Based on work by Hannah Perner-Wilson, Andrew Quitmeyer, Rad students, and more!
Field Trip 1: A Craftsman Journey – From Dream to Reality
Field trip 2: Red Dot Design Museum
Field trip 3: Gem Jamming @ Singapore Jewelry and Gem Fair
Show watched: Black Mirror’s White Bear (Season 2 Episode 2)
The episode is essentially about how Victoria was punished by the public as together with her fiancé, Iain Rannoch, they abducted a girl called Jemima, and Iain, tortured and killed the girl before burning her body. Victoria did not help, but recorded his actions on her mobile phone. To punish her, the public wiped Victoria’s memory with these neurotransmitter, which can completely wipe out one’s memory. Victoria was then sentenced to undergo the daily punishment in the “White Bear Justice Park”, named after Jemima’s teddy bear, where is she being pursued by killers and people act as passive voyeurs and film it down without helping her.
Upon researching on the web, I realise that researchers have taken a step toward the possibility of tuning the strength of memory by manipulating one of the brain’s natural mechanisms for signaling involved in memory, a neurotransmitter called acetylcholine.
Does this mean that in the future, we can wipe out any memory that we want to forget forever? What is previously Black Mirror might actually become true in the future. This might bring benefits too – imagine if we could enhance good memories for patients suffering from dementia and remove bad memories for people with post-traumatic stress disorder.
Back to the episode, the neurotransmitter is designed to be intuitive and has a eerie beeping with blue light, to signal that it is doing its work. Its form resembles that of a mini stethoscope, with a flat surface to put snugly on the temples’ skin. It is also conveniently worn around the head. Upon wearing it, screams can be heard from the pain caused by the seemingly small but powerful device.
Another concept design detail in the movie is how every screen around the storyworld displays the same symbol – the iconic tattoo that Iain had on his neck. This perhaps increases the sinister nature of the killers, but more importantly, is a symbol of the danger where people may be less and less empathetic towards the plight of less privileged people or victims shown on social media. They may simply be yet another image above the share button, and the episode explores if our society will become filled with passive onlookers/voyeurs one day.
Genre: Fantasy
In the goblin world, goblins travel by flying cars and live in mushroom houses. They could also teleport to different time periods with time machine doors everywhere. They also have healing armour to heal themselves and other goblins, and build houses with a scanning property. This is to protect themselves and ensure that they will have a roof over their heads. They could also come up with any food they like simply by thinking about it and rubbing their tummy pocket. Ingredients will be formed and food will cook by itself in the kitchen.
Goblins have tasks and missions to execute in the human world. Every time they finished one mission, they are allowed to rest for 2 years in the goblin world. One day, a few goblins of power working in the heavens decided to mess up the system because they were unsatisfied of lack of rewards and rest given to goblins, including those of their family. They also felt unfair that they were not treated as well as fairies. So, they opened the heavens door for the goblins to escape to other worlds. Only goblins who had true unhappiness were able to escape.
The heaven gods found out and closed the doors in time. Only 20 goblins managed to escape. They went to the candy world, where everything in the world is made of candy. They tried to survive there, but regretted as they preferred living in the goblin world with their friends and family. Hence, they tried to make their way back to the goblin world, and kept sending messages to their fellow goblins for them to open the heavens door for them again. But it was in vain.
Hence, they stayed at the candy world, hoping to someday get back to goblin world. Over time, Hardworking Goblin fell in love with Pretty Candy. Forgetful Goblin also fell in love with Cute Candy. As time goes by, Pretty Candy and Cute Candy told their goblin partners that they have special powers to open the heavens door. The goblins were happy and wanted to go to goblin world to bring their family members to the candy world to live in, since they do not want to leave their partners. And they could not bring their candy partners into the goblin world. They came up with a plan to do so, but it would mean their partners might risk getting smashed by keeping the door open for a long time. Hence, the goblins would have to act as soon as possible.
The goblins went in, but their family members did not want to leave after hearing about how living in the candy world will be an aimless life, with no missions or goals. They also did not want to risk not being able to come back to their loved ones. Seeing that their attempts were futile, the goblins left, but just as the goblin door was closing, Hardworking Goblin changed his mind as he thought about his sick mother and went into the goblin world, attempting to pull Pretty Candy in. But the suction force was strong and prevented Pretty Candy to enter. By force, Pretty Candy was pulled in. However, in the goblin world, she started melting into a pool of sugar. Only her soul could move around. Devastated, Hardworking Goblin hired witches to help him put together his lover but they failed.
For a long time, Hardworking Goblin lived with the invisible soul of Pretty Candy, until his sick mother died. After that, they escaped into the candy world yet again, only to realise that candy world had been in disaster for years. There had been sugar tornado that crushed many houses. Hence, they tried to save the people and houses with their goblin powers as Pretty Candy has absorbed some goblin powers back in goblin world. They also had healing armour that can detect sickness, give out medicine and even operate surgeries for the people. They also possess scanners that can assess the damage done and restore houses the way they were. Their tummy pocket also allows them to come up with food to save these candy people. For 2 years, they rebuild the entire candy world and rescued the people, and Hardworking Goblin became crowned the king of the candy world.
The character list:
Hardworking Goblin
Forgetful Goblin
Hungry Goblin
Laughing Goblin
Pretty Candy
Cute Candy
HOW will you tell your story? –
Props, material and the role of devices:
Healing armour – inflatable balloon
Scanning property with antennas
Tummy pocket – food
Candy characteristics:
Bumper for them to bounce into anywhere of the universe, including goblin world
Sugar sprinkles to open the heavens door
Exploring Practitioners 1: Key Making – Loke Ting Wei
Creative Practice:
The key maker duplicate keys for her customers by using a key machine and other tools.
Key Making Process Documentation:
Parts of a key machine:
After observing and understanding from the key maker, I learnt about how key machines work. The key machine is used to duplicate a key, where an original key is inserted into the vice that is near the guide and a key blank is inserted in the vice near the cutting wheel. The alignment device, which is two bars connected, is used to make sure the original key and key blank always remain the same distance apart. The keys are horizontally aligned in the vices to be fixed in the same place in relation to the cutting wheel and guide. When the machine is on, the motor spins the cutting wheel. Then, the key maker will trace the guide along the cuts of the original key. The key blank will be dragged along the cutting wheel, duplicating the cuts on the original. When all the cuts are made, the process is finished.
After the key is cut, the key maker cuts off the excess part of the key if it is too long with a key cutting plier. Then, she removes the burrs by buffing the key with a manual metal handheld buffer. Finally, the brand of the key is imprinted onto the key by knocking into the metal with a hammer.
Workplace Documentation:
The workstation is small, but sufficient for the skilled key maker. With the small surface area, she had ample space to complete her key making process. A small table is used, with the key machine and the essential tools beside it.
Tools:
Original key
Key blank
Key machine
Key cutting plier
Metal buffer
Brand stamp
Hammer
Pain Points and Design Ideas:
I observed that the key maker buffed the key with a physical metal buff, unlike more modern machines which has a rotary wire brush attached onto the key machine itself, powered by the motor. As such, the physical metal buff would require more effort, and may result in less evenness and smoothness of the key. Hence, upgrading the machine to one with an attached rotary wire brush would be good.
I also realise that the key maker kept looking at the guide and the original key to make sure that the key blank is cut properly. She is an elderly auntie who wears glasses; and the daily activity of scrutinising at the key would be tiring for her eyes. Furthermore, I realise that the lighting of the shop is not particularly bright. Hence, I would suggest building a magnifying glass, with led lights at the rim of it, above the original key and guide so as to provide her a better view of it. With that, it would be less straining for her eyes.
I also understand that the cutting wheel would become smaller and thicker over time, leading to less accurate key duplicates. Hence, the key maker would need to change the cutting wheel when that happens.
Other than that, I learnt that the accuracy of the key duplicate also depends on the quality of the original key itself. If the original key is already worn, then the duplicate itself would not be accurate. Copies of copies also would not work well. Hence, my suggestion would be to improve the process from the key user’s side. The solution would be to duplicate the original key with a reliable key maker when it is new. With that, even if it is worn, there would still be a form of the original key existing for reference. Another solution would be to create a “duplicate” the key with a 3D printing machine, which can print metal. That would be the future to key making.
Exploring Practitioners 2: Tailoring – Loke Ting Wei
Creative Practice: I approached a tailor near my house who makes and alters clothes. When I approached her, she was altering a skirt for a customer who wants it to be shorter by half an inch.
Tailoring Process Documentation:
The tailor first measures the length that need to be cut away and altered with a measuring tape, as requested by the customer. Then, she marks the distance with a chalk. She then irons the skirt. After ironing, she cuts away the excess fabric from the garment with a scissors. Next she uses the overlock stitch on her sewing machine to serge the edge of the skirt. Next, she folds the end of the skirt to the new length and secure it with pins. The tailor then irons the new folding line for the skirt with an iron and after spraying water. She then blind stitches the hem. This is done by catching just 1 to 2 threads from the skirt material every time she brings the needle in and out of the hem. She continues blind stitching until the hem is sewn up. The altering process for the skirt is then complete.
Workplace Documentation:
The workplace consist of mainly three working surfaces – a table where she measures the fabric, marks the fabric with chalk and cut it, another table where the sewing machine is at, and the ironing board. The ironing board is very close to the first table, which makes it convenient for her. The first table is sufficiently big enough for her to carry out her tasks. For the sewing machine table, I realise that there are fruits beside the machine, which I assume is her midday snack while she goes on with her sewing tasks. The mix of food and sewing machines make the area a little cluttered. Hence, I would suggest having a built-in cabinet or shelf on the wall to hold the food or snacks, to prevent clutter. The whole shop is also brightly lit with many lights and mirrors.
Tools:
Fabric scissors
Measure Tape
Needles
Pins and Pin cushions
Iron and water sprayer
Thimble and threader
Threads
Rulers
Sewing Machine
Seam ripper
Chalk
Pain Points:
Seeing how time-consuming the process of blind stitching by hand is, I asked the tailor why she does not want to buy a machine that can do blind stitching to save the time and effort. In response, she said that blind stitching by machine is not without its flaws as it is very easy to go wrong and if so, she would have to restart every time it happens. Hence, she prefers hand sewing the blind stitch.
She knows her struggles very well, and makes her sewing process as comfortable as possible. For instance, she told me that she places mirrors and many lights within her shop so that it will be brightly lit and would prevent her eyes from getting tired.
However, she talked about how she had many orders to finish every day, for example 3 pieces of clothing in a short span of 2 hours. As such, she also has many orders which she hangs on the wall of the shop, along with post-it notes stating the orders she had in the day. She labels the different bags of orders with masking tape. Hence, I feel that it can be rather messy and disorganised at times. It can perhaps be improved with a proper storage cabinet with cubicles and proper labels made with whiteboard material so that she can write with erasable markers and save on the masking tape. She could also use a touch function enabled screen to write down her orders and categorise them with colour coding and dates to improve from post-its which can be messy and easily lost in the mess.
Exploring Practitioners 3: Baking – Loke Ting Wei
Creative Practice: I approached a friend who loves to bake. Some of the things she bakes are lava cakes, pancakes, muffins, cupcakes and brownies.
Baking Process Documentation:
Firstly, she preheat the oven. Then, she measures the correct amount of chocolate, then melt it by double boiling it. While waiting for the chocolate to melt, she measures the correct amount of butter and sugar, and creams the butter and sugar. However, that day, she forgot to take out the butter from the fridge to soften beforehand. Hence, she had to spend more time cutting and smearing the butter and sugar in the mixing bowl to let it soften faster. As such, she did that first before proceeding to melt the chocolate midway.
In addition, as she was too caught up with softening and creaming the butter and sugar, she was not looking at the chocolate melting. As a result, as there was no room for hot air in the pot below to escape, the temperature started getting too hot and the boiling water was bubbling and bordering the edge of the pot. Luckily, her family member who was in the kitchen told her. Forgetting that it was hot for a moment, she touched the melting bowl with her bare hands and almost got scalded. Then, I helped her lower down the fire.
After settling that and letting the chocolate to continue melt, she proceeded to resume with creaming the butter and sugar. She then added the eggs into it. In the process of breaking the eggs, she accidentally knocked too hard against the table and leaked a little of the egg white all over the floor. She then wiped it away.
She then takes out the chocolate melting bowl away from the fire to cool when it is fully melted with clumps. Then, she returns to beating the mixture of eggs, butter and sugar with the spatula. Next, she proceeded to measure the flour on the weighing scale, and adds the flour and a pinch of salt into the mixture.
She then fold the chocolate into the mixture of flour, salt, butter and sugar. This is done by slowly pouring the chocolate, as we need to be careful not to cook the eggs with the heat from the chocolate. After ensuring that there are no clumps and the mixture is relatively smooth, she pours the mixture into the ramekins, and puts it in the oven to bake for 11 minutes.
Sequence of steps in pictures:
After that, she keeps the excess mixture into a disposable storage container for the next few bakes. After the lava cake is done, she takes it out of the oven and places a scoop of ice cream on top of it.
Workplace Documentation:
The workplace consists of 4 surfaces – the sink, the stove, the area beside the stove which she uses to weigh chocolate and beat eggs into the mixture, and another surface (bigger than the previous) which she uses to weigh flour, butter and to beat mixtures as well. When asked why she uses two different surfaces when she could have used one, especially when she detests creating a mess so much, she said she did not think too much.
At the stage of breaking the eggs into the mixture, she had to go to and fro from the table surface to the bin (which is around 5 steps away) to throw the egg shells, then back to the table surface, and finally after doing so 4 times for cracking 4 eggs, she goes to the sink to wash her hands. Hence, the inconvenience could be prevent if she had moved the bin nearer or throw the egg shells into a temporary bag.
Tools:
Spatula
Mixing bowl
Silicon spatula
Melting bowl
Pot
Weighing machine
Measuring cup
Ice cream scoop
Ramekins
Disposable storage box
Pain Points:
The pain points were that the area to work with were too small, plus the sink, bin and table top is far away from one another. As she likes to be clean and wash her hands after every step, for example she does not want to touch things with gooey egg-y hands, she has to walk to the sink every time, and go back to the working surface. Also, one of her main concerns were needing to wash the tools after use. Hence, it would be good if we can implement a self-cleaning device or tools for her. Because she does not want to wash the electric standing mixer, she does not use it; but said she would use it if it can self-clean somehow. Using the electric mixer would yield more satisfying results as the mixture would be less clumpy and smoother.
As she usually bakes alone, and there are two separate stations to look after (the stove and the table top where she mixes stuff), it is easy to neglect the stove and this can be dangerous, such as when the boiling water almost bubbles over, and when in a moment of forgetting it is hot, she almost got scalded by touching the melting bowl with her bare hands.
Hence, I would suggest having an app with a voice assistant that can track each step of the baking process, especially when many steps are ongoing at the same time. For example, the app will remind her to use a medium fire to heat up the chocolate at the start, and after 3 minutes, it will remind her to turn it down to a smaller fire, and after 10 mins, it will remind her to stir the chocolate and check if it is done. This can be good prompts when she is busy with creaming butter and sugar at another table surface which is a distance away. A temperature strip could also be stuck onto the melting bowl to remind her that it is hot so she does not lift it with her bare hands.
Cultural Probe: Design and Findings – Loke Ting Wei
I did a cultural probe with my friend who is a baker, along with two other friends who bakes cupcakes, muffins and lava cakes. I prepared a set of cultural probes to ask them, and by discussing with them and bouncing off ideas, we came up with solutions to target the problems experienced.
Contents + Rationale, Findings (which includes the problems faced) and proposed solutions:
Cultural Probe
Please record down:
Activities to do:
Findings: Some of the practitioners did not follow the 5-minute periods, but instead record accordingly with each step, which is fine as well. From their steps and the struggles they wrote down, their feedback was that tools are all over the place in the kitchen, dirtying the surface of the table top and having to refer to the recipe on the phone repeatedly while hands are dirty.
Suggestion: Touchable screen on the kitchen wall to record and display recipes. Space expansion with extendable surfaces, eg. that covers the sink and acts as an extra surface. Tools organiser in the kitchen cabinet, categorised according to uses. (eg. spatulas all together)
2. What are the:
Findings: The practitioners said they would decorate the cake with more ingredients if they could afford more time and effort. Extra toppings include confectionary sugar, icing sugar, sugar heart shapes, m&ms, cookies and chocolate shavings.
Suggestion: A self-decorator machine that helps them to finish off the product with nice toppings. Upon the push of a button specifying the design, and keying the size of the cake, the machine would do it for them.
3. Circle the words you would want to incorporate into your lava cake
Findings: The practitioners chose the ingredients based on their own liking. For instance, one of them only likes chocolate and sweet stuff, not the fruits, while another loves fruits in her cakes. This question attempts to expand the creativity of the practitioner. One of them said she would like to add Thai milk tea in her cake. However, she has not found a way to do it. She would assume that she needs to add Thai milk tea into some sort of mixing agent for it to have the consistency of adequate thickness to make the cake batter.
Suggestion: Recipe app in which they can try adding different elements to the cake and see how the equation turns out.
4. Contextual changes that would take place
Findings: All of them wrote that it was almost impossible to skip steps as each step is important. The key is in remembering to do the preparation work beforehand to save time. Eg. take out the butter to soften.
Suggestion: Task organiser with notification alert. Or a timer that is stuck to the wall so avoid wasting space.
Findings: additional decoration, better quality ingredients.
Findings: lessen the sugar, change normal chocolate to dark chocolate, add more fruits, use fruit juices and natural sweetness to replace sugar.
Suggestion: A sugar level indicator. This is rather futuristic as the available solutions now is to use Benedict’s solution to test for simple sugars, such as glucose. It is a clear blue solution of sodium and copper salts. In the presence of simple sugars, the blue solution changes color to green, yellow, and brick-red, depending on the amount of sugar. However, this solution is unable to test for sucrose, which is commonly used in baking. Furthermore, using chemicals while preparing food is dangerous. Hence, perhaps the only way is to test the sugar level through tasting and trial and error each time. The practitioners can record down the level of sweetness along with the amount of sugar used each time and place it on the kitchen wall. A touchable screen on the wall would be even more convenient.
Findings: add more decorative and colourful toppings for the child
Findings: explain more and guide the child step by step, holding his or her hand if necessary.
Suggestion: Augmented reality with a phone camera on top of the child’s hands and bowl. The child would have to follow the markings on the screen to achieve the correct results.
Findings: plastic sheets would be good, although not environmental friendly
Suggestion: self-cleaning mat made of nano coating that repels water, oil and dirt. Eg. titanium dioxide nanoparticle coating or other hydrophobic products
Findings: With the rush for time, they realise that the ways they handle this process may not be the most efficient. One of them realise that their butter was too soft and sticks to the knife. Another one did not soften the butter beforehand and hence took more effort and time to cut them with a spatula. The other one had a proper surface with softened butter and cut the butter the fastest.
Findings: Accidental spillages often happen.
Findings: Most do not do this due to the hassle.
Suggestion: Suck the egg yolk out from the egg white using a suction bottle.
Findings: One uses an ice cream scoop, the other two uses spoons. They find it troublesome to accurately place it in the tins or ramekins without dripping over the edge. Using a scoop will also cause wastage as it is difficult to scoop out the excess.
Suggestion: A piping bag to suck up the batter and place it accurately into the tin or ramekin.
Creative practice: Graphite pencil drawing
Tools used:
Graphite pencils
Blending stumps (tightly rolled-up felt paper with 2 pointed ends)
Soft tissue (blend/smudge bigger areas)
Regular eraser (erase bigger areas)
Kneaded eraser (erase fine lines or pick up graphite where you want it lighter)
Brush (brush away eraser crumbs)
Eraser pencil (for detailed highlights)
Problem faced:
The problem faced by graphite pencil drawing artists are that there are way too many tools that they need while they are drawing. For instance, for a blending stump, they have at least 5 different thickness of the tips. There are also eraser pencils, kneaded eraser, regular eraser, blending tissue, and a brush to brush away the crumbs. There are also graphite pencils of different hardness, black pencils and white markers. Hence, the tabletop may turn into a mess with the number of tools involved. It may also be difficult to find what they need amidst the mess.
Idea 1: Finger Glove It
Creating a graphite pencil drawing but can’t find the necessary tools on hand? Eraser crumbs all over the place, blending tissues flying everywhere? Blending stumps, eraser pencil, erasers obstructing your artwork and cluttering the space? Don’t worry, you can now have it all on one hand with the new finger gloves!
Now, while the artist is drawing with one hand, the other hand will have finger gloves on each finger. On the pinky finger, the finger glove will be made of thin fibre brush material, and will act as a substitute for the brush, which is used to brush away eraser crumbs. On the ring finger, the finger glove have a ‘container’ that will contain soft tissues (up to 5), which is used to blend or smudge bigger areas. The tip of the middle finger’s finger glove will store blending stumps of different thickness, and functions like a multi-coloured clickable pen. The tip of the index finger’s finger glove will hold the kneaded eraser and eraser pencil. Lastly, the thumb’s finger glove will have a regular eraser at its tip.
The finger gloves will be made of breathable material such as cotton or linen. Garments made of linen or cotton are valued for their exceptional coolness and freshness in hot and humid weather.
A useless version of Finger Glove It would be if the erasers are stuck to the bottom flat side of the fingers instead of the tip of the fingers. If so, there would be accidental erases while the other hand with finger gloves is holding onto the drawing. Moreover, it is hard to control the erasers when drawing fine lines with them. Having them on the tip of the fingers would provide more precision as though holding a pen.
Idea 2: Tools Vending Machine
A relatively useless idea (unless improved): A tools vending machine that dispenses the tool needed when the relevant button is pressed. For instance, if 1 is pressed, a 4b graphite pencil would be dispensed and the user will collect it at the mouth of the machine. After using, the user can place it back into its belonging box.
However, this solution involves more steps than the Finger Glove It. Firstly, the user would have to press the button, wait for a few seconds for the tool to drop for their use. After using it, they would also have to deposit it back to its source. Hence, it is a hassle, and the user could simply take the tool from their respective boxes without the machine’s function.
I believe it could be modified to perhaps a hanging magnetic board which can store all the tools and save space at the same time, where the artist can reach out for it easily each time. However, this is still not as convenient as the Finger Glove It since the artist would not need to reach out or search for the tool; it is already on hand. Alternatively, the vending machine could be improved to have voice detection properties just like Siri, where the artist could just narrate what he wants and the tool will drop down. As the artist narrates, he could still draw on. After using the tool, he could place it into the collection area and the tool would be sent up to its original place.
Wrist Analytics
Practice it works in
A hand-wearable device that uses multiple sensor technologies to record and communicate biometric data about wrist positioning. It creates a flexible platform to interact with their hand movement data through a mobile application, whether users are at work, home or gym.
The creator of Wrist Analytics, Jintong Zhu, wants to understand how hand-wearables can help us to interact with objects differently. Our hands are used to perform countless actions all day every day, consciously. Wrist Analytics can be used in various scenarios; by selecting either wristband, stickers, or splint. One of the representatives and case studies of the project is piano playing. Physical skills training and remote learning processes require understanding of wrist motion.
Specific use
Trained piano players always stay in a small range of wrist motion. The neutral position of the wrist in piano playing is recommended for both sound quality and hand health. During a piano practise session where the teacher is not around, the band could record the piece performed by the student. Moreover, the sensing system enables Wrist Analytics to receive wrist elevation, positioning and relaxation data. Between lessons, students can go to ‘weekly sessions’ and practice with the comparison data. Wrist Analytics helps to shape a better understanding of the movements required to skilfully perform physical actions. For instance, the device could be advanced to allowing users to learn how to play the piano from the wearable.
Wrist Analytics also serves as a health companion as it continuously tracks wrist motions while we perform daily activities, allows us to make corrections to have a happier and healthier life. For example, long periods of tense muscles and incorrect wrist posture at work on the computer can easily lead to wrist problems. Similarly, mothers taking care of a new-born frequently experience wrist pain, ranging from mild to severe pain. Wrist Analytics then notify you if your wrists needs some rest, and the splint can protect and ease the pain.
Mobility
Users can choose to use Wrist Analytics in the form of wristband, stickers or splint, according to their daily activities. As they are also sleek and compact, Wrist Analytics is greatly mobile.
Utility vs Fashionability
With its sleek and monochrome design, it can suit different outfit styles and hence, is quite fashionable. It also has high utility as it is able to perform its job of sensing wrist elevation, positioning and relaxation and converting them into data shown in the app. However, it would be good if further improvements are made such that it could be a teacher or guide of its own, for example, by incorporating sensors, vibrations to guide one’s movements in a sport (eg. yoga, squash) or skill such as playing the piano or other instruments.
Lunavity
Practice it works in
Lunavity is a system designed by a group of students at Rekimoto Lab, The University of Tokyo, to augment the human capability of jumping. An attachable multi-rotor elevates the user during the movement, enabling them to leap higher and further. In the future, where drones are widely used for delivery and transportation, the same can be applied to augment users’ mobility. One can jump twice or three times as high. Lunavity adjusts to a human’s natural movements, to augment the wearer’s jumping ability. It also supports the body, giving a feeling of lightness to the wearer.
Specific use
Essentially, it allows humans to gain abilities totally new to man, and opens up to many possibilities of the future. For instance, it can be used in the area of sports, creating the potential for new kinds of sports as players can reach nearer to the ceiling. It could also be useful for the physically disabled and wheelchair-bound, where they can experience walking/jumping by bouncing or pushing their limbs for the first time. This would be life-changing for them. Moreover, into the future, if such technology becomes as accessible as smart phones, and has evolved to be more intuitive, we would need lesser stairs and elevators around.
Mobility
You could carry it around like a backpack. However, it is still not as compact to bring it around every day, and storage could be a problem. Perhaps, allowing the device and multi-rotor part to be foldable and more lightweight, less bulky and heavy would be good.
Utility vs Fashionability
Some would say it looks stupid, and that it looks too heavy and bulky. Hence, its fashionability is debatable. Utility-wise, it is a revolutionary technology that teleports us to a Doraemon world, but the key is in its intuition and whether the sensors are accurate enough in detecting the human’s natural movement and how the users can control how much and how far to jump, and when they want to land. It has to be easy to control, or else this device would not go far in terms of using it in our everyday lives.