I believe that a product designer has a responsibility to not only improve the lives of the people around them but to make their day-to-day life easier. With a keen eye for the intricate details that go into each design, I feel as though I have designed some well thought out products that would make a real difference to some people during my time at Cardiff Metropolitan University. Since starting this course my skills have developed greatly and am now very confident in my ability to take a problem and develop an appropriate solution through a human centered design approach. During my third year, I designed a new mandatory ankle support integrated into professional football socks to reduce the number of ankle injuries in football. I have also designed a pair of smart crutches which aid those learning to walk again after a spinal injury. This is accompanied by an app to tackle the motivation issues they face. I have also designed a night-time light for the bathroom for people who suffer from photophobia (light sensitivity). I started out on the BA course at CSAD but the transition over to BSc has greatly improved both my skill set and love for product design and helping people with medical conditions.
Credaf fod gan ddylunydd cynnyrch gyfrifoldeb nid yn unig i wella bywydau’r bobl o’u cwmpas ond i wneud eu bywyd o ddydd i ddydd yn haws. Gyda llygad craff am y manylion cymhleth sy’n rhan o bob dyluniad, yn ystod fy nghyfnod ym Mhrifysgol Metropolitan Caerdydd, rwy’n teimlo fy mod i wedi cynllunio rhai cynhyrchion sydd ag ystyriaeth ofalus a fyddai’n gwneud gwahaniaeth gwirioneddol i rai pobl. Ers dechrau’r cwrs hwn mae fy sgiliau wedi datblygu’n fawr ac rwyf bellach yn hyderus iawn yn fy ngallu i gymryd problem a datblygu datrysiad priodol trwy ddull dylunio sy’n canolbwyntio ar bobl. Yn ystod fy nhrydedd flwyddyn, dyluniais gymhorthydd gorfodol newydd ar gyfer y ffêr wedi’i integreiddio i sanau pêl-droed proffesiynol i leihau nifer yr anafiadau i’w ffêr wrth chwarae pêl-droed. Rwyf hefyd wedi cynllunio pâr o faglau smart sy’n cynorthwyo’r rhai sy’n dysgu cerdded eto ar ôl cael anaf i’w hasgwrn cefn. Mae ap yn cyd-fynd ag ef i fynd i’r afael â’r materion cymhelliant sy’n eu hwynebu. Rwyf hefyd wedi cynllunio golau nos ar gyfer yr ystafell ymolchi ar gyfer pobl sy’n dioddef o ffotoffobia (sensitifrwydd golau). Dechreuais ar y cwrs BA yn CSAD ond mae’r newid i BSc wedi gwella fy set sgiliau a’m cariad at ddylunio cynnyrch yn fawr a helpu pobl â chyflyrau meddygol.
Restep – Designed to address the mental health and motivational problems that affect those recovering from a spinal injury. The smart crutch is designed for balance and control and comes with an app that motivates, records the steps tracked by the crutch and connects you with others in the same situation.
Talking to others is especially important for people learning to walk again after a spinal injury as going through this alone is going to make it harder and stunt your progress. Restep helps you meetup with, and potentially compete with, new friends going through the same thing you are.
Glow – Using the toilet at night can be hard for people with photophobia (light sensitivity). The Glow light has a capacitive touch interface to adjust the warm yellow light to a comfortable level for your eyes. This helps prevent and treat symptoms of migraines, dry eye and cluster headaches for example.
Football Ankle Support – A lightweight and durable ankle support built into professional football socks. This mandatory support will be provided to the players by their clubs, to protect them from the common problem of ankle injuries that side-line many players each season. It incorporates an adjustable strap and comes in all shoe sizes.
