New module, new assignment. This time we are tinkering with a single (red?) led and an arduino to craft an “expressive hardware interface”. Later on creative constraints will be applied in week 2. First week is as usual, get to know the hardware/material, try and tinker with the led source. A tip is to try and express particular context or emotions. I was thinking of how in my building the elevator seems to be missing an indicator when moving up or down. I will try to explore and design the output (LED light) to mimic up/down movement. There are 2 different patterns for the light and it depends wheatear you are going with elevator (inside) or waiting for it to arrive (outside). Experiments will show if there is any difference in how the light is perceived and if there is a difference between going up/down with the elevator or waiting for it.
It’s the first day tinkering but this seems like a interesting module. I like the approach of using a minimalistic yet ubiquitous part like the LED diode and trying to blow up it’s usability, appearance and behavior. More recently the display is more prominent in hardware since it can act as a complex interface for the input and output. Very often the manufacturer/designer takes the cheap and fast route of just slamming a display on the device. What’s possibly missing is opportunity for interaction and a more “beautiful” design, both in feel and use. I guess those values translates into a product with a longevity and usefulness over longer period of time. I believe that sustainability is an important value and we should always try to have that in mind when designing.
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