Starting from Smartwatches: Building a Framework of Pleasurable User Experiences for Designing Internet of Things Products
The arrival of the Internet of Things (IoT) overcomes limitations of time and space by providing ubiquitous accessibility of its products. Being connected to networks, the products are no longer isolated from each other, nor limited to their physical forms. Human interaction with emerging Smart objects has become dynamic and complex; in parallel user expectations have extended beyond the pragmatics of design. Psychologists have argued that human beings can gain pleasure when they interact with objects, and that pleasure is able to stimulate people to prolong their interactions with objects. Design researchers have developed models for designing product-experience; however, these all put an emphasis on reflective experience related to human responses. As previous models for conventional (non-IoT) products may not be applicable to emerging IoT products, it is crucial to think about new models for pleasurable UX in the IoT context.
The main aim of this PhD is to develop a new framework for shaping the pleasurable UXs of IoT products. This part of the study started with a tentative investigation into how the (pleasurable) UX changes after a product develops into an IoT product. For this purpose, the Smartwatch was selected as a representative IoT product. The research adopts an interdisciplinary approach (product design, computer science and psychology), in order to explore the pleasurable UXs of IoT products from a novel perspective. The practice within the research includes questionnaire surveys, exploratory workshops and design workshops in five stages. The findings will be used to facilitate the development of a pleasurable UX framework for IoT products.
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More about Zidong (Jerry)
Biography
Zidong (Jerry) Lin is a PhD candidate in the School of Design at the Royal College of Art. He has a BA (Hons) in Product Design (University of Lincoln) and an MFA in Design Informatics (University of Edinburgh). Under the supervision of Dr Bjorn Sommer and Professor Ashley Hall, his current research focuses on developing a novel framework for designing emotional user experiences for Internet of Things (IoT) products.
As a researcher and an interaction designer, Zidong (Jerry) Lin’s design practices explore the human-nonhuman relationship by socio-technical narratives and experimental design methods. His previous works are related, but not limited to object-oriented ontologies, speculative design, design with data, design for Human-computer Interactions (HCI), as well as novelty design.
Degrees
MFA Design Informatics, University of Edinburgh, 2019
BA Product Design, University of Lincoln, 2017
Experience
Research Assistant, Helen Hamlyn Centre for Design, Royal College of Art, Nov 2019
Research Assistant, Design Informatics, The University of Edinburgh, Jun - Aug, 2019
Exhibitions
(2019) Data Play: Festival 2019. Design Informatics Pavilion. Edinburgh, UK.
(2019) MFA Design Informatics Degree Show. University of Edinburgh. Edinburgh, UK.
(2017) New Designers. Business Design Centre. London, UK.
(2017) BA Product Design Graduate Show. University of Lincoln. Lincoln, UK.
Publications
Lin Z., Sommer B. and Ahmed-Kristensen S. (2021). IoT Product Pleasurability - Investigating the Pleasurable User Experiences Between Conventional Products and IoT Products Through Watches. In: Brooks A., Brooks E.I. and Jonathan D. (eds) Interactivity and Game Creation. ArtsIT 2020. Lecture Notes of the Institute for Computer Sciences, Social Informatics and Telecommunications Engineering, vol 367. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-73426-8_24
Conferences
'Investigating the Pleasurable User Experiences Between Conventional Products and IoT Products Through Watches', 9th EAI International Conference: ArtsIT, Interactivity & Game Creation, Aalborg, Denmark, 2020