GRIP
STANFORD DESIGN CHALLENGE
DURATION Four months
PROJECT BRIEF Create a product that improves the well-being of people throughout their lifespan and connects and engages multiple generations.
BACKGROUND
Arthritis, which currently affects 31 million Americans, is the inflammation of joints causing people to experience pain and stiffness. Society tends to associate this disease with older people, however, arthritis affects not just adults, but also children. Nearly 300,000 babies and children have arthritis of some type. Management for arthritis includes getting exercise, limiting alcohol, taking dietary supplements, and sometimes surgery. Treatment for juvenile arthritis focuses on maintaining a normal level of physical activity for children.
OVerview
The Stanford Center on Longevity Design Challenge is a global competition that encourages students to design products and services that improve well-being across the lifespan. In its sixth year, the goal of the Challenge was to design a product that would be easily accessible for all generations and help connect them.
For the Challenge, I teamed up with two other designers. We chose to create a grip-training product with a connected app to assist those affected by arthritis with pain management. The app also helps them to connect with others, as well as view nearby doctors and physical therapists.
RESEARCH
This project required a lot of research. To begin, we researched the two types of arthritis - osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis. Osteoarthritis is the most common form of arthritis, affecting millions of people worldwide. It occurs when the protective cartilage on the ends bones wears down over time. Rheumatoid arthritis is an autoimmune disorder where the body interprets the soft lining around the joints as a threat and attacks it. The next phase of research involved learning about what those affected by arthritis can do to manage their pain, as well as recommended hand exercises and stretches.
Strategy and Design
Phase 1
The first phase of this project involved doing the research, analyzing it, and synthesizing it to determine the problem and the solution. During this phase we also created personas to gain perspective of the diverse audience we were catering toward. We had three personas, each with a different age ranges, goal, and frustrations when it came to their experience with arthritis. This phase concluded with our proposal for an app which would feature a game that would help people exercise their joints affected by arthritis.
Phase 2
The second phase consisted of refining our proposal and expanding on our expectations for the app. During this phase, we proposed adding a Bluetooth Grip Controller device that would connect to the app, in order to add a more dynamic experience for the user. The Grip Controller would connect with games on the app, to help those with arthritis exercise and stretch their joints in their hands. With the controller utilizing Bluetooth technology, it would be compact and portable, so that one could easily take it anywhere.
We also refined our plans for the app. We decided to add a feature where users could create a profile and record data. We also wanted to make it easy for users to connect to the community in several ways. This included a feature where users could send data to their doctors, as well as find physical therapy location nearby. A leader-board was also added, where users could see how well they were doing compared to others. They would be able to add friends through the app, to connect to those with shared experiences.
The second phase also marked the beginning of the design process. We worked on creating lo-fidelity, and then hi-fidelity sketches for app logo. We also designed a customer journey map, to stay in-tune with the needs and wants of our user base. Finally, we created wire-frames for the app interface. The wire-frames marked out how we wanted the app to be able to function, as well as a general idea of how it may look.
Phase 3
The final phase focused on completing a prototype for the Bluetooth Grip Controller, a function app prototype, and completing a finished proposal to send into the Stanford Design Project. The Grip Controller prototype was created using the skeleton of another product, with added vinyl elements to create our vision. Next we used Sketch to create a ho-fidelity app wire-frame. Once the wire-frame was created in Sketch, we connected it to Invision, where we were able to create a working prototype that communicated how we wanted the app to function. Finally, we put it all together in a proposal for the Stanford Design Project. This included taking new photographs to illustrate the customer journey and condensing the all the information for the project in a visually pleasing presentation.
CHALLENGES
The primary challenge of this project was ensuring the product could be functional for a variety of generations. We needed the game portion to be easy enough for a young child to play, but still entertaining enough for an older person to play. It had to be simple, yet fun. Ultimately, I believe that we were able to achieve this, though. The overall functionality of the app, as well as the product, accomplished the goal of inter-generational usage.
EFFECTIVENESS
I believe the final product was effective. We were able to prototype our ideas and come up with a solid proposal. The effectiveness is still being measured, as the judging period for the Stanford Design Challenge is still in session.