also shown in Fig 1).

My design concept is completely different to anything like the traditional paint scraper and even looks completely different. Despite its innovative design, the way it is to be used is heavily implied within the design through the use of organic lines and the overall layout of the product. It is constructed from a single block of cast aluminium with a polished natural finish. Being constructed from such a material means that it will be light, comfortable, durable and highly aesthetic.  I believe that by having a large accessible handle at one end implies that the user should proceed to hold the product at this area and that having a wide blade area at the other end provides a sense
of strength and power simply by looking at it.

"Attractive things work better than ugly ones: beautifully designed products make people feel good, makes work worth doing and life worth living." - Dr Donald Norman

Personally, I think that if a product looks comfortable and attractive, chances are that it will be better to use and far more functional. With this statement in mind, I have attempted to incorporate as little complexity as possible into the design while using organic lines that imply the function of the product so there is no explanation required for operation. Realistically, the paint scraper is a very aggressive tool that is usually used in a matter that is messy and rough but through the use of smooth curves and organic lines this factor of violence is eliminated and implies to users that this product is easy to use and is functionally flawless. I believe this approach to design provides users with a sense of power and security before they even use the product at all.

Complementary to this sense of security within design, I have integrated a knuckle guard below this handle. This feature ensures that users do not hurt their knuckles through rubbing or scraping injuries and also means that there is less chance of the product falling out of their hands if it is being used in high or hard to reach areas. This handle also helps maintain the organic shape of the scraper.

Experience Enrichment - Product Storyboard

Experience Enrichment - Hero Shot

Annie Leonard - The Story of Electronics

The focus of this video is designing for the dump. The main issue within the electronics industry is that companies and designers are creating products that have extremely short lifecycles and will always go to waste quickly so that you are encouraged to buy new products. Like most things, electronics always start out in mines as raw material. They are then sent all around the world in order to create parts and components. All throughout these stages, the levels of pollution are extremely high and there is an immense amount of waste produced that just goes to landfill. For example, when IBM corporation workers, making computer chips and components, were tested for health and well-being and results showed that all of these workers were about 40% more unhealthy than the average person.

The idea of toxins in and toxins out is an extremely large focus of this video. The issue is that all of these large electronics manufacturers are using very harsh and harmful chemicals and materials in their products, and instead of spending the extra money to create cleaner & healthier working environments or develop methods of creating components without using these harmful chemicals and materials, the companies are simply using the health of the workers and the general public. This is clearly a very unethical practice but because the companies have so much power and essentially make all the rules. 

When old products are disposed of, if they are not turned into landfill locally, they are being shipped overseas where the valuable materials are extracted and then the rest is just burned off (destroying the environment in that country). There are 25 million tons of e-waste each year which gets dumped, burned or recycled (not green recycling). The idea that Annie Leonard is pressing upon these companies is that the laws/rules should be changed so that the companies who create the mess should be responsible for cleaning it up. This seems like a very fair idea, but realistically it will take a very large force to convince these corporations.