Critical Reflection

From the beginning of my final year I knew I wanted to design for a specific age group and or a disability. My quirky, colourful approach to design and my love for working with children made it an easy choice that this should be who I design for. I started with three very different concepts based on activities that interest me.

• A product that would actively encourage children to learn to cook

• Developing a unique swimming aid

• Children’s outdoor equipment

As I chose to develop the first of my ideas I had many experiences within the first few months of the first semester that really put me out my comfort zone and helped me become a more outgoing designer. I talked to many parents and professionals which allowed me to make several connections and really get to grips with the interview process and the problem I was targeting. I also planed sessions with children I was working with both at Tiny TAYstes and a Brownie troop I chose to volunteer at, I have had several jobs that I have been required to plan and run activities with children however this was the first in which I had to observe and draw information from which was a new and educational experience for me. I also got to use many familiar discovery methods such as cultural probes, surveys and user experience ethnography.

As I moved onto prototyping my design I am very happy with how competent I have become using technology such as Rhino and the Adobe suite. However, I would have to say the highlight for me was all the different manufacturing techniques I was able to learn or develop my skills in order to make all the different components of my design. I believe an understanding of all these processes has enabled me to become a better critical maker.

The manufacturing processes I have used through out this year are

• 3D Printing

• CNC Milling

• Wood Work

• Wood Turning

• Metal Spinning

• Silicone Casting

• Vacuum Forming

• Laser Cutting

• Vinyl Cutting

Personally I would have liked to experiment and develop my skills using Arduino and coding during my forth year. However my product ended up down a path that imbedded technology would not have been a useful addition to the design. As this aspect of product design really interests me, I would like to make the effort to learn this technology after I graduate.

Through out the design process I believed it was important to keep returning to my users in order to make a product that was appropriate and a design that people would invest in and enjoy using. This is one of the reasons why I decided to volunteer at a Brownie unit. The children there gave me a stable focus group that I could consistently return to. I also frequently talked to parents as although the product is designed for children it is marketed at parents.

I really enjoyed discovering the problem, getting out there and beginning to think of possible solutions and I believe my strengths lie in the area of rapid prototyping and testing lots of concepts. I have always liked making to convey my ideas rather than computer/ paper based iterations as a tangle objects helps me visualise the problems. I enjoyed blogging and documenting my process on social media as it helped me to define the work I had achieved as I went and allowed a simple platform on which I could justify my design decisions.

For me the most challenging part of the design process was defining my design and adding the finishing touches. I often found my self scared to commit to a design and felt I frequently needed confirmation to move ahead, I need will continue building of my confidence in my work although this project has shown me that often fast paced decisions need to be frequently made in order to meet the time frame you are given. I also occasionally felt hindered by finances as not all materials were available for me to use and I would need to purchase them for myself. Creating a working prototype to high standard has been one of the biggest challenges of my university career to date but I have really enjoyed my year overall.c