2022
11 Weeks
Education - Tutor
11 Weeks
Education - Tutor
A driver-less car. An ink-less pen. A water-less washing machine. These are prime examples of a design oxymoron; a product/service/experience that stems from incongruous, contradicting elements. Evidently, concepts that seemingly makes little sense can be a seed for innovation and discovery. With a critical lens, students are challenged to conceive and create an innovative, product/service/experience based on a design oxymoron naturally driven by the thorough study of a common, everyday product. This module requires students to work individually. The following design oxymorons are 11 innovative approaches with high potential to disrupt the industries they reside in.
Tino - A bristle-less toothbrush to encourage children to develop a regular dental care routine.
Designed by Chan Zheng Qi Zoey
Tino is a toothbrush with a companion app that helps children form positive associations with teeth brushing through interactive game play.
P.Pileus - An alarm clock for plants to empower self-defence against pests and infectious pathogens.
Designed by Huang Kai Xing
In the wild, plants can communicate with each other via their roots. This helps to prepare them against potential pest invasion or infectious pathogens. However, this is challenging in urban landscapes as plants are mostly potted. P.Pileus hence reads and sends electric signals given off by plants to bridge the gap. The signal is delivered by BLE (Bluetooth-Low-Energy) and the device delivers a small current to mimic plant communication.
Imprecise - Imprecise weights as an accruement approach to muscle training for casual fitness enthusiasts.
Designed by Soon Wei Ya Jasmine
Imprecise allows people to resourcefully identify and use everyday objects for strength training with the convenience of a digital platform to track performance and growth.
Cycle - A laundromat that does not own washing machines or dryers, yet allows people to wash and dry their clothes conveniently while conserving water through co-sharing.
Designed by Teo Tze Yang
Cycle matches people with washing needs to other individuals with washing machines/dryers. This largely reduces water consumption while helping the latter gain income.
Dynamount - A tripod without legs that captures a range of moving imagery in novel and dynamic ways.
Designed by Chan Hui Ying Sarah
As a phone mount, Dynamount offers a novel suite of motion and interaction for people to leverage on when creating content for social media or personal consumption.
Tune - A faceless time keeper that reminds youth to be mindful of their social media usage.
Designed by Kent Timothy Limanza
Tune interprets the passing of time in the form of colour desaturation. In the context of social media consumption, this introduces interaction friction and nudges youths to consider other activities which they could pursue, thus reducing social media usage.
Nudge - A system of odour candles used to nudge and guide people, facilitating faster evacuations during a fire emergency.
Designed by Luke Goh Xu Jie
Nudge leverages on pedestrians' reaction to odours to disrupt and drive people towards safety in the event of an emergency within a building or confined space.
Buddi - A digital helmet to protect tweens from the effects of unconscious trolling.
Designed by Merkayla Wong (Huang Xin'En)
Buddi is a phone attachment which transforms parents' phones into a communication platform for their children. It tackles cyber bullying by highlighting how exchanges between tweens (ages 8 and 12) could affect the recipient; Buddi displays emotions tangibly through a digital avatar. It also flags potential bullies online so that tweens are aware and mindful of their interactions.
Special Thanks
National University of Singapore, Division of Industrial Design
Nadia Bassiri, Samsung UK
Nadia Bassiri, Samsung UK