Week 3: Program Review and Feedback

09/11/2016

Target : To choose from two scenarios.

Conclusion:

• Reframe the problem and target audience. Focus on solving one critical problem instead of several smaller problems at the same time, such like enhancing individual sleeping, seeing in the dark, waking up quietly.
• Redefine the key scenario— for long relationship people sharing the same space together.(It might happen in dormitory, military, hostel, or between siblings at home, etc.) Find a way to balance the conflict between sharing room and individual routine.
• Since the problem is a low tech one which could be observed and recorded, we should concentrate on user research for the next phase. By observing and recording how people behave, a great amount information will be combined into a complexity system. Then, try to find a solution for this systematic problem.
• Keep in mind about what is the essence of the question, and assure there is no other easier solution.

In this class, we illustrated our two scenarios, including personas, relevant technologies and possible solutions to Phillips designers Mark and Pete, and Professor Lee. There are all the feedbacks they gave below. Based on these advice, we decided to discard the former scenarios and focus on one notion “multiple people share the same space” . For the next two days, Nurie & Eunjung will focus on online data research, while Leah and Ming establishing interview objectives and questionnaire.

[Concept 1]

Mark Choi

• Figure out if it is important for travelers to get back to normal routines.
• How to define a routine sleep schedule, while considering unpredictable factors — you’re in a travel mindset, some are in a party mindset.
• How to help people to care about others, considering they are strangers.
• Think about the solution and its relation to the environment. e.g. Flexibility to incorporate between multiple people
• Adjusting individual routines into the group sleep solution is a good notion.
• Think about viability — if it is realistic for budgets travelers to use high-tech products in a hostel.

Pete

• Define the problem more accurately — assure they are actual problems. e.g. Coordinating different people in the hostel to use the bathroom in the morning. Is it an issue for travelers or is it for the hostel?
• Find the users’ needs.
• Consider to include some spontaneity. Maybe deal with some logistical challenges, or help people to socialize differently?
• Redefine families. People share a space could be a “temporal family”, and think about all the opportunities.
• Visualize pain points by thinking about BEFORE and AFTER.

Austin

• Define target audience and problem space.
• Scope the project and focus on something really well. Establish scenarios for the extreme. e.g. How do you enhance your sleeping experience in a roomful of people, like in military?
• Then apply the solution in more situations, even for couples. Make sure the additional feature DOESN’T tackle the original problem.
• Two scenarios share the same key problem. Just think about multi people living in one space.
• Since this is a low-tech scenario, gather as much information as you can. By combining these data, you will get a complexity system. Then try to solve the problem within this system.
• Final solution doesn’t have to be super futuristic. Consider existing technologies, such as AR, or even mobile.
• To inspect the solution, keep thinking about if there is any so-called EASIEST solution, since that you have to convince stakeholders to invest.

Define the problems, assure they are actual problems.

Just think about multi people living in one space.

Define target audience and problem space.

Considering unpredictable factors.

How to help people to care about others, considering they are strangers.

Adjusting individual routines into the group sleep solution.

Redefine families.

[Concept 2]

Mark Choi

• Define the problem, and how to solve the problem.
• “Smart” home needs to be defined more accurately.
• The solution depends on execution.
• The notion is still very broad.
• Explain the importance of my routine vs. others’ routines. Why do people want to accommodate for others’ routine?
• Take privacy into account.
• All roommates make an agreement. Negotiation of routines.
• Understanding tradeoffs in this kind of a smart context
• How can we incorporate the sleep solution to accommodate… give you value outside of that sleeping experience?
• “Nest”, automatic adjustment — 1. The room may adjust temperature for you; 2. TV started to dim if someone is falling asleep; 3. If the headphone is beeping to notify you to be quiet; 4. Not let others disturb you.
• What can the technology itself do? — Learn about what is POSSIBLE and design for what is possible. Don’t be limited by your tools.

Mark Choi

• Etiquette — learning about how to live and co-exist with other people. How can you help people to build empathy or compassion?
• Consider what role social hierarchy plays here. e.g. The relation between paying rent and power.
• Define new norms. How do you set norms and use technology to support them? e.g. Motivation.
• Take permissions & privacy into account.
• Dive into all real scenarios and details, and think through them in order to find opportunities and the REAL problem.
• Try to understand what criteria would you use to evaluate what makes a good idea, and what makes a bad idea. — Perhaps to use a table to compare the pros & cons of each idea per criteria. (With dimensions of the market, technology, the market, etc. How to improve shortcoming?)

Austin

• Define target audience, problem space, findings, share what you’re going to make.
• Multiple people who are sharing same space need to schedule the best routine so that it’s not disruptive for everyone.
• Detect people’s behaviors.
• Focus on specific target audiences.

Define the problem, and how to solve the problem.

Detect people’s behaviors in order to identify the REAL problem and opportunities.

Take permissions & privacy into account.

All roommates make an agreement — new norm. Negotiation of routines.

Etiquette — learning about how to live and co-exist with other people.

What can the technology itself do?

Try to understand what criteria would you use to evaluate what makes a good idea, and what makes a bad idea.