SAMANTHA STEWART CRITIQUE

How well have you worked as a team? 
Mike and I as a team complement each other's strengths and weaknesses. There was a good level of communication throughout the project and all deadlines were met with a good standard of work.

What challenges did you have to overcome?
Mainly through the prototyping stage, various methods of creating the prototype failed and time was an issue. 

How did you overcome these challenges?
We were organised and made a plan to meet and complete the task which was successful. 

Why do you think we're your strengths in the team? Organisation and planning, presentation of work, idea generation and first hand research contacts. 

What do you think your partner's (Mike) strengths were? Mechanical knowledge, logical thinking, forward thinking, good communication, cad development. 

How well do you think your target design meets your brief? 100%. I think that our design meets every aspect of the brief. The design provides easy access to interact with the child, freedom of movement and a simple storage solution. 

Are there any areas that could be improved upon? Yes, I think the product overall could be more refined and the design of the seat could be more ergonomic to support users with back problems.

MIKE COOK CRITIQUE

How well have you worked as a team?

I think that we’ve worked very well as a team and complimented each other well. We played well to each other’s strengths and helped each other when it came to weaknesses. By communicating well and working hard we’ve come out with some good CAD modelling, good sketches and a great prototype model.  

What challenges did you have to overcome?

Initial challenges were generating ideation and coming up with feasible concept design. Further in the process when we had closed in on a few concept ideas, we started to struggle to pick a concept to take further into the development stage.

How did you overcome these challenges?

The initial challenge of generating ideation sketches was tackled simply by coming together and deciding to look at the project area very broadly and explore all aspects of disability access. Our later challenge was helped by analysing and evaluating the feedback given to us from our tutor and The Car People. This gave us a great insight from knowledgeable people within the industry, which in turn helped us decide which direction to finally go.

What do you think we're your strengths in the team?

I think my personal strengths within the team were strong hands on approach providing plenty of time spent on model making and prototyping. Another personal strength I think I have is in my CAD ability when it comes to 3D modelling in SolidWorks. We both spent a lot of time and effort on our physical prototype model and for both of us, our commitment and perseverance showed to be a great strength.

What do you think your partners strengths were?

Again, strong hands on approach, working extremely well in and out of the workshop constructing a great prototype model. Well organised and a great sketcher for both getting ideas down on paper and further developing concepts. Good CAD abilities which contributed well to our 3D SolidWorks model.

How well do you think your target design meets your brief?

I think our design meets all aspects of our design brief very well. Our brief gave us challenges to design a product/system that will tackle multiple problems. I think our design is a good solution to many of these problems and if produced would work very well.

Are there any areas that could be improved upon?

I think we’ve communicated and worked well as a team and all areas have been a success. The possibility of designing support into the seat could be an area to be looked into and improved upon.

REVOSEAT POSTER

UPDATED BRIEF

 

TO DESIGN A SOLUTION THAT ALLOWS BETTER ACCESS TO THE DISABLED CHILD WHILE IN A VEHICLE.

ULTIMATELY ALLOWING PARENT/CARER AND CHILD TO INTERACT MORE FREELY WITHIN THE CAR.

TO PROVIDE A STORAGE SOLOUTION THAT WILL BE

ACCESSABLE BOTH, WHEN THE VEHICLE IS STATIONARY AND DURING TRANSIT.

FINAL DESIGN IN SITUE

We have put our chair design in the WAV interior to check scale, positioning relative to wheelchair  and overall appearance. Our design works well and corresponds to the dimensions of the existing seating.

FINAL PROTOTYPE

This is the making of our final design prototype. 

We created the model from plywood and green modeling foam. We sprayed the final assembly and added LEDs to closely represent what we envisioned the final product to looklike. We have also added our 'revoseat' logo to the side.

ENGINEERING DRAWINGS

Overall dimensions of final design.

STORYBOARD/USER SENARIO

We have created a storyboard to show how we envisage  the user to interact with the product. 

FINAL DESIGN ANIMATION

CAD EXPLODED VIEW

This is a closer look at the swivel base and storage area of final design 

CAD DEVELOPMENT OF FINAL DESIGN

 

FINAL DESIGN DEVELOPMENT SKETCHES

Following the feedback we have received along with a group discussion we have decided to focus on the 360 degree chair with integrated under seat storage. These sketches are our development of the final design.

REVOSEAT LOGO

We have created a logo for our final design. 
We have chosen 'revoseat' as it plays on both the words "evolve"/"evolution" and also "revolve".
Revolve gets across that the chair can rotate, at the same time we are hoping to create the next evolution of chair. We feel that the logo and brand fits well with the final design we have chosen. 

FIRST SKETCH MODEL

This is our initial model of our final chosen design,that we have quickly mocked up using card to get and overall feel of the shape and dimensions. We wanted to be through and check that the dimensions of the seat system would comfortably fit within a wheelchair accessible vehicle.

ENVIRONMENT- WAV

We have chosen wheelchair accessible vehicles or vehicles that can be adapted for wheelchair use as our product environment. Our product fits within this environment, the unrestricted area around the driver and passenger seat allows freedom of movement. This will leave good space for the users to rotate our product to the rear facing position with ease.

Further examples of WAVs can be found here
http://www.vantagemobility.com/wheelchair-vans/chrysler-town-country/

USERS

Parents and Carers- Our chair system design is aimed at the driver (in autonomous vehicles) and/or passenger of WAVs the design will give them a freedom of movement allowing them to interact with the child during transit, there is also a easy access storage area under the seat.

Children aged 1-18- Wheelchair users that are heavily dependent on a parent or carer will benefit from our design as they will be less restricted and be able to interact more freely during transit.

RESEARCH- COMPETITION FROM EXISTING PRODUCTS

Mood Board with the main areas of competition for our product.

OUR AREAS OF MOTIVATION

Restricted access to child- parent and child cannot interact during the journey, there is limited access to the child which increases risks if any problems occur with the child.

Health problems- the majority of parents and carers have stated in our survey that they suffer with back or knee pain due to lifting their child or twisting to reach them.

Lack of storage- there is no current storage solution for detachable parts of the wheelchairs such as the front tray. This cannot be left on during transit, due to safety regulations