flo

Utilizing naturalistic forms & interactions to alleviate stress & isolation - A small hand-pieced device that programmatically produces physical waving and time-based lighting responses to encourage deep breathing.

Human-Center Design Methods

Mind mapping

Cultural probes

Prototyping

Interviews

Mood boards

Morphological chart

Storyboards

Tools and Software

Figma

Arduino

Grove Kit

My Role and Responsibilities

As the Interaction Designer for this individual project, my responsibilities included conducting user research, generating ideas, creating prototypes, programming interactions, and assembling the final product using various human-centered design methods.

Duration

10 weeks: August 2022 to December 2022)

Overview

This project, completed as part of Cornell University’s DEA 2730: Human-Centered Design Methods course, was my first interaction design project experience designing and building an interactive device to respond to a challenge prompt, employing various human-centered design methods.

In accordance with research reporting increases in social isolation, in addition to social distancing with COVID, this project attempts to tackle the question of whether or not an interactive device can improve extended periods of isolation -- offering quite a broad range of potential design responses.

One of my favorite projects, Flo’s design process, utilized a very extensive range of research and design methods that have really supported the development of my design thinking, which has really helped me head toward a unique direction with this product.

Highlights & Innovations

Nature-Inspired Design:

Flo utilizes naturalistic forms and interactions, incorporating physical movement and time-based lighting responses to create a calming and engaging experience for users, drawing inspiration from nature to alleviate stress.

Interactive Breathing Encouragement:

The device employs motion sensors to produce gentle waving motions and lighting changes, promoting deep breathing techniques. This approach leverages visual and physical interaction to help users relax and manage stress effectively.

Iterative Prototyping:

The use of iterative prototyping and usability testing allowed for continuous refinement based on user feedback, resulting in a more effective and appealing device. The process emphasized collaboration and responsiveness to user input.

Multisensory Feedback:

Flo combines visual stimuli (lighting) with tactile feedback (motion), creating a multisensory experience that engages users on multiple levels, enhancing the effectiveness of relaxation techniques.

Dynamic Interaction:

The integration of Arduino programming and environmental sensors enables the device to respond dynamically to user interactions, adjusting its behavior based on real-time inputs such as CO2 levels and breathing patterns.

Emphasis on Emotional Well-Being:

By addressing the psychological impacts of isolation and stress, flo aims to enhance users' overall emotional well-being and thus demonstrates the potential of interactive design to create meaningful and positive experiences.

User-Centered Research Methods:

The project involved comprehensive user research through methods such as cultural probes and user interviews, allowing for rich insights into individuals' experiences with isolation. This informed the design process to ensure the final product met real user needs.

Previous Project

Next Project

Problem

The problem I specifically set out to investigate from user research is that many individuals express feeling stressed during busy and physically isolated hours of the day. So through several iterations, I developed flo – a motion sensor-based device that leverages physical interaction and visual surprise to encourage deep breathing and promote relaxation.

Diving Deep

Learning from Documented Experiences

Cultural probes are a qualitative research method used in design and social research to gather rich, inspirational data about people's lives, values, and thoughts. I conducted user studies to collect deep insights into the daily lives, environments, and routines of the participants when they feel isolated and how they cope with isolation.

Bringing Out the Whiteboard

Inspiration & Possibilities

As part of this process, I used aluminum foil as a rapid prototyping medium to quickly brainstorm a large number of abstract forms. These were later presented to potential users to gauge what forms elicited their favor or related feelings of alleviating stress or situations of isolation.

Consulting Others

Building the Challenge Profile & Getting Oriented

User interviews are a fundamental method in interaction design, offering valuable insights into users' needs, behaviors, and experiences. I conducted user interviews to further clarify their experiences with isolation and gather feedback on my initial prototyping.

Portraits of Isolation & Our End Goal

Mood boards are a visual tool used to explore, communicate, and establish the visual and emotional direction of a project. The "Before" established the initial visual identity for isolation. The "After" section contains two potential stages of using my product.

Getting Consensus

Advancing Forward

I used a Morphological Chart to systematically list components across six categories: Form, Color, Texture, Effect, Mechanism, and Emotion. Conducting user interviews with five individuals allowed me to gather feedback and rank these components based on their preferences. Analyzing the rankings helped me narrow down to three distinct design alternatives, each reflecting user-centered insights and preferences, ensuring the final design choices were well-informed and aligned with user expectations.

Findings

1

Participants often mention playing music and/or socialization as ways to cope with isolation.

2

Participants often feel isolated at around midnight, particularly while working/studying.

3

One participant mentioned feeling isolated when attending lecture w/out friends.

4

One participant felt isolated in part because of differences in work habits.

5

One participant mentioned feeling isolated when homesick.

Presenting the Plan

Making Adjustment

In the storyboard below, Anon feels lonely working on homework at 2 am. An interaction with the device triggers a pleasant movement of a plant, prompting Anon to take a deep breath and engage. This refreshes Anon, boosts their energy, and motivates them with a renewed focus on homework.

Taking Shape

Initial Iteration with Mock Functionality

Now that I had come up with a concept on the drawing board, I wanted to bring it to scale and to present a tangible product for people to interact with and share their thoughts on. As this was an early iteration, I quickly crafted the device body using printing paper scraps, containing a small flashlight I'd found in my desk drawer wrapped in different colored sticky notes to simulate the changing color lights shown below. Subsequently, I conducted usability testing and gathered feedback from my user group and peers.

Use timer indicators for exhale duration for light to stay. Light glows from boxes.
Left: prototype in the dark.
Middle/right: light color can change.

What I learned from my peer

Basic mode of interaction (breath) + effect (plant helps refresh) are relatively clear.

Reason for effects are unclear.

Unclear whether grass itself is lightning up, interaction possibilities beyond what storyboard shows.

Further Iterations

Advancing Functionality and Appeal

A new prototype, pictured below to the left, was created based on the previous findings from the feedback, in addition to adding basic Arduino functionality. Whereas the previous feedback was aimed at the potential users' thoughts on the hypothetical, acted story of the interaction, the UX survey gauged potential users' thoughts after independently interacting with the fully functional prototype.

Prototype Before

Prototype After

User Testing

Mapping the Field of Isolation

Extents and Impacts

A mind map is a graphical representation that organizes ideas and aspects around a central theme, illustrating their relationships with each other, especially used for identifying all the issues and sub-issues related to a problem. It visually organizes information in a hierarchical structure, which makes it easier to understand and recall complex information. Below, I create a mind map to scope out the field of isolation, discovering and structuring some of the extents and impacts isolation can have in our lives.

Refining Product

The (Adjusted) Plan in Action

In this phase, I refined the product with new materials: a wooden box and a green plant. I adjusted the Arduino code to monitor CO2 levels, lighting up LEDs for one second per breath based on intensity and duration. It then activates a motor to sway the plant in sync with the LEDs, creating a waving/dancing effect. Initially, I showcased the prototype with wires outside the actual wooden box. An animated GIF was created to illustrate the interaction experience between users and the device.

Final Deliverable

Through several iterations, I eventually arrived at the current version of flo, featuring a more elegant outer design and smoother motion of the plant-like appendage, as well as more a discoverable means of interaction with the larger lighting and breathing holes. Altogether, flo is a motion sensor-based device that leverages physical interaction and visual surprise to encourage deep breathing and promote relaxation.

Takeaways

This project marks my first venture into refining visual communication through physical interaction design, where I aimed to augment user experiences by creating new, tangible media.

Reflecting on the project, I've thought about several areas for improvement and future focus:

Early Form Decisions: Deciding on a form early on in the design process is crucial, and exploring more variations could lead to more innovative outcomes.
Intuitive Design Enhancements: Incorporating features such as making the box glow could enhance the intuitive nature of the design.
Purposeful Interactions: Users expressed a desire for more meaningful interactions, such as synchronizing with users' stress levels to help them calm their pace of thinking and breathing.
Visual Prototyping: Creating a GIF of the leaf movement could better illustrate its intended effect and functionality, making the design more engaging and understandable.

Key Findings to Act Upon

Finding: Device attractiveness and effectiveness in relieving stress is ambiguous, but people's first impression of the device connects to something calming.

Action: Decreased ration of plant/base (also based on survey responses), light diffusion altered (from slits in box)(based on preferred material and survey suggestion)(more "intentionally" matches current lighting effect.

Finding: People wanted alternative/"custmizable plat options, similar to previous study responses.

Action: Plants can be inserted through top for customizatbility, breath is detected with temperature/humidity now vs roly poly before (more reliable + less real estate on top surface).

Finding: People primarily prefer a wooden base and green plant color.

Action: New prototype is approximately adjusted to meet visual prefereences, limited materials for now.

flo