Using Anthropometric Measurements to Design Ergonomic Infant and Toddler Gear

(Georgia Institute of Technology, 2019-12-05) Pardue, Emily Louisa

Infants grow so quickly that gear can have a shockingly short life span. Parents often do a quick calculation before purchases: divide the cost by how many months it will be used. Thus, products that are meant to “grow-with-me” or last for multiple infant stages are extremely desirable. Infant-to-toddler rockers are an example of this type of product. However, the researchers have found that the current infant-to-toddler rocker models on the market could be improved. The goal of this project was to use anthropometric data of children to design an ergonomic infant-to-toddler rocker. Anthropometric data was collected on 58 children in order to properly size a new design for a rocker which lasts from 0 to 36 months old. Researchers also found based on parent interviews, a survey, and child interactions, that the needs of infants are very different from the needs of toddlers. Infants are still developing muscle tone, and it is important for them to be supported in a semi-reclined position. Toddlers are extremely active and need a device which allows them to ingress and egress independently. Concepts were developed, and prototypes built to demonstrate the new concepts. These prototypes were then tested with parents and children to gather feedback and improve designs. The final design is an ergonomic rocker which adjusts in size and recline angle to serve the infants that need to be secure and reclined, as well as the ambulatory toddlers.
Developing body gesture interaction guidelines with passenger elicitation for adjusting highly automated vehicle dynamics

(Georgia Institute of Technology, 2019-05-21) Lin, Hongnan

Highly Automated Vehicles (HAVs) could provide better safety, convenience, and eco-friendliness. However, realizing those benefits depends on not only the technical breakthrough but also the extent of people’s usage, which is significantly influenced by whether HAV driving styles match passengers’ preference. Therefore, this research studies user-elicited whole-body gestures for communicating the intention of adjusting vehicle dynamics in HAVs to provide design implications for the corresponding human-machine interaction (HMI). The study was based on user-elicitation gesture design method that immersed participants in HAV riding scenarios with a virtual reality (VR) simulator and elicited their gesture design for adjusting vehicle dynamics in HAV. The HAV driving scenarios, stemming from the literature on future HAV use cases and HAV ride plots, consist of three different road profiles and 15 discomfort-inducing plots. Participants were required to perform gesture interaction when they felt unsatisfied with the vehicle dynamics while experiencing the scenarios, report their interaction intentions and rationale of their gesture design after experiencing the scenarios, and draw down their interface need if there was. The user test (N=12) produced five kinds of intentions, at least one gesture design accompanied by explanations for each intention from each participant, and 12 sets of HMI design sketches. Based on the analysis of collected data, a taxonomy of whole-body gesture interaction for adjusting HAV dynamics was proposed. It was demonstrated that consensus existed among the participants on the gesture design. According to the consensus extent, an end-user generated gesture set was constructed. This paper highlights the implications of this work to the design of HAV HMI that assists passengers with communicating their intention of adjusting vehicle dynamics.
Online industrial design studio experience design for graduate students

(Georgia Institute of Technology, 2019-05-13) Zhao, Xue

The advantages of online learning are its flexibility, accessibility, and interactivity that enable students to access learning materials and services from anywhere at any time. Those benefits make online design education no longer a novel concept. As the center of design education, online studio education is currently being discussed broadly by researchers. However, the difficulties of involving physical product development have made industrial design online studio a total blank area. To fill in the gap and create an effective learning experience leveraging current technologies, an LMS-based course model of an online industrial design studio integrating 3D printing and shipping service was proposed based on the understanding of characteristics of industrial design education, online learning, as well as LMS systems. A testable prototype was developed on Canvas based on the model, and the usability of the prototype was evaluated qualitatively and quantitatively. The results of this evaluation indicate that this online industrial design studio has potential to deliver an equivalent learning experience although the usability of the current system should be further improved. Based on the feedback from the evaluation, the prototype was revised, and a guideline for delivering online industrial studio was created.
Analysis of tactical artifacts within the NPU environment to help residents resist gentrification

(Georgia Institute of Technology, 2019-05-13) Harris, Shawn L.

Gentrification is a systematic, socio-economic development that has existed as an area of concern within the field of urban design for decades. The most negative impact of this process is its displacement of low-income residents who often find housing unaffordable due to the presence of new commercial developments. This effect, which leads way to an erasure of unique culture and identity, disproportionately affects predominantly-minority communities in Atlanta such as the neighborhoods of English Avenue and Vine City. The creation of Atlanta’s historical Neighborhood Planning Unit (NPU) system was designed to support disenfranchised communities like these through the creation of a local civic structure where neighborhoods could voice their support, or lack thereof, on local issues relating to licensing, zoning, and land-use. For English Avenue and Vine City, which make up NPU-L, an NPU meeting creates an opportunity for local residents to participate in creating collective resistance to the recent development proposed by commercial stakeholders not only seeking approval from city government but looking to use neighborhood land. While anti-gentrification efforts are often considered from perspectives centered in law, public policy, and city-planning, this study looks to try and approach this large systematic issue using competencies that are relevant to the field and practice of design. The aim of this thesis study is to explore and understand design’s capability to effectively approach the complex, systematic issue of gentrification through the study of the NPU environment and the development of a viable, contextual design solution which could be impactful for the residents of the NPU-L environment. Through the application of design research methods, artifacts used within these meeting spaces have been identified and analyzed for their influence on civic participation. In determining how design can provide support for the civic discourse in this NPU environment, the design recommendations proposed from this study will ideally present more opportunity for development of design solutions in this and other communities also affected by gentrification.
Enhanced signaling system design for 125cc motorcycles

(Georgia Institute of Technology, 2019-05-13) Hou, Xianda

The sales and popularity of small-displacement motorcycles has been increasing. With this, the fatality rate per 100 million vehicle miles traveled has been increasing since year 2013. A great amount of accidents involved with motorcycles were involved with not being able to communicate with other traffic participants or misunderstanding the motorcycle driver’s intention when the right of way is involved. The enhanced signaling system design uses light and sound signal to deliver the message from the motorcycle driver. The VR usability test shown that by using this system, the pedestrians can understand the intension of motorcycle drivers faster and more accurate.
Lookie here! Designing interventional user interfaces for conditional self-driving vehicles

(Georgia Institute of Technology, 2019-04-26) Nair, Pranav

In this paper we investigated whether providing directional alerts to a user’s active screen can augment their ability to regain situational awareness when traveling in a conditional autonomous (Level 3) vehicle. A user study (N=15) was conducted in the lab environment with a driving simulator, where users were distracted by playing a game on a mobile device. A non-directional alert was compared to two separate directional alerts: the central user interface (UI) and the peripheral UI. One located at the center, and one located at the periphery of the participant’s vision while they were focused on the mobile device screen, to understand whether direction data can assist the user. Although there were no significant differences in reaction times, participants perceived themselves performing better when provided with directional alerts. Our findings imply that directional user interfaces have the potential to reduce overall cognitive load and lead to better user experiences for passengers of self-driving vehicles.
Encourage sedentary workers' active seating through product design

(Georgia Institute of Technology, 2018-07-31) Ni, Chenan

The purpose of this project is to design a perturbation system for encouraging active sitting. This product would improve the physical environment within which the sedentary workers work and reduce their incidence of musculoskeletal discomfort. Specifically, the sedentary workers would be able to slightly shift postures without being disturbed by the device through an intervention, therefore, encouraging in-seat movement.
Development and validation of the universal design mobile interface guidelines through a mHealth application for individuals aging with multiple sclerosis

(Georgia Institute of Technology, 2018-07-30) Kascak, Ljilja

Similar to people who experience normal aging, mobile technologies provide great potential to support people aging with disability. However, there is a dearth of prior research on the needs and abilities of this user population. A large number of people with disabilities acquired in early or middle life are living longer. These individuals are experiencing the effects of aging earlier than others. Additionally, individuals aging with disabilities experience a combination of pre-existing impairments and age-related limitations, which often leads to a newly acquired age-related functional losses, comorbidities, and secondary age-related conditions. Although younger adults with disabilities may compensate for their impairments through the use of technologies, devices, and techniques, newly developed age-related limitations can reduce the effectiveness of these alternative approaches and reduce the quality of life (QOL). Mobile technology provides great potential to help individuals aging with disabilities to meet their needs. Nevertheless, there is a need for further research to solve the problems with access, usability, and utility to better understand the individualized preferences and support the needs of this unique population. Moreover, this imposes the need for personalized technologies that assist people aging with disabilities to adapt to the challenges of later life and to improve their QOL. Several design strategies are used to address the usability issues of desktop and mobile interfaces that are relevant for an aging population. Four of the most commonly applied strategies include Universal Design, Design for Aging, Universal Usability, and Guidelines for handheld mobile device interface design. Analysis of the guidelines suggested that none of the four strategies alone were sufficiently comprehensive and inclusive enough to meet the range and diversity of usability needs of older adults including those aging with disabilities within the environment of mobile interfaces. The purpose of this research project was to develop a comprehensive integrative universal design strategy, the Universal Design Mobile Interface Guidelines (UDMIG) for people aging with and without disabilities. The mobile health (mHealth) self-management holistic application that meets the health and wellness needs of individuals aging with Multiple Sclerosis (MS) and provides personalized and customizable support, MS Assistant, was designed and evaluated. The UDMIG were validated through their application to the design of the mHealth app.
Temperature Controlled Transport of Vaccines by Drone In Developing Countries

(Georgia Institute of Technology, 2018-05) Blount, Wendy

According to the World Health Organization, vaccines must be transported within a temperature window of 2C to 8C. Much of the world's population does not have access to all season roads. Mountainous regions and regions experiencing violent conflict present challenges to vaccine delivery. Delivering vaccines by drone circumvents many of these problems. The typical drone can carry a 2kg payload. The current method for cooling vaccines is by conditioned ice pack. However, conditioned ice packs are heavy and consume approximately 1/3 or more of the drone's limited payload capacity. This project focuses on developing a more efficient way to keep vaccines cool within a drone's small payload, during transport between facilities regional healthcare facilities and smaller local facilities. The container will need to be packed by a regional worker at the origination point and unpacked by a local worker at the other end. The container needs to be easy to open and close. It needs to be easy to load. It cannot exceed a specific weight and cannot exceed a specific temperature window. Methods researched include redeveloping the ice packs and using simple insulation to finally develop a container that maintains a specific temperature range during transport more efficiently than current conditioned ice packs.
User specific assistive technology: Hand mounted switch control platform design

(Georgia Institute of Technology, 2018-04-27) Yuan, Xiuxiu

The purpose of this project is to design a platform for user specific assistive technology. This platform would allow occupational therapists to design and deliver highly customizable hand mounted switch controls for persons with severe disabilities using rapid prototyping tools. Specifically, occupational therapists would be able to adjust a pre-designed model through an intuitive user interface therefore change the design to meet users’ unique needs. The study first conducted literature review about assistive technology and rapid prototyping, then used participatory approach and human centered design methodology, engaged three occupational therapists to design and develop the platform through workshops and interviews. The aims of this project including designing the switch device, platform user interface and system packaging, and evaluating the designs with the occupational therapists. Findings, limitations and future work were discussed in the end.