Final Concept
After the ideation phase and the concept generating phase, a final concept has been chosen. A style collage was made in order to choose the style direction of the final concept. Also, the list of requirements has been used in order to choose the most suitable concept, and improve that concept even further. Furthermore, the concepts have been thoroughly evaluated with our participant, as a part of the co-design process. two concepts were chosen and were merged together to form a new final concept.
Final Concept Description
Key elements of the final concept:
Part 1: Two handles:
The handles are attached to retractable cords, and are both placed in holders. When the participant is feeling stressed, anxious or excited, he can grab the handles. The holders of the handles are placed on the desk of the electric wheelchair that the participant uses.
Part 2: The button & earpiece:
The button is placed on the desk of the electric wheelchair that the participant uses. When the participant is feeling stressed, the participant can press on the button. The button is connected via bluetooth to the earpiece that the user is wearing. The earpiece will play a calming voice message, telling the participant to calm down.
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Both these element are carefully designed using co-design.
Important benefits of the final design:
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The product features compatibility with products that the user currently owns, such as the electric wheelchair.
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The product empowers and encourages the participant to perform the desired speech.​
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Originally, the final concept has been designed as an aid during presentations. The particpant has indicated that he often gets too excited or stressed during presentations, such that speech gets more difficult. However, this product could also be used in other (stressfull or exciting) situations. However, the participant could use the final design whenever necessary.
Final Concept part 1: The handle
These images below show the final concept of part 1: the handles. As part of the final design, there are two handles, with each a retractable cord and a handle holder, that is attached on the desk of the electronic wheelchair that the participant uses.
Attaching mechanism.
We considered a lot of ways of attaching the grip to the wheelchair. Things like tape, magnets, velcro, and screws, but in the end went with a clamp because it was the least damaging to the desk on the wheelchair and could be attached closer to wear the grip would ideally be. Also with a clamp the grip would be removable if necessary.
Final decision concept
The fact that the button is a voluntary reminder was very much appreciated. In the end he did like the stressball more than the joystick because he could move it freely. From there we started ideation on the grip. So what would fit best to our participant's hand and which shape he likes best.
Final Concept Elements (The handle)
This collage shows all the Solidworks models of the handles. The button element has not been made in Solidworks, since they could be bought in a store. For the earpiece, the bluetooth headphones of the participant were used, so they did not have to be bought.
The elements of the handle concept are:
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Element 1: The handle
element. The participant can grab the handles when feeling nervious, excited or stressed. The purpose of the handles is to give the user 'something to hold' in order to relieve his emotions. The handles are attached to the retractable cord. There are two handles, one for each hand.
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Element 2: The retractable cord:
When the handles are released, the handles will retract via the retractable cord. This way, the handles will fall on the ground and they will return to the handle holder. This is important, because once an object falls off the desk of the participants' wheelchair, he is not able to retrieve that item by himelf.
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Element 3: The holder of the handles.
The holder of the handles will be attached firmly to the desk of the electric wheelchair, and they will therefore not move places. The holders of the handles contain the handles with the retractable chord. The holder is important, because it prevents the handles from laying around on his desk and getting in the way.
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As visible in the pictures, the style of the handle and holder matches the style of the style collage, and it therefore matches with the electric wheelchair of the participant.
Video of part 1: The handle
This video is a simulation of the workings of the holder and the handle. The handle can be pulled out of the holder via the retractable holder. When the handle is relseased, the the cords retracts the handle back to the holder.
Part 2: The button
Like mentioned before, the particant can press a button that is placed on the desk of the electronic wheelchair, in order to activate the calming voice message.
For the audio fragment a slow and calming rhythm with a deep voice was chosen, because those are generally received as relaxing. The text ‘Adem in, adem uit. Adem rustig in en adem rustig uit’ which means breath in and breath out was decided on. This was done because our participant mentioned difficulty with breathing when he got too excited to get words out so in the literal sense he wanted someone to tell him to breathe. To the right, a picture of the buttons that were used are displayed. Only one button is used. The button works via bluetooth, and once pressed the earpiece (headphones that the participants already use) plays the calming voice message.
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For the purposes of having a working button in the prototype, Flic buttons were used. These buttons are a technology originally designed for smart homes. Despite this original purpose, their ease of programming made them highly suitable for prototyping. An attempt was made to program a different, wired button but that was quite difficult. The Flic button and associated app already had the function of playing music but it is normally used in a completely different environment. However, the Flic button is now used in a much more personal and very function-specific way. The added value is that the button is no longer confined to being a light switch or a media player, but instead takes on a role as a means of taking control of nerves, giving the participant the opportunity to take a break from the stress of presenting.
Storyboard
The storyboard displays a situation where the final product could be used. You could see that the button and the handles are the parts of the final concept.
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