5.1 Concept Testing - 1 Concept

And now is where the real decision is made: which prototype gets developed into a final product.

I approached this decision by sharing the previous entry, containing pictures and descriptions of my prototypes, on the Facebook page of the LARP organization I intend to market the final product to (as well as on my business and personal Facebook pages).  I asked for opinions on and questions about my designs, and formed my conclusion organically from their feedback - this allowed me to account for not only overt preferences of one over another, but what elements of each design my audience liked the most.  It also brought to my attention a few potential weaknesses in some of my designs that I had not noticed on my own yet.

I also did a certain amount of hands-on product testing.  All three of the prototypes I had made were comprehensive enough to perform the task they were designed for, although I did have to be very careful as the materials used were very lightweight and simply pinned together in places.  This was more of an insurance policy than a determining factor - it wouldn't do if a design that looked great when photographed and posted on the internet turned out to be completely impractical when put to use.  Fortunately, all the designs seemed to work well enough to move forward, although the soft pack seemed to have some problems in the realm of comfortable wear.

Both audience comments and hands-on testing point strongly towards the frame pack as my best choice to move forward.  When you also consider that the prototyping process provided a clear path to move forward on, that pleases me a great deal.  I do, however, plan on keeping the diagonal/single-shoulder bag on my to-do list.  It has a lot of potential, and I've received some positive feedback and definite interest in it, but most of that interest is either for use in a slightly different market (a futuristic LARP rather than medieval), or as a general purpose bag rather than as a water carrier, so I'm putting it on hold in the interest of continuing to directly address my Gap.

So, onward with the frame pack!

Homework Assignment 4.2: Prototyping

And here we have three prototypes, one for each backpack style in the previous post.  I'd love to hear your opinions or answer any questions you may have as I try to decide which design to move forward with for the rest of the class.

First up, we have the soft backpack prototype.  This one is basically my original idea, and the iteration/refinement work hadn't done much to improve my thoughts on construction methods.  Rather than try to reinvent what I had done before, I made pin-modifications to the prototype I made for Week 1.  It's still a little rough and in need of serious refinement, but it's getting closer to a usable design.

 

Next, we have the diagonal/single shoulder pack.  This prototype went together very quickly (maybe a couple of hours work time), but it turned out MUCH better than I had expected.  I didn't have very high hopes for this design, but considering how quickly it went together, it has a lot of potential to be a very cost-effective product... the downsides are that the general style looks a little too modern to my eyes, it's not going to be very easy to adjust for different people, and there's a lot less additional storage space than I was hoping for.  The base water vessel is also considerably more expensive and difficult to clean than I was hoping, but I think that's counteracted by the overall speed and simplicity of the construction.

 

Finally, we have the frame pack.  Prototype done in 1/2" CPVC pipe, but if I go forward with this design, the finished product would be a wooden frame.  This was more labor-intensive, and there were some outside problems that affected the build - specifically, both of the hardware stores in town were short on  1/2" T-fittings, so I only had enough to make two shelves rather than the three I wanted.  However, I am incredibly pleased with how this turned out.  This is just a rough proof-of-concept prototype, with very cheap, lightweight fabric pieces and straps held on by pins, and without any sort of adhesive holding the frame together, yet here it is, comfortably carrying a full gallon jug of water.  Clearly, there are a lot of changes and additions to be made before this can become a finished product, but I can very easily identify not only what those changes are but how to make them.  The only problems that I don't have a solution for quite yet are end-user affordability - this took most of a day to build, and the final product would be more complex, driving up cost - and the need to remove the bottle from the pack in order to pour, the latter of which is a very small complaint.

 

Edit 05/19/2014: Added more descriptive language to my annotations so I could use this post as a target market research tool.  Project content unchanged.

Homework Assignment 4.1: Concept Selection - 3 Concepts

Narrowing the ten design concepts from the previous post down to three candidates to be prototyped.  Each concept is scored from 1-3 in each category (one being not-so-good, two being neutral, and three being very good), then the score is totaled at the bottom.  My final prototype choices are highlighted in yellow.

As you may notice, my prototype choices are not necessarily the highest-scoring design concepts.  Because my list of concepts all fit into three basic categories (frame pack, soft backpack, and diagonal/shoulder bag), I made the decision to prototype one from each category.

Homework Assignment 3.2: Visual Expression III - 2 Point Perspective

My sketch of a chair in 2-point perspective:

Homework Assignment 3.1: Exploration - 10 Concepts

Breaking the design problem down to individual challenges:

Due to time constraints, I am unable to complete the sketches for my 10 design concepts.  The concepts are as follows:

A. Two-shelf frame pack with removable jug
B. Two-shelf frame pack with fixed bottles
C. Three-shelf frame pack with fixed jug
D. Single-shelf frame pack with removable bottles and separate vertical storage pockets
E. Soft backpack with 3 patch pockets and retaining straps underneath
F. Soft backpack with separate lower chamber and side patch pockets
G. Soft backpack with shaped pockets
H. Diagonal pack with large pockets on back
I. Diagonal pack with small pockets on front and retaining straps on back
J. Diagonal pack with small pockets on front and back

Homework Assignment 2.2 - User Needs

In looking more closely at user needs, I am pleased to discover that my initial gap statement holds up, needing little to no modification, although perhaps a little more unpacking...   It reads now: "A convincingly medieval-looking ergonomic backpack for carrying a day's worth of water & eating utensils during Live Action Role Play adventures."

My list of user needs which I hope to address with my project is as follows:

1. Holds enough water for a full day
2. Does not break/leak even after being dropped or fallen on 
3. Does not allow condensation from cold water vessel to soak through (!)
4. Makes it possible to pour water without removing water vessel
5. Internal water vessel is easily replaceable
6. Easy to clean
7. Can be carried for an extended period of time without interfering with other tasks
8. Leaves both hands free while being carried
9. Distributes weight comfortably
10. Does not shift excessively while running. etc.
11. Is adjustable for players of different height/girth
12. Is lightweight enough to be carried while running quickly
13. Has additional storage space
14. Can carry at least one bowl
15. Can carry at least one spoon
16. Can carry at least one mug
17. Has room for a small amount of food
18. All pockets/compartments securely button or tie shut
19. Has a separate space for small out-of-game items (cell phone, inhaler, etc.) (!)
20. Can fit small in-game items and tools (!)
21. Can secure a coil of rope (!)
22. Fits into a specific aesthetic
23. Does not appear anachronistic in a medieval setting
24. Completely conceals modern elements (plastic water vessel, etc.)
25. Constructed from natural fibers (cotton, linen, etc)
26. Is customizable to match individual players' gear (!)
27. Is affordable for high school and college-aged players