Co-Design Session 1
The first co-design session revolved around sparking creativity, proposing preliminary ideation and clustering interesting directions based on the case owner's likings. This session was the first step into coming up with as many ideas as possible together with the participant and also by taking into account all of the previous Research that has been conducted.
Preparation
The main procedure of the co-design session was first understanding problem areas, diving deeper into challenges and expanding on further possible solutions.
During the session, it was also made clear to the participant that there was no such thing as "bad ideas" when it comes to proposing ideas. An "icebreaker" was also prepared to spark creativity among the group members and the participant before diving deeper into co-designing.
Initially, Lisa appeared unsure if this project would result in something that fit her. So to spark her creativity, ideation was done prior to the first co-design session. The direction of these drawings were based on the information we got from the first interview, namely gardening and walking the dog.
For a summary of the first co-design session, see the linked document.
A Day in the Life
The first thing done in the co-design session after an introduction and an icebreaker was "A Day in the Life". We presented our idea of making the project center around either dog walking or gardening. These two directions were well received, and thus we dove deeper into these topics. To achieve this, Lisa walked us through her daily experiences with both tasks, thus giving us a type of walk-through of her life.
It was immediately noticeable that the participant was much more attracted to the idea of making a product integrated into her gardening routine. Since her dog walking experience was quite simplistic and did not have a lot of room for creativity. Nonetheless, we still explored both options.
From these two more in-depth descriptions, we got more details regarding her dog walking and gardening experiences. Most interestingly, she takes very limited tools and two buckets during her gardening sessions when she is doing anything besides mowing the lawn, raking and trimming hedges. Her most common gardening activity is weeding the tiled area in her large garden. Lisa specifically takes two buckets during sitting tasks, one to sit on and one to put weeds in, which she then proceeds to dump onto her compost pile at the back of the garden.
Discussing ideation
After a short break, we continued the co-design session. Next up, we showed her the drawings we had made in advance such that we could identify interesting direction(s) with her within the topics of gardening and dog walking. These drawings are shown below.
Direction 1
Gardening
Gardening knee pad
Planner for split-up tasks
Utility belt for gardening tools
Ergonomic tools
Ergonomic bucket carrying
Direction 2
Walking the dog
Modular and changeable bag
(To use different muscle groups)
Ergonomic walking shoes
Ergonomic dog leash
When the drawings with explanations were given, her face lit up with inspiration. She saw a lot more opportunities regarding this project as we discussed our ideas. Lisa specifically liked the idea of something to carry her tools along. She shortly explained that she usually is a bit too stubborn to bring all her tools along at once, causing her to have to walk back and forth to fetch them. This takes a lot of energy from her which could be better spent. In addition, some kind of seating to make gardening more comfortable also appeared appealing to her. She passionately reiterated that the gardening ideas seemed very useful to her situation, and thus we decided to continue with these ideas.
Rounding off
After the discussion of the initial ideas, we mailed Lisa about further exploration of her gardening life. Specifically, this communication was done after the co-design session, so she could work in her own time and comfort. Upon request, she sent us a photos of her handheld gardening tools, such that we could determine the sizes and ratios. Furthermore, to explore her personal experience, we kindly asked her if she would be up for a "Home Safari". She gladly accepted and sent us photos of her garden, including the tiled paths, compost pile and forest-type area. Finally, to establish an aesthetic style for the product, we asked if Lisa would want to aid us in creating a style collage. She noted she saw communicating her stylistic preferences as a challenge, yet she accepted the challenge nonetheless. After a few days, she sent us photos of products in her house that appealed to her, which we utilized to create a style collage.
Results
In the end, we felt a drastic increase in participation from our case compared to the interview. She felt more invested now that it was clear that the product would be genuinely catered to her wants and needs. Especially the gardening aspect of the product, something she personally enjoys spending time on, made working on the project more fun for her. Moreover, instead of focusing on her conditions and problems during the session, we focused on what she is capable of. In addition, in terms of the product, we looked at how a product could better accommodate her lifestyle, instead of making a product she would have to adjust to.
After the co-design session, the tool sizes were determined, a style collage was composed and further drawings and ideas were made based on the discussed direction.
In conclusion
In conclusion, the participant was interested in the gardening direction. Therefore, the design challenge was reformulated, together with Lisa, to be more specific. Her explanation about her daily life is a tool to use for further concept development. Especially the information that Lisa uses limited tools and two buckets for gardening currently is valuable for further ideation; As well as the knowledge that her main tasks are weeding, mowing the lawn, sweeping the floor and cutting hedges. Aspects Lisa would like in the product are seating and that is makes sure she carries her tools with her.
With the information from this co-design session a list of requirements was made, and further concept ideation was developed.
Reformulated design challenge
"Making gardening more energy-efficient by reducing the energy required to bring tools along."
The following sources were used for the co-design session preparation: Fekete, G. (2019, December 2) Designing a co-design workshop. Medium. https://medium.com/@gyngyifekete/designing-a-co-design-workshop-7686eaf4bf0f InnovationLab. (2019, November 26) 9 best exercises to spark creativity in ideation. InnovationLab. https://innovationlab.net/blog/9-best-exercises-to-spark-creativity-in-ideation/ PromoCymru. (n.d.). How to run a co-design session. https://promo.cymru/resource/how-to-run-a-co-design-session/ PromoCymru. (n.d.). Ideation: How to generate ideas when trying to solve a problem through digital. https://promo.cymru/resource/ideation-how-to-generate-ideas-when-trying-to-solve-a-problem-through-digital/