Structure

Incremental Innovation

Substitute

I started off using a modified morphological analysis table for water bottle and treadmill. I didn’t feel like I got the most interesting ideas out of it. But, I gave it a chance to see where the process would go.

I got about 3 ideas from each table and remaining 4 from my own questions about substitution.

1. Virtual trainer: Substitute a person for a computer and get personalized programs from a database of information.
2. Infinity rock wall: Substitute the floor for the wall to get a vertical treadmill with rocks on it which can function as an indoor rack climbing wall.
3. Soft mist bottle: a water bottle that stores water in a sponge and mists the water instead of drinking from a spout. (Using Table 1)
4. Injectable water: box attached by strap to the arm, box has small needle that injects water when necessary(Using Table 1)
5. musical sweatband: sweatband has small speaker for music, audio books, and other media. Also has a progress tracker that conveys info through audio.(Using Table 2)
6. Heart Rate TV extension: TV can track heart rate and compare TV time to exercise time(Using Table 2)
7. Rainbow treadmill/exercise equipment: substitute feeling/attitude by making exercise less work, more play
8. treadmill on ceiling ->monkey bars: substitute floor for ceiling and add handles
9. sandy treadmill: use other materials, sand on top for added experience
10. Pair power: Attached manual bike powers the treadmill. One person biking powers the treadmill for another person (substitute power source)

Best Idea:

Combine

I used a modified hit matrix to combine a few different items. Instead of focusing on 2 specific items, I focused on certain themes, in this case “Exercise” and “Not Exercise”. And then again for “Exercise” (with different things) and “Beauty/Hygiene” products.

Then I combined the products in a cross-products-esque way, using Xs for the ideas I thought made sense. Then, I drew those ideas separate.

1. Device holder: cross between treadmill and clothespin, clip holds phones and tablets to exercise machines
2. Color run treadmill/gym: cross between treadmill and paint, treadmill that pelts you with color or entire gym where everyone pelts each other with powdered color
3. Light up ball game: cross between medicine ball and light bulb: light up medicine ball that changes color so that you toss the medicine ball to a certain person
4. spoon weights: cross between spoon and wights, hollow weights that allow you to fill them with water or sand to desired resistance
5. square water bottle: cross water bottle and clothespin, water bottle you can mount on treadmill and use to hold ad charge device with
6. Glow in the dark yoga: cross yoga and light bulb, yoga with no lights, everyone wears glow in the dark bracelets
7. Liquid gym sock: cross between lipstick and sock, paint them on and wash them off
8. Powdered sock freshner: cross between powder and sock, clean sock with powder between washes
9. Bike handles with wrist workout: cross between bike and scissors, arthritis prevention
10. cleaning spray for clothes: cross between spray and workout clothes, clean clothes of sweat between washes
11. Phone case pedometer: pedometer built into phone case

Best Idea:

Adapt

For the “adapt” portion of idea generation, I looked mostly at biomimicry

My resources were mainly asknature.org, quick Google Searches, and Wikipedia. I’ll give the fact and source followed by the idea it inspired.

1. Turrets ventilate the nests of leaf-cutting ants (asknature.com): ventilation in gyms can be centered around using non-electric sources of cooling
2. Toucan bills regulate body temperature by cycling the blood(asknature.com): People can use and attachable cuff to regulate the blood flow where needed
3. Air scoops on the sides of ants cool them through evaporation(asknature.com): Add cooling air packs to workout clothes
4. Mountain goat feet maintain traction on a variety of surfaces(asknature.com): use the design on tennis shoes to provide stability to older people
5. Stems of plants resist buckling using low density foam cores(asknature.com): use foam cuffs for stability while playing sports to prevent injury
6. Kangaroos have elastic tendons that store energy for continuous jumping(WIkipedia): use to prevent strain in older people playing sports of jumping continuously in dance and other activities
7. Anglerfish have a bobbing light on the front of their head(Brittanica): device that holds phone in front of face at the gym
8. Moroccan flic-flac spider cartwheels everywhere(WIkipedia): use this form to make a cartwheeling workout more accesible to older people
9. Kangaroos keep cool by licking their forearms(ACS): exercise cooling patches for limbs
10. *not biomimicry* Tummus; monks use a special form of breathing to raise body temperature (Wikipedia): find a way to teach mimic this skill for outdoor exercise or reverse to keep cool

Best Idea:

Magnify/Modify

1. Treadmill made longer and have bonus activity of hitting pop up targets or jumping a small hurdle
2. treadmill made shorter to be used on the go
3. Make the TV the main part of the exercise machine, very large, to put focus on entertainment aspect (TRIZ: single out)
4. Vibrating exercise equipment for added massage (TRIZ #18, mecahnical vibration)
5. release a seperate device for exercise apps (single out) to prevent phone distractin and simplify process
6. collapsible/rebuild-able exercise machines into different exercise machines “3 in 1” type option (TRIZ: segmentation and universality)
7. reminder apps to exercise multiple times a day for a short time rather than one interval 5 min X 12 times is an hour (TRIZ: segmentation)
8. Living room furniture that folds out to exercise equipment(Extra factor)
9. Bike with grocery optimization (multiuse of exercising)
10. tracker that shows gas savings with biking (multiuse of exercising)

Best Idea:

Put to Other Use

1. furniture: use to stretch
2. text to speech on phones (normally used by blind people): use for hands free phone use
3. tea/tea bag: energy drinks as tea form
4. large marker/pen: use to color giant coloring sheets for exercise
5. command strips: use for personal climbing wall indoors
6. spiral notebook: large weight spiral notebook for upper arm workout
7. hamster wheel: giant version for human use
8. gerbil tunnels: large jungle gyms for adults
9. cat claws: glove claws for people to climb on stuff outside for a workout
10. Halloween costumes: use to workout in for fun or disguise so people don’t know you’re at the gym

Eliminate

Eliminate pedometers:

1. Pedometer app

Eliminate Weights:

2. Body weight exercise suggestion apps

3. rubber band resistance

4. gravity modulation

Eliminate water bottle:

5. Make water carrier compact/wearable

Eliminate headphones:

6. cord elimination

Eliminate Phone:

7. replace with mp3/ tracker device for music and progress tracking mainly, emergency contact as well

Eliminate Gyms:
8. Personal trainer webcam match service

9. Workout optimization computer program

10. home gym rental service

Reverse/Rearrange

How do we get people to exercise less?

1. “Anti-Exercise”: suggestion app for non-exercise activities that are still active (hiking, biking, dancing)

How do we get people to work more?

2. Giant weighted mouse that controls computer

Change the pace of how people workout?

3. 15 minute instense workout instead of half hour normal workout

How can we help people make excuses?

4. Workout excuse generator to motivate people to exercise

Can we use people always being on their phone advantageously?

5. link to instagram for “fitspiration” and allow people to post their own progress, encourage others

Turn existing equipment upside down and all-around:

6. Treadmill on the ceiling like monkey bars

7. Treadmill on wall with grips for climbing

8. Hand bike, turn wheels with arms

9. App that finds other people who likes the same TV show to watch TV and exercise at the same time

10. Attach crunch machine to side of wall to be more elevated

Table Based Tool or TRIZ

see “Subsititute”, “Combine”, and “Magnify/Modify”

10 Best Ideas So Far

3 from brainstorming session assignment

5 from this assignment: