Immersion Blender: Physical Prototype
Physical prototype with various materials for handheld immersion blender.
DESIGN
As OXO always tries to deliver comfortable and easy to use tools, I am trying to redesign an immersion blender that would be simple, easy and comfortable for people to use, regardless of whether they are left-handed or right-handed, with small hands or large hands. Besides, I based my design on the situation of controlling the blender just with one hand. I designed three cases: controlling with the thumb and have all the buttons on the top of the blender (Design #1); controlling with the thumb and have all the buttons on the side of the grip (Design #2); controlling with the index finger and have all the buttons on the side of the grip (Design #3). For all three designs, the digital readout is on the top of the grip, because I think when the user holds the blender vertically, having the readout on the top would be easier for them to see the information. For Design #1, I added a handle to help user hold the blender better, while for Design #2 and #3, I just made the grips themselves a little curved, for users to hold them more comfortably.
PROTOTYPE
After I sketched ideas, I made a rough prototype with the actual grip diameter (2.5 inches), to figure out where would be the optimal places to put the buttons in the three designs, and which way would users feel most comfortable to control the blender. I had two users hold my rough prototype of the grip, and measure the ranges they can reach with their fingers when pressing. I first described the design cases, for example, press the buttons on the top of the grip with your thumb. Then I marked the ranges users feel comfortable to reach on the grip with different colors (in the following picture). Both my users thought having the buttons on the top of the grip would be most comfortable to press. Hence I decide
to proceed with my first design. However, when I tested with the handle design, I realized that it was difficult to have a fixed handle position and comfortable button position working for both left-handed and right-handed. So, I decided not to use handle but a curved grip shape.
My final prototype is in the following picture. The total length of the product is about 15 inches, and the grip is about 7.5 inches long with 2.5 inches in diameter. The digital readout and control buttons are on the top of the grip, while the red button is for turning on/off the power, and the left two buttons are for speed control. The speed is in distinct settings, where users can read from the bar in the screen. Users can read the content viscosity as well. The top of the grip is slightly tilted, since I figured out that an angled top might be easy to read the screen. The grip is also a little bit curved on both right and left sides, in order to fit the shape of left and right hands when holding the blender.
EVALUATE
I tested my final prototype with one user and asked her to finish tasks that covers all the functionalities of the blender. During the testing session, user could finish all the tasks (reach and press the intended buttons easily) with left and right hand individually and could read the display easily. Although, the prototype was intended for user to control with the thumb, from the testing, it also seemed possible to control with index finger easily when holding the grip in a different way. The prototype is effective in general. User reflected two main issues. First, the control buttons might be too close to each other, which might be hard to press in some cases. Besides, the current curved shape on the grip didn’t quite fit hands with various sizes. The shape should be a little bit longer and more curved to help users hold the grip more comfortably. I didn’t prototype the model with the actual weight, which might affect the comfort level when holding this blender for a long time. It would be nice to test the prototype with the real weight and have the user holding the blender for a relative long time to see if the blender would be comfortable or not.
DEMO
