Deployment Plan

Deployment Plan

Final Prototype Description:

The O-juicer is a household object/appliance that is used to bring upon user reflection on the things they take for granted today (especially being located in a modern and industrialized city). Being portrayed as a regular orange juice box on the one side, it is intended to remind users of the branded orange juices they can easily purchase on supermarket shelves. However, on the other side of the box is a manual juicer in which requires the user to hand-squeeze the orange, creating fresh juice and pulp. By personally being a part of the creation process, the user can reflect on the available resources we take for granted today and the importance of traditional ways of living.

How the prototype is used:

The O-Juicer will be used when the user wants to drink a fresh cup of orange juice. When a user decides to make orange juice, they will first take a half piece of orange (one orange cut into 2 pieces) and then squeeze it in a rotational manner onto the manual juicer. The pulp and juice from the fresh orange will follow through the small holes surrounding the juicer and into the inside of the juice box. After the user has squeezed enough oranges to make a cup (or more) of orange juice, they will then turn the box around and twist open the cap and pour the orange juice into a cup (just like how you usually pour juice). In terms of hygienic/sanitary concerns, the user will be able to wash the interior compartments of the box by rinsing water through the cap like how you would wash out a Tropicana box.

How the prototype combines the perspectives of art, design, and HCI:

Our juicer causes critical reflection because it lets the user reflect on the issue of taking their food for granted by forcing them to be a part of the final product. The user will hopefully think about the difficulty and hard work put into the orange juice that they conveniently buy off the supermarket shelf. It also slows them down, which is important in today’s fast-paced culture, which is always in a hurry and unappreciative of the little things. The design is innovative in a way because of how it combines familiar things to create something new. It’s solution-driven in a sense because we approached everyday problems (wasting food, self reliance) and worked our way backwards from these problems to come up with our design. In this way, it expresses art, and through the approach and design of the O-Juicer, it becomes critical.

Where you plan to deploy the prototype (what style of residence):

Our team plans to deploy the prototype at a home with a family of 7 people. The residence is a mid-size family house located in the city of Burnaby.

Who lives at the residence in terms of basic demographics:

The residence consists of 2 children under the ages of 10, 2 adults in the age range of 20 years old, 1 adult around the age of 30, and 2 parents at the age of 55+. In terms of occupations, the family includes retirees, an accountant, a computer software engineer, and students. In addition, this family is of Chinese decent but adapts to a fusion of Chinese-oriented traditions and western-Canadian traditions.

What you expect the household to do with the technology (inform us of your biases)

We expect the household members to use the O-juicer on a normal basis in substitution for their usual Tropicana fruit juices. In addition, we expect the adults to all take turns and use the O-juicer for better and comprehensive study results, however, this is most likely a difficult expectation. This is because many of the young adults in the home are busy with work/school and will not be able to commit time to make their own juice. Also, certain family members like the mother may take on the role of being the sole caretaker and thus may be the only individual using the O-juicer to create orange juice for the entire family.

How you plan to introduce the design to them

The O-Juicer will be introduced quite briefly to at least one adult of the family. Family members will be asked to interact with it, explore the capabilities of it, and to take mental notes of their thoughts and actions. They will not be taught how it is used in order to prevent from giving any bias information regarding its interactions. They will be told that it is a normal kitchen item of theirs, that a friend bought for them, and that they are expected to have some thought or interaction about it.

What data collection methods you are going to use (include sample interview questions you will ask)

We will conduct a semi-structured interview whilst recording video. Participants will be asked about their initial thoughts, thoughts during interaction, and thoughts after interaction. Some questions may include:

What did you initially think when you saw this object?

Does this object remind you of any other objects in particular?

Were you intrigued by the design of this object?

Did you think about using this object? Why or why not?

If this object was in a store shelf, would you purchase it? For what reason?

Is it more fun to use than a normal Juicer? Why?

Would you prefer the O-juicer or a regular box of orange juice from the supermarkets?

How often you plan on visiting the household

We plan to visit the household every 3 days, so approximately 2 times within the week of deployment. We believe that this amount is perfect because the first time can be used to answer any questions the user may have for us and for us to familiarize them with the deployment process. Then the second time, they would have been more comfortable with the design and we can ask more comprehensive and meaningful design-related questions.

What days you will have the design in the household

We plan to have the design in the household for 4-5 days. This will range from Tuesday – Saturday (March 28th – April 2nd). These days are suitable as it includes weekdays and weekends which may cause different food/beverage patterns from household members. 

How do you plan to analyze your data

The questions from the interview will answer some of the expectations of what we think of as Critical Design, and potentially art as our O-Juicer has expressive qualities. The main course of analysis will be about comparisons. We will be comparing the differences between each family member regardless of whether they use it or not to determine their thoughts on the O-Juicer. We will ask and compare whether this experience has made them perceive juicing fresh juice in a different way, and whether or not they thought about the contrast between freshly squeezed orange juice, and store bought orange juice.

Medium Fidelity Prototype

Medium Fidelity Prototype

We are truly happy and excited for our O-Juicer! As you can see in the photos, we have just assembled the pieces together. Everything is coming together as planned. By late tonight or tomorrow morning, we will have the pieces glued properly together, in time for deployment, which will be happening in the next few days.

The rationale behind the design
As our object combines the familiar juice box with an actual juicer, the form is meant to trigger reflection on the part of the user, with regards to our reliance on ready-made consumer products, and by how easy the process is made for consumption. We tend to take these for granted, and today’s fast pace of life (and the objects made to cater to this way of life) take away from rich, everyday experiences.

Changes you made since your last iteration and the reason for doing so
The only changes we have made only relate to the actual prototype, as its function and use remains the same. First, we considered creating some sort of support structure inside the box, as we were worried that too much pressure exerted from the user when using the juicer might cause the top part of the prototype to collapse. We decided to use an arch structure to support the weight. Second, we wanted to have holes on the juicer panel, as this would help the orange juice seep down. Third, we decided that a counter that tells the user the freshness of the juice is not necessary at this point, as the deployment lasts for only less than a week; fresh squeezed orange juice lasts 5-7 days in a covered and refrigerated container. However, for a future prototype, we think keeping track of freshness can easily be done if the user could set a month and date. The inspiration comes from a commercial we saw on baby food containers.

Explanations of how your new design would work and be used by people
The user simply cuts an orange in half, and uses each half on the juicer part of our design to get the juice out. Once the user is satisfied with the amount of juice in the container, he or she can pour juice for consumption, or store in the fridge for later.

Explanations of what works in the design and how it works
Because the design of our juicer is so simple, integrating familiar elements, it is meant to be easy to use. The bottom half of our design functions as the container for the juice. The top half consists of a part that allows juice to be poured out of, the other part being the actual juicer, with a small opening and holes for the juice to seep through.

Low Fidelity Prototype Revisions

Think more about how you expect people to actually use this. I’d like to see what your anticipated user behavior is. For example, does someone actually store the juice? Or use it right away? Do people make the juice for other household members or just themselves?
We prepared the following video to show the few interviews we’ve conducted to get a sense of how people would actually use our juicer.

As for knowing whether they would store the juice or use it right away, we suspect that it will depend on the user. We may have to test a working prototype on different people to see this in action. For now, we are investigating materials in order to make our juicer.

How do you know the ‘freshness’ of the squeezed juice?

Non-pasteurized orange juice can last at least a month in a fridge without a seal. However, freshly squeezed orange juice is predicted to stay fresh for a maximum of 2-3 days, as the acids and the enzymes begin to break down immediately. It is recommended that freshly squeezed orange juice be consumed within 24 hours. Otherwise the freshness and taste will drastically be different.

To tell users about the freshness of their orange juice, an arduino board with an LCD screen could be used. The arduino board would be used to calculate the count down timer, and the LCD would display the outcome of the calculations. The countdown will trigger a button to start or reset the count down timer when the user pushes hard on the juicer itself. The black colour indicates the Arduino microcontroller. The red indicates the switch that will trigger and reset the timer. The green represents the LCD screen that will display the time left.

(if picture isn’t showing please click on the picture to open it on a separate tab. It should work!)

Provided, this may be a little bit tricky to incorporate a bulky microcontroller, LCD screen, and a switch. This may even be unnecessary.

Many products in the supermarket have expiration dates. Many of which last from a month to two years. We believe it may be more effective to replace the average expiration date (such as AUGUST 25 2011) with “24 hours”. This will use what is already a cultural phenomenon to reinforce critical thinking about what we buy, and what is put into what we buy. It is natural for people to look at the expiration date, and when they see something so bold as “24 hours”, we are confident that they will realize how long their hard efforts last without all the chemicals.

What is the rationale behind the design?

The O-Juicer takes into consideration today’s fast pace of life and the ease of attaining everything easily without much effort needed, especially regarding products we buy and consume everyday. With the increasingly fast pace of life, we tend to overlook the little things. Products are created for instant consumption, taking away rich experiences from consumers. We forget to think about a product’s underlying processes and how it came to be. We believe it is important to slow down and appreciate what is put into the creation of products, and our idea attempts to revive this appreciation.

Thus, the O-Juicer design is meant to trigger the user in reflecting on their reliance upon already-made products. By including a real life manual juicer on the back of the juice box, the user will have to squeeze their own oranges and realize the amount of effort it takes to create and consume something they often take for granted. In addition, the idea of consuming fresh food/drinks is also a rationale behind the juicer. The convenience of going to the supermarket and grabbing a  box of orange juice that has been made at least a week or more ago cannot compare to a cup of freshly squeezed orange juice. However, busy consumers today tend to forget the importance of the freshness of foods and often procrastinate their consumption until the expiration date and possibly dumping it away if they cannot finish it. Our design hopes to prevent such wastage due to the amount of effort the user must take to get a fresh cup of orange juice, and will consequently learn to treasure their drinks more.

Describe how the prototype combines the perspectives of art (how does it cause critical reflection), design (how is it innovative and solution-driven), and HCI (how does it solve an everyday problem that people have).
Our juicer causes critical reflection because it lets the user reflect on the issue of taking their food for granted by forcing them to be a part of the final product. The user will hopefully think about the difficulty and hard work put into the orange juice that they conveniently buy off the supermarket shelf. It also slows them down, which is important in today’s fast-paced culture, which is always in a hurry and unappreciative of the little things. The design is innovative in a way because of how it combines familiar things to create something new. It’s solution-driven in a sense because we approached everyday problems (wasting food, self reliance) and worked our way backwards from these problems to come up with our design.

What changes did you make since your last iteration and what was the reason for doing so?

One of the first changes we made is the angle of the manual juicer on the back of the juice box. The reasoning behind this is because we were concerned whether our previous angle (around 100 degrees) was going to allow all the pulp and juice from the squeezed orange to flow into the surrounding holes due to the very straight and steep positioning of the orange. Also, it is hard for the user to squeeze an orange at such a straight angle. Thus, by changing the angle to around 120 degrees will allow the user to juice the orange more efficiently and the juice to flow down the juicer, into the holes and inside the container.

Another change that results from the previous prototype is the  two side flaps of the juice container. Because the angle of the juicer is set back, we must withhold the two sides in order keep the front part of the container (the cap and pouring hole) as a resemblance to a real (Tropicana) orange juice box. We are aware that this may obstruct the user’s hands/fingers when squeezing or rotating the orange on the juicer, however, we will research and analyze more on this possible issue in our next prototype.

Explain how your new design would work and be used by people.

The O-Juicer will be used when the user wants to drink a fresh cup of orange juice. The proposed idea is that there would be a counter/timer incorporated with the juice box allowing the user to become aware of the freshness of their squeezed juice. After the user finishes making their orange juice, they can easily press a button which triggers a countdown of freshness time. When a user decides to make orange juice, they will first take a half piece of orange (one orange cut into 2 pieces) and then squeeze it in a rotational manner onto the manual juicer. The pulp and juice from the fresh orange will follow through the small holes surrounding the juicer and into the inside of the juice box. After the user has squeezed enough oranges to make a cup (or more) of orange juice, they will then turn the box around and twist open the cap and pour the orange juice into a cup (just like how you usually pour juice). In terms of hygienic/sanitary concerns, the top section of the juice box containing the manual juicer and the opposing hole for pouring juice will be a cap that the user can separate and wash out. The hollow area beneath the juicer and pouring hole can easily be reached by the user’s hands and thus, conveniently accessible for cleaning.

Low Fidelity Prototype

Rationale behind the design:
Our design, called the O-Juicer, is a representation of a 1.79L Tropicana Juice box. It is easily recognized as such by many consumers, and with a twist, can create interest, and encourage consumers to interact with the design with curiosity. O-Juicer’s front will resemble the front of the Tropicana’s juice box, while the back will be modified with an average juicer cone.

What design process you plan to use:
The design must resemble the Tropicana Juice box, have a juicer cone equipped to it, have an area where the juice enters the box, and also be used by individuals without frustration. Using paper, or cardboard, we have tested different forms of the O-Juicer. Once the form has been developed, they will be shown to many individuals for feedback. Revisions or changes may occur but are dependant on the feedback provided. Once satisfied with the form, material considerations and fabrication processes must be thoroughly researched, and then implemented.

What real world problem you see it addressing:
This idea addresses our behaviour when it comes to consumer goods. We tend to be wasteful and unappreciative of things that are readily made and easily consumed. We take for granted the amount of work put into a product. This is an issue especially for those living in industrialized, wealthier countries where money is used frequently and carelessly to purchase food (that were grown, handled, and created by farmers etc.) from supermarkets without thinking about all the process/work behind the product.

Problems encountered:
While building the low-fidelity prototype, problems regarding the juicer cone’s position and angle were dealt with. An average juicer cone is about 7cm in diameter, which is larger than the top side of a Tropicana’s Juice container. Therefore, one side needed to be enlarged while the other one needed to be shrunk. Also, the angle which the juicer cone faces is very important. This determines how comfortable it is use the O-Juicer, as well as balance issue while it is in use. We angled the juicer cone to be at a 45 degree angle for testing purpose. It is possible however, that the juicer cone must be closer to a 20 degree angle (more parallel towards the floor).

How it will offer critical reflection:
The design lets the user reflect on the issue of taking their food for granted by forcing them to be a part of the final product. By having to literally take a fresh orange and physically squeeze it into the manual juicer in order to get a cup of orange juice will force the user to think about the difficulty and hard work put into the orange juice that they conveniently buy off the supermarket shelf. By requiring the user to have a hands-on approach in making their own orange juice will not only tire them out but in the process, get them to ‘slow down’ and start thinking about the time and hard work that others put in for their consumption.

Explanations of how your design would work and be used by people:
When the design has been completed. People may use it as any other orange juicer. Simply held down with one hand, the user may use their other hand to juice an orange. The juice will flow down into a gap (look at prototype pictures) and store the juice inside the container. When the user is ready to drink the juice, they will open the cap and pour their juice into a cup.

Image of low-fidelity prototype:

Concept 3: Orange Juicer

Difficulty Level: 3.5/5
Concern: Research on materials
Inspirations: Lingotto by Giulio Iacchetti and Mushroom Growth Packaging by Agata Jaworska

The rationale behind the concept:
Today’s fast pace of life is reflected and manifested in everything around us, especially through the products we buy and consume everyday. With the increasingly fast pace of life, we tend to overlook the little things. Products are created for instant consumption, taking away rich experiences from consumers. We forget to think about a product’s underlying processes and how it came to be. We believe it is important to slow down and appreciate what is put into the creation of products, and our idea attempts to revive this appreciation.

What real world problem we see it addressing:
This idea addresses our behaviour when it comes to consumer goods. We tend to be wasteful and unappreciative of things that are readily made and easily consumed. We take for granted the amount of work put into a product. This is an issue especially for those living in industrialized, wealthier countries where money is used frequently and carelessly to purchase food (that were grown, handled, and created by farmers etc.) from supermarkets without thinking about all the process/work behind the product.

How our design will offer critical reflection:
The design lets the user reflect on the issue of taking their food for granted by forcing them to be a part of the final product. By having to literally take a fresh orange and physically squeeze it into the manual juicer in order to get a cup of orange juice will force the user to think about the difficulty and hard work put into the orange juice that they conveniently buy off the supermarket shelf. By requiring the user to have a hands-on approach in making their own orange juice will not only tire them out but in the process, get them to ‘slow down’ and start thinking about the time and hard work that others put in for their consumption.

Explanations of how our design would work and be used by people:
This design is shaped as a regular 1.89L orange/juice container that people can buy from supermarkets. The shape and size of the design is crucial because it is meant to mock a real orange juice container with the cap situated in the middle that you can purchase at supermarkets. However, the other side of the container has a manual juicer. This side of the container serves as the reminder to the user of how the orange juice came to be juice and pulp, and the hard work behind the resulting product. The user simply takes a fresh half slice of orange and squeezes it against the manual juicer to produce their own orange juice. The clear, transparent bottom half of the container will show the user’s hard work, amount of time and how many oranges it takes to fill up the entire 1.89L or simply a cup of orange juice. This tedious process encourages the user to reflect on their easy access to food and how they take that for granted.

Concept 2: Family Portrait

Difficulty Level: 5/5
Concern: Programming abilities, complicated duration measurements
Inspirations: Good Night Lamp by Alexandra Deschamps-Sonsino

The rationale behind the concept:
We reflected on our generation’s families and how much time we actually invest to be at home and be with our loved ones. We want our design to generate this kind of reflection in hopes of bringing people within the family closer and more in touch with each other’s lives. Our lives are filled with mobility. With higher education, technology, and a culture of independence, many people are distracted away from their families.

What real world problem we see it addressing:
We believe in maintaining strong family relationships. Strong family relationships bring a kind of happiness you won’t find elsewhere. These relationships are strengthened with presence and constant communication. We want a design that constantly reminds family members of their roles in the family and what family means to them, and motivate them to take action to be a part of the family.

How our design will offer critical reflection:
The family portrait is meant to show all the members of the family, and each face glows depending on how long the person has been at home. As family members begin to notice the varying intensities of light, we would like them to reflect and ask themselves, “how much am I a part of this family? Is this place what I still call home?” We hope that this can provoke discussion among the members of the family and make them appreciate each other’s presence.

Explanations of how our design would work and be used by people:
A row of hooks for keys for each member of the family is placed underneath a family portrait. This portrait shows the faces of all members of the family residing at the home. They don’t necessarily have to place keys on the hooks; it can be anything that has enough weight. We chose keys because having them hang onto hooks is usually a sign that a person is home. When a person hangs something onto his/her hook, the image of that person in the portrait gradually glows brighter. The intensity of the light for the person’s face reflects how frequent that person is at home. We can also play around with different ways to represent a person’s presence; we can have at a portrait that starts black and white, then becomes bright and coloured the longer the person is at home. We would like to be able to observe how the members of the family respond or react to the differences or similarities in the light intensities in the portrait.

Concept 1: Shower Tank

Difficulty Level: 5/5
Concern: Programming abilities
Inspirations: Lingotto by Giulio Iacchetti

The rationale behind the concept:
With an increasingly large world population today, collectively, we are using up a lot of Earth’s resources including energy and water. Our idea revolves around the importance of water as a resource that we often take for granted when performing everyday tasks such as showering. A lot of people nowadays forget about the importance of energy and water and instead, using these without care and second thought. For example, many people take long showers ranging from 30 minutes to 40 minutes, but they usually have no idea of how much water they have already consumed from that one shower. Thus, our idea will stand to remind the typical citizen of how they can possibly be wasting water and earth’s resources through their own daily tasks such as showering.

What real world problem we see it addressing:
As mentioned above, the idea is seeking to address the problem of global resource depletion (especially water) on a micro scale of each and every citizen of the planet and how their small everyday actions can be influential on a larger scale.

How our design will offer critical reflection:
As the user showers (must be a shower, not a bath), one (or more) of the shower doors/glass curtains will gradually show an increasing water level (possibly by using lights/LEDS). The light level will reflect the amount of water the person has used. So for example, if the user showers for a very long period of time, the water level may actually be higher than the height of the person, giving the impression that they have used up an immense amount of water just by showering in that amount of time. Thus, this design encourages the user to reflect on their influence on the use of water and how such small tasks such as showering can have so much impact on a bigger scale and possibly using up a large amount of the planet’s water resources in their lifetime.

Explanations of how our design would work and be used by people:
As the user begins their shower, the shower doors/glass curtains will begin to collect data on the amount of water or the water pressure being applied and will gradually form water levels (possibly by using lights/LEDs). This “water level” will continuously rise as long as the user continues to shower; thus if the user showers long enough, they may be literally “drowned” by their own consumption of water. On the outside of the shower door/curtain, there will also be measurement indicators on the sides, allowing the user to measure and remember the amount of water they used on a daily basis. Sometimes numbers provide people with more solid understanding/recollection of their actions, thus, by jotting down their daily numbers, they can eventually see their change in water consumption and how it is beneficial/detrimental to the consumption of resources.