TOGGLE: Inclusive smartwatch

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TOGGLE IS A UNIVERSAL DESIGN CONCEPT

There are 285 million people in the world who are either completely blind or are visually impaired (who.int). As a designer, both, the experiences I went through and the research I did, prompt a strong urge to develop a solution, that provides the visually impaired, access to the latest technology at an affordable price. However, the thought of developing something just for the visually impaired made me very uncomfortable. Why can’t there be a well designed product that is universally applicable? We have come a long way in introducing universal design in offices and other building by constructing ramps etc. Why can’t we apply the same ethical and social responsibility towards design and technology? All of us use products or apps that we customize and personalize according to our needs.

I wanted to explore the applicability of a similar option. I wanted to use design to introduce a design that these different demographics can use by just customizing or personalising. A comprehensive solution such as this would prove cost-effective when applied to a wide demographic and helps create a sense of inclusion. This is what inspired me to choose to do my thesis on creating an inclusive solution that would help connect the latest technology to a wide audience, including the visually impaired. I came up with the idea of a universal acceptable designed device, Toggle.

TOGGLE PATTERN FORMATION

I started my initial research by understanding how braille works and the details of the writing systems. Then I started thinking of the similarities of the way braille refreshes to that of a old digital clock pattern. I wanted to try combining both. Hence, I added 7 cells in between the braille pattern, By doing this, all the numbers could be displayed in the same systems. The next challenge was to it all the alphabets into it, for this I added two more cells in the same system so that all the alphabets can be accommodated.

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PROOF OF CONCEPT : PROTOTYPE

The inside mechanics of this prototype works in 2 layers.I first layered braille in one set and alpha numeral in another set. First, the braille layer surfaces on top. Then this layer moves down to merge with the alpha numeric layer. Finally, the two layers integrate to surface the alpha numeric mode on top. This is just a prototype that can be used as a proof of concept.

CONCEPT ART : PRODUCT DESIGN

Final concept Design

3D prototype

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PACKAGE DESIGN

Embossing braille, illustration and typography in the design. After many iterations, I made a package design like this. I was also concerned about color, I wanted to keep the colors neutral and hence I deiced not to use too many colors and maintained gradient of black and white. The reason for this is that neutral colors will appeal to a wide range of audience