Smart Garden
Overview
0-1 Physical product design with smartphone application following User Centred Design approach
Responsibilities
Survey Design,
Survey Analysis
Competitor Analysis
Proof of concept
Design Refinement
Prototyping
Poster Creation
Context
October 2023 - December 2024
Human Computer Interaction University Module
Led by Russell Beale
Tools Used
Figma
Canva
Google Forms
Google Sheets
Sketch Up
Blender
Design Challenge
Create something that helps people contribute towards addressing climate change
Design Methodology
After evaluating various design methodologies, we chose the Double Diamond approach. This method requires the designer to alternate between broadening and narrowing their focus, depending on the phase of the project.
(1). Problem Discovery
Brainstorming
With the scope of our challenge being so vast, we decided our best port of call was to scope all the climate contributors we could think, with the intention of identifying what areas the general population has influence on. From this exercise we identified that our users had the most influence on Land Usage, Waste, Electricity and Transport.
Understanding Users
Once we knew our initial problem space we wanted to understand the following things about our users:
How aware are users of climate issues?
What are users perceptions towards climate contributors?
What are users Habits?
What are users barriers to reducing their contribution to climate change?
Once we knew our initial problem space we wanted to understand the following things about our users:
We found the that
How aware are users of climate issues?
What are users perceptions towards climate contributors?
What are users Habits?
What are users barriers to reducing their contribution to climate change?
Takeaways
Identified our target demographic of 25 - 54
Identified food and waste to be users greatest worry
Identified that we would focus on learning more about how knowledge and financial resources reduces a users climate action
(2). Problem Discovery
Further Research - Interviews
Having refined our problem space further we decided to dig deeper into our users opinions on Food and Waste.
Interview Takeaways
Desk Research - The impact of food and waste on climate change
Not being climate experts we wanted to gain a greater understanding and appreciation of how food and waste impact climate change. We found the statistics particular shocking of food waste as it contributed a huge amount towards the global and how much few waste ties into the impact of waste on climate change.
36%
Contribution of freight travel to fruit and vegetable emissions
65%
Proportion of global waste which is organic
26%
Food Sector’s contribution to all greenhouse emissions
20%
Amount of human produced methane which can be attributed to waste
Problem Space Definition + Personas
Using the data we collected from the Surveys, Interviews and Desk Research, we decided that Food Production would be the area our users are most likely to engage in combating climate change the most. Therefore to encapsulate our research/understanding of our users we decided to create 3 personas.
(3). Solution Exploration
Identifying opportunities for optimisation
To kick off our solution exploration, we mapped the food-growing process with a task model, brainstorming challenges and potential fixes along the way. Our aim was to pinpoint stages in the production cycle that could be optimised to tackle common problems in food growth.
Concept 1
Our first concept focused on reducing the time and effort required to water plants in a user's garden. It also removed the need for users to know how much water each plant needed, as the system was fully automated.
Concept 2
Our second concept aimed to address the knowledge barrier by monitoring plant health and providing users with tailored advice on plant care. It also sought to save time and effort by offering optimised recommendations on when to tend to multiple plants simultaneously, identifying the best times for care.
(4). Solution Development
Finalising the design - Smart Garden
To determine which design to proceed with, we asked our users which device they preferred and which solution they believed to be more effective. From these discussions, we found that Concept 2 generated a more positive response compared to Concept 1. However, users also appreciated features like the use of solar panels for charging and the integration of weather API data to influence recommendations. As a result, we incorporated those elements into our final design.
Features
Prototyping and High Fidelity Wireframes
To bring our product to life, we created digital 3D renderings of the Smart Garden devices using Blender. We also designed high-fidelity wireframes for the accompanying mobile application in Figma. These wireframes went through multiple iterations before reaching their final version.
Reflections and Acknowledgments
For our entire group, this was our first formal experience with UX as a discipline, and we learned a great deal about what it takes to create a user-centred product. However, it was a challenge to ensure our decisions were data-driven and not influenced by our own preconceptions about the target audience.
I would like to thank Professor Russel Beale for delivering such an excellent module on HCI, as well as the rest of the team who collaborated with me on this project.
Smart Garden
Overview
0-1 Physical product design with smartphone application following User Centred Design approach
Responsibilities
Survey Design,
Survey Analysis
Competitor Analysis
Proof of concept
Design Refinement
Prototyping
Poster Creation
Context
October 2023 - December 2024
Human Computer Interaction University Module
Led by Russell Beale
Tools Used
Figma
Canva
Google Forms
Google Sheets
Sketch Up
Blender
Design Challenge Task
Create something that helps people contribute towards addressing climate change
Design Methodology
After evaluating various design methodologies, we chose the Double Diamond approach. This method requires the designer to alternate between broadening and narrowing their focus, depending on the phase of the project.
(1). Problem Discovery
Brainstorming
With the scope of our challenge being so vast, we decided our best port of call was to scope all the climate contributors we could think, with the intention of identifying what areas the general population has influence on. From this exercise we identified that our users had the most influence on Land Usage, Waste, Electricity and Transport.
Understanding Users
Once we knew our initial problem space we wanted to understand the following things about our users:
How aware are users of climate issues?
What are users perceptions towards climate contributors?
What are users Habits?
What are users barriers to reducing their contribution to climate change?
We found the that
66% of respondents were highly concerned about climate change
Respondents perceived Waste and Food as the very important climate contributors
47% of respondents were indifferent about using less water
Respondents attributed a lack of knowledge and financial resources to being their greatest barriers to climate action
Takeaways
Identified our target demographic of 25 - 54
Identified food and waste to be users greatest worry
Identified that we would focus on learning more about how knowledge and financial resources reduces a users climate action
(2). Problem Definition
Further Research - Interviews
Having refined our problem space further we decided to dig deeper into our users opinions on Food and Waste.
Interview Takeaways
Desk Research - The impact of food and waste on climate change
Not being climate experts we wanted to gain a greater understanding and appreciation of how food and waste impact climate change. We found the statistics particular shocking of food waste as it contributed a huge amount towards the global and how much few waste ties into the impact of waste on climate change.
26%
Food Sector’s contribution to all greenhouse emissions
20%
Amount of human produced methane which can be attributed to waste
36%
Contribution of freight travel to fruit and vegetable emissions
65%
Proportion of global waste which is organic
Problem Space Definition + Personas
Using the data we collected from the Surveys, Interviews and Desk Research, we decided that Food Production would be the area our users are most likely to engage in combating climate change the most. Therefore to encapsulate our research/understanding of our users we decided to create 3 personas.
(3). Solution Exploration
Identifying opportunities for optimisation
To kick off our solution exploration, we mapped the food-growing process with a task model, brainstorming challenges and potential fixes along the way. Our aim was to pinpoint stages in the production cycle that could be optimised to tackle common problems in food growth.
Concept 1
Our first concept focused on reducing the time and effort required to water plants in a user's garden. It also removed the need for users to know how much water each plant needed, as the system was fully automated.
Concept 2
Our second concept aimed to address the knowledge barrier by monitoring plant health and providing users with tailored advice on plant care. It also sought to save time and effort by offering optimised recommendations on when to tend to multiple plants simultaneously, identifying the best times for care.
(4). Solution Development
Finalising the design - Smart Garden
To determine which design to proceed with, we asked our users which device they preferred and which solution they believed to be more effective. From these discussions, we found that Concept 2 generated a more positive response compared to Concept 1. However, users also appreciated features like the use of solar panels for charging and the integration of weather API data to influence recommendations. As a result, we incorporated those elements into our final design.
Features
Prototyping and High Fidelity Wireframes
To bring our product to life, we created digital 3D renderings of the Smart Garden devices using Blender. We also designed high-fidelity wireframes for the accompanying mobile application in Figma. These wireframes went through multiple iterations before reaching their final version.
Reflections and Acknowledgments
Reflections and Acknowledgments
For our entire group, this was our first formal experience with UX as a discipline, and we learned a great deal about what it takes to create a user-centred product. However, it was a challenge to ensure our decisions were data-driven and not influenced by our own preconceptions about the target audience.
I would like to thank Professor Russel Beale for delivering such an excellent module on HCI, as well as the rest of the team who collaborated with me on this project.