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Team:Hayat Benchenaa and Garikoitz Iruretagoiena |
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This project is about an existing product that many people use everyday, but sometimes still does not full fill the need of the users. Many products are converging or being repurposed. The question we had to start the project with was: Is it better to seperate each product or action into individual products or to simplify them into one? A tangible user interface brings together the pyhsical and digital to make products that have interesting interactions. Waking up in the mornings is easy for some and more difficult for others. How many people have thrown their alarm clocks across the room to break them? What do you expect from an alarm clock? To wake you up in time and get you out of bed, for 'snoozers' that can be difficult as it delays getting out of bed. |
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Sfera is a radio alarm clock which hangs above your bed and wakes you in the morning by forcing you physically to get out of bed. When you set the alarm, the glowing Sfera gradually dims and the music gently fades out as you drift off to sleep. When the alarm chimes in the morning, the only way to silence it is to reach up and gently tap the Sfera. This action initiates the snooze function, but it also makes the Sfera rise above your head towards the ceiling. As it slowly rises away from your reach, you must stretch higher each time to gain another ten minutes of snooze. When it reaches the ceiling, you have no option but to reach for it and drag it back down to your bed – an action which switches off the alarm and forces you finally to get up. |
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| This project was done in two parts. The first part I worked with Garikoitz Iruretagoiena and the second part I worked alone. The first part was the conceptual and intial prototype phase. We worked togther conceptalizing and developing ideas for two weeks. We then chose a few ideas that we further developed for a week. We made video protoypes to illustrate these concepts. We then took one concept to develop into a physical prototype. In the second part of the development I built a second model. Several changes were made in the second iteration. The mechanisms used to do some of the interactions were redesigned to make it more comfortable to use, other changes were done in the different interactions done while using the radio alarm clock. |
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When the sphere is blue the alarm can be set. To activate the alarm the sphere lightly shaken. When yellow the sphere is in light mode. The light can be used to light up the room and read in bed. When green the radio turns on and the channels can be changes by twisting the sphere. |
Copyright © 2006 Hayat Benchenaa. all right reserved |