JAEMAN ALEX CHOI
10 WEEKS
BABY BOUNCER
Design, Thinking, Communications
FALL 2018
PROJECT OVERVIEW
In a team of four, we developed a working prototype of a reimagined baby bouncer, supplemented with user research and performance testing for our client, Nancy Cowles, creator and executive director of KID [Kids in Danger], a child product safety advocate group.
While the need was obvious, the problem assessment was made by observing the unison in the current market. The objective was to redesign a child's conventional baby bouncing seat using iterative user-centered design process.
PERSONAL RESPONSIBILITIES
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Developed concept ideation through brainstorm and sketches
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Tested works like prototypes and conducted interviews
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Machined base and connector joint of the final prototype
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Documentation of user and performance testing
SKILLS
Brainstorming &
Ideation Sketching
User Research
Rapid Prototyping
Injection Molding
ABOUT
Me
Our Client: Nancy Cowles is the current director of KID
VISION
Our client's genuine advocacy for children safety and KID's significant research on incidents of injury and death made emotionally connecting with project easy because of the gravity of the problem at hand. Soon after, analyses of the market and competitive products led to a natural discovery, revealing the need for a much more intuitive and safe baby bouncer.
Plus, this video cries for a redesign of the product.
Users: Baby and Person responsible for baby
PROCESS + MANUFACTURING
Interviews with our client as well as with experts in the industry helped propel our idea generation and iterative process. We identified the baby and the parent (or guardian) as our users. Our vision took flight when we identified the core of the problem.
After speaking with a series of mothers, other users of baby products, as well as child safety experts, we began with a series of mock ups for our user and performance testing. These catered to the key needs of stability of base and security. After iterative product & market research, interviews with mothers and safety experts, and extensive user testing, the isolated problems we figured to solve using design engineering were how to tackle elevated surfaces and limit the bending force of the motion activation mechanism.
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5
Brainstorms
3
Interviews
(Client + Experts)
3
Mock ups
4
Presentations
(Peers + Experts + Client)
Building Final Prototype
The base was built by laser cutting plywood and milling surfaces to create a steel weight insert that also connected with the rest of the product, the spring and baby seat. After production of the wooden base with steel insert, we used an interference fit with reinforcements to combine it to a custom made spring from McMaster-Carr that we nonetheless modified further by cutting and welding to ensure assembly.
Then our team applied injection molded ABS plastic to give it a modern finish with higher resistance. The baby seat for our prototype utilized only the harness component of a dissembled baby bouncer with an mediocre base. There is minimal assembly here in our design as the spring is connected to base using threaded rods with nuts; the seat is connected to this apparatus using a connection joint.
Our team also created assembly instructions that adequately complements the design of the final package of our product.
FINAL DELIVERABLE
The Safe Bounce prides itself on the center of mass of its big beautiful base, which features slip preventing rubber padding on the bottom, and adds over 300 square inches of frictional surface to the traditional wire-base baby bouncer design. The bouncing mechanism is a large spring, on which the seat rests; as seen in our product the baby blue spring arises from the center of the base. The spring adds an extra dimension to the infant’s movement, but is restrictive enough to keep the apparatus from slipping or tipping.
Our group also delivered performance tests, calculations of strength and factors of safety.
