Sunday, May 16, 2010

Design Research Conference 2010

"In its 9th year, DRC will be a conversation about the new frontiers of design research. It will host the world’s most compelling stories about the human condition and unmet needs. It will be a stimulating place to learn the most innovative new research methods. It will address the challenges facing the industry head on. Finally, it will continue to explore how design research can help us address the grand challenge of bringing meaningful things into the world."


10 insights on What's Next?


1. Be A Translator

Don Norman, author of Design of Everyday Things and Emotional Design, discussed the great gulf between design research and design practice. His solution: we must fill this gap with a new discipline of transitional engineers taking the knowledge gathered from design research and translating it to practical and reliable design solutions.


Helen Fraser, Director of Design Intiative at the Rotman School of Management, discussed the ways human centered design can act as a common ground within an organization. However, to create shared understanding, design research must be translated into clear visualizations.


2. Work Slower, Charge More

Anthropologist Gerald Lombardi discussed the commoditization of design research. More companies want more ethnographic research in shorter time frames than ever. We must insist on slowing things down to ensure quality research.


3. Rethink Failure & Iteration

"If we knew what we were doing, it would not be called research, would it?" - Albert Einstein


Eric Wilmot, Director of Innovation at Wolff Olins, argued that companies must understand that failure is not expensive, negative, or "the end", but affordable, positive, and the beginning. Using the Marshmellow Challenge as an example, Wilmot showed the importance of iteration in the process of design and innovation.


4. Research 360ยบ

Ron Pierce, Director of Strategy and Research at Stuart Karten Design, argued that the way to "make sure what we learned at the beginning is delivered at the end" is to extend end-user design research from a beginning phase to an ongoing process.


5. Embrace New Tools

Design Research Professor Kim Erwin discussed the way the internet is radically changing the way we conduct ethnographic research. According to Erwin, new internet and cellphone tools have transformed on-site field research from a necessity to an option.


6. Understand and Influence Behavior

Graduate students at IIT Institute of Design studying Behavioral Economics understand that people don't always do what they say and are often irrational. In order to make behavioral economics actionable in design practice, they have created a Brains, Behavior, and Design Toolkit.


7. Work With Your Ears

Editor of Core77 Allan Chochinov discussed the importance of learning to truly listen. When teaching undergraduate designers phone interview skills, Chochinov reminds them to ask "What question have I neglected to ask you?" and "Are there two other people you suggest I talk to?" He reminds them to reach out to others as much as possible, because often it just takes "one person to inspire great design work."


9. Overcome Assumptions

Erica Eden, Industrial Designer at Smart Design's Femme Den, explores the assumptions and realities about women. With women making or influencing 80% of all purchases, Eden says companies shouldn't rely on "Shrinking and Pinking" their products when designing for women. In order to overcome assumptions, we must confront them.


10. Empower People, Design for Impact

Kevin Starr invests in entrepreneurs designing for the bottom billion and making a real impact. When designing for people in poverty, he says, you can't rely on a good idea or cool design. You've got to obsess about distribution and make sure it works.


Tim Brown, head of IDEO, argues that solving society's biggest problems requires large scale behavior change. We must move beyond the mass production of products and into design that "empowers people to be designers of their own lives." By working to place design thinking into the hands of everyone, we can inspire change, help people overcome their limitations, and change the world.

Monday, May 10, 2010

Chakra take away



Incase you guys wanted to know more about Chakras :)

New Invention


I didn't change the name because.. well I didn't want to :) plus for my demographic.. I think this name works, added the demographic, influences and display

Invention process and final promo



My invention as stated last week in class is a bike attachment for dogs. After taking some measurements I decided it would be 30" long, and the elastic leash would be 5-6". This was decided by measuring the length of several different sidewalks and doing some "testing" with my dog. Next steps would be to make a prototype and pitch it to the major pet stores.

3rd project





Here's the image files for my 3rd project, designed to help clean up neighborhood streets. Set up by a volunteer in each neighborhood, this program could be done anywhere, multiple times each year.

Sunday, May 9, 2010

wireless cord.

personal project


http://c.homes.mcad.edu/~cchen/index.html
This is my third website that I have designed and one that I'm happy with. And most importantly I feel it resembles me. There are still a few glitches on my website, but I'll have them fixed soon and the final upload of my work.

My Product / Storage Solution :: Josh Ritenour

Unit is built, just waiting on magnetic primer I ordered. Then I am going to paint it white with several coats of poly acrylic for a plastic look and finish.

First Attempt at Garments :: Josh Ritenour

Pants and Hat I made for my son. My first attempt at making a garment.

Saturday, May 8, 2010


So, this is a negative pulse generator. It's used for the detection of communications which are not transmitted on Hz waves, but rather in Sine waves. The machine generates a negative sine pulse, and if it were to receive a positive pulse, the bar on the screen would begin to waver in a sine wave.


It would be used by paranoids with deep pockets(I'm not going to let these things go for just pennies....), people in militias, and just other general nerds/fringe people.

I think that it's pretty neat, and that there should be one in every town in the middle of the woods, it's useful.

Wednesday, May 5, 2010

Design :: Evolve | www.designandevolve.com

Design and Evolve, my newest business venture. A design cooperative, featuring the amazing talent of my MCAD classmates. (2-3 Graphic Designers, 1-2 Web Developers, 2 Illustrators)

Website is under development, and business will be up and running by the end of June 2010!


Tuesday, May 4, 2010

Final

Although it may seem a relatively clean and innocuous environment, the office presents a serious risk to the health and wellbeing of its occupants.

The US Environmental Protection Agency estimates that office air pollution is usually at least two times that of ambient levels.

Poor quality office air is liable to cause mental fatigue, headaches, dizziness, itchy eyes and throat, stuffy nose and other flu-like symptoms.

Simplified Design

In other systems air moves around different chambers and changes direction. Yeti Air technology simplifies air flow for quieter more efficient performance and reduced noise.

Yeti Air contains a carbon filter, which is safe and cost effective.

Best Special Effects Resource -Video Copilot

Monday, May 3, 2010

New Product: The Pocket Pillow


i know a lot of people with smelly feet, so that's where the idea of gummy feet came from. tropical scented shoe inserts that are comfortable on your foots!

Saturday, May 1, 2010

for Michael's fart pants

RADIOLAB: Sleep (for Abbey)

Every creature does it, from whales to flies, yet science still can't answer the basic question: Why do we sleep? What is it for? We'll eavesdrop on the uneasy dreams of rats in search of answers.