Early stage product design process : a case study of an educational building kit

Abstract

A Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) kit for the assembly of a lamp was created to encourage children's interest in mechanical and electrical engineering. To ensure the lamp was intuitive and fun to use, user testing was conducted. As the user interface (UI) for the lamp was designed and developed, tests were conducted with users using a variety of prototypes ranging from paper, cardboard, and plastic to PowerPoint storyboards on the computer. By incorporating user testing throughout the process of identifying possible button layouts as well as proper lamp proportions, a final intuitive UI with a single panel of buttons was converged upon. This UI utilized one button to switch through the four possible light modes instead of having a separate button for each mode. This UI will be employed in a future prototype that will be further tested with children in the intended age range. These tests will utilize 3D printed pieces for the base and buttons, and will incorporate all the PCBs and LEDs that are intended for use in the final product.