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In most situations when people eat dinner, after the food is served no more heat is transported to the food which results in a temperature decline. This causes a less sensational taste experience than when the food were consumed on the temperature that the cook intended. This problem can be solved by a system that maintains the food temperature when it is on the dinner table. The project described in this document is a journey that walks through four main phases to end up with a complete solution for this problem. In the first phase, where the research is executed, literature and existing patents are studied that are related to the subject. In questionnaires and interviews that are conducted in restaurants and other possible markets like elderly care and nursing homes, the market interest is investigated. It seems that the hospitality business is quite conservative and not soon embracing innovations, which is probably why only a small share of the market seems interested in the idea. However this is still a relatively big market due to the massive size of the market in total. In the elderly care and nursery branch people are more interested, but the budgets are very small. The development costs that need to be recovered by the first series of products will probably cause the introduction price to be too high for this branch. Therefore the first market where the development of the product will be focused on will be the hospitality business. For this market, seven concepts are developed that are based on the solutions of sub problems that arise when designing for this branch. These concepts do all have a different point of view on the problem and with use of a Harris profile, the one that fits best in the hospitality business is selected. Although there was a clear winner according to the Harris profile, two concepts are developed further. The reason for that decison is because there is room in the market for both products, because they share different parts of the market. The plates filled with Phase changing material and the shell that can be put on top of a restaurant table are worked out. With use of proof of principles it turned out that these two technologies are capable of providing a suitable solution for the problem. The plate with PCM is worked out conceptionally and visualized with use of CAD software. The induction shell is worked out both in CAD software, as well as onto a physical prototype, that has less high tech properties than the designed concept but it shows exactly the main functions of the induction shell: You can put a plate anywhere on the table; it will detect where the plate is positioned and it provides a balanced amount of energy to keep its temperature stable.

An urban mobility solution for car drivers was designed for the sponsor company Giant Bicycles. The final design manifested as a folding electric bicycle that stores and recharges in the trunk of a car. An innovative folding mechanism was developed, allowing it to stand upright when folded in the trunk. The folding action is assisted by the motor. The bicycle was styled with influence from Audi as a hypothetical co-branding partner.

The assignment consists of the design of a demountable sanitary unit for disabled people. It covers the process from 'idea to product'. It includes an extensive anlysis of the market and the target group. Also a 1:1 working prototype is built, for user testing and constructional insights. The idea is that seniors can delay the step to move to a nursing home or when seniors with an incurable illnesses want to stay at home in the end phase of life. The sanitary unit makes it possible to use a bathroom at any place in the house with the help of home care; The unit can be placed anywhere where connections for drain, electricity and water are available.

In cities throughout the world, and Europe in particular, the centers are being freed form motorized transport. The main reasons are reducing noize, emissions and congestion on the roads, creating a much more pleasant urban environmment. For TNT Express these developments pose problems for their deliveries and pickups, but as a very environmentally concerned company these problems provide a driving force to innovate in their processes in a sustainable way. Project City Logistics consists of multiple concepts regarding innercity deliveries. The focus is not exclusively on sustainability, but finding ways to retain access to the innercity and being flexible in deliveries and pickups. This project is about innercity deliveries using electrically assisted tricycles. The subject of this thesis is the development of a mobile depot, to be situated between TNT’s hub at Brucargo and the centre of Brussels. It will provide a storage and sorting centre for TNT parcels and the loading place for the tricycles. The tricycles will then be used to transport the parcels the ‘last mile’ to the delivery addresses in the inner-city. This way the tricycles’ supply is very effective, and reduces distances greatly. The mobile depot will also offer ‘value added services’ for the customer, such as the possibility for drop-off and pick-up at the mobile depot. The project consisted of defining the requirements for the design. These were set by multiple departments regarding safety, work environment, security of consignments etc. The advancing insight eventually led to a concept proposal. The concept is presented in 3D CAD renders and an animation. The drawings will be used to build the first fully functional Mobile Depot for a pilot in Brussels.

Failing points are one of the main causes of train delays. The design of the current type of railway points dates back to pre-World War II days, and is in urgent need of replacement. Five Industrial Design students at TU Delft decided to forget about existing principles and came up with a set of points without moving any parts. Instead, an electromagnet pulls the train in the right direction. The system is maintenance-free and much less prone to malfunction. Can it really be this simple? A story about innovative young minds in a world set in its ways.

The current project looks at the fact that there are more Natural Disasters affecting people in the Base of the Pyramid. These people, due to their poverty, cannot afford to follow traditional Disaster Preparedness recommendations. I've designed 2 booklets for the teaching of DIY skills that can be used to make Disaster Preparedness Kits at very little cost. One booklet is a technical resource, the other is guidebook for those who will teach the techniques

The initial assignment, as formulated by Corners and Curves for this graduation project was to improve the rocking add-on for a baby’s stroller, focusing on the clamping mechanism. During the first phase became clear that also the movement could use improvement, and so an exploration started from off the beginning of the soothing methods and motion in particular. The existing rocking stroller add-ons are all big and supposed to put under the entire stroller. Since half a year one more modest stroller rocker is on the market, so a market potential is present. The clamping was a problem because of the variety of strollers it has to fit on. The new design eliminated this problem by a mechanism that does not need clamping, but mountening/tightening instead. By means of a webbing, it fits on the five types of most sold big-framed strollers, and probably on more. The current market for baby products is overwhelmed by large colourful and shiny plastic products, where as the parents lifestyle gets more sober and natural. The style of this product is a mix of designer toy and natural materials, combined with the safety needed for babies. It works by a crankshaft variation called scotch yoke: instead of an attached connecting rod to the turning crank, the crank-end is guided in a horizontal slot, causing an up and down motion with no risk of getting stuck in its top and bottom dead centers.

This master thesis shows the design process of a family of lightshow contollers. It was done for the starting company Midiator, located at YES!Delft, a centre that inspires and supports young entrepreneurs to form their own company. During the graduation project, a conceptual product family was created. One member has been fully elaborated up to a working prototype that was succesfully tested.

Current solutions for energy supply of electrical equipment in gardens are very limited and do not suffice. The inductive energy distribution concept that was developed by the company E-Snake BV, named E-Snake, could be a solution, by providing simple electrical installation that allows for flexible take-off. However, the usability of the clamping mechanism, that is required to tap energy from the inductive cable at arbitrary locations, needed to be improved. This report describes the design of a clamping system for the E-Snake, that is suitable for usage in gardens. Concepts were generated by means of the Synectics procedure and final concept selection was facilitated by a user research. The design proposal encompasses a combination of an inductive cable and a matching clamp that can be easily connected by means of a sliding mechanism.

For STEK a new table/desk that fits STEK’s look-and-feel had to be designed. This product should be suitable for longer use (children from 2 till at least 10 years of age) and can either have multiple (totally different) functions, or have a modular character. House visits gave insight in the target group, its habits, routines and needs (related to the use of a desk/table). It was also important to have empathy with the target group. It is evident, that especially after the age of 6, there is a growing need for the child to have a place of its own to retreat, alone or with friends. For children from 2-6, they prefer to have a place to play close to their parents. Design goal: The product provides the child in the age of 2 till 6 a place close to family life. This means that the child can join and watch activities of the parents and vice versa. This without decreasing the usability of the product for a child in the age 6 till 10. The product will have three ways of usability: 1. the use when the child is 2 till 6 2. the use when the child is 6 till 10 3. the transformation For the transformation an interaction vision was formulated: watering a plant’ Watering a plant is a mindless action which leads to a gradual process with a significant different result. The only thing is that you just have to remember to water the plant. Form language analysis showed what features to implement in the product-to-be-designed. These features (most important to STEK) are: - the stereotype look of the side view - the use of geometrical shapes - the 5° angle Related products (desks, in height adjustable desks, modular and multifunctional furniture) showed what ‘good’ and ‘bad’ features are and which are of interest for the product-to-be-designed. Three concept directions were generated: 1. Tables: a cupboard which includes tables with several heights for user in different age groups 2. Table-Couch: product with two functions i.e. a children’s table and a small couch 3. (coffee) tables: this table can be used by the family as a coffee table and by the children as a children’s table Iteration 1: concept direction By involving the user this early in the design process, the eventual result will be more suitable for the user. The goal of this first iteration is to gain the user’s opinion of the three product directions discussed in the previous chapter. The participants considered all three directions as practical. However, the (coffee) table has their preference. The parents like having the children close to them. Furthermore it is practical, due to optimal use of space. Before dismissing one direction, mock-ups of the three are made to make the ideas more tangible and to gain insight in the working principle and the dimensions. Tables was dismissed, due to the double use of material, its size and the fact that the user actually buys half an interior. Moreover, Tables fits the design goal less. For iteration 2 Experience & Use cues, 1:1 cardboard models were made. The goal of the research was to discover if the participant uses the product as expected, how they experience the use of the product in all its functions. After making several adjustments Table-Couch was dismissed, because the positioning of the product in the room was not as expected, not always close the ‘real’ couch. In the couch function, the position was not certain. Therefore this product fits the design goal less. The transformation was also not as mindless as was the case with the coffee table. Since the frequency of transformation is lower, this is not the decisive factor, but of influence on the end decision. Before arriving at the final design, multiple working principles of the (coffee) table were visualized. Decisive factors for the final principle were: - the absence of tilt and therefore the fixed leg of the bench - the two levels as a coffee table - the multiple storages spaces The final design is a coffee table with storage space under the table top (removable drawers are optional). A lower level for the placement of for example the newspaper and magazines is on top of the two benches. The table can be transformed into a children’s table by sliding out the benches. Under the seating area more storage space is present. The prototype is tested with the true target group of STEK; people who appreciate design and are willing to pay for it. The goal in the third iteration: Aesthetics & Use was to discover: - if the participant uses the product as expected - if the aesthetics appeal to them - how much they are willing to pay for it The children could easily teak a seat and all the storage compartments were used. It was obvious how the coffee table could be transformed to a children’s table, but the pushing and pulling did not go very smooth due the guidance method. The participant thought the table fits in the interior due to its neutral look. € 500,- would be a fair price according to the participant. After the research the prototype was adjusted. The guidance principle was changed to make the transformation smoother and to have a better connection between the benches.

You can sometimes spot them in the streets in the Netherlands, the white lorries of the Van Gansewinkel waste disposal company. A while ago the company even had a radio commercial. To emphasize the companys reliability, the message was read by Mr Wil Simon, who used to present the Dutch equivalent of the BBC Televisions Crime Watch. He warned the listener that without the professional attentions of Van Gansewinkel,confidential information could end up on the street, and possibly into the hands of third parties. This morning, a blue plastic refuse bag was found along the A2 motorway near Amsterdam. In addition to some disposable coffee cups, the bag contained three folders with confidential files. Could the bag have come from your company? Members of Kube Design, a project team of students at the faculty of Industrial Design, looked into the problem and came up with a solution: have a "locust" on your desk. The idea has caught on and Van Gansewinkel has taken the design into production.

The main function of the schoolbag today is, transporting study materials. The aesthetics of the bag however, influences the buying behavior of the consumer the most. Current disadvantages of schoolbags are bad ergonomics and low interaction between product and user. In the saturated schoolbag market the main focusses are on better ergonomics and fashionable aesthetics. The future context of 2020, shows a shift in importance of these three aspects. Consumers and their demands change. Trends like tailored designs, self-identity, social interaction and participation in production rise the demands for aesthetics, but even more for interaction. An alternation in the educational system influences the schoolbag. New digitalized study materials reduce the weight of the bag, reducing also the need for ergonomics. A concept design for 2020, called ‘The paper bag’, enables unlimited possibilities for customizing the appearance of the bag. The exterior of the bag is one big, e-paper, display with a touchscreen layer. The interaction is improved by integration of multiple functions, which give the bag more utility and by a two way communication between the product and its user. The exterior functions, amongst others, as a laptop. The appearance of the exterior can be customized like wallpapers on a computer. Wireless connectivity assures social interaction and can be synchronized with other devices like for instance the mobile phone. ‘The paper bag’ uses new techniques and materials which are not yet fully developed or in production. The functioning of the bag will be changed by social and political trends. Therefore it is recommended to keep track of some necessary changes like developments in display techniques, battery efficiency, social media and digitalization of the school system. Introduction of a bag for Thella in 2012, means simplifying and adjusting ‘The paper bag’ to the needs and possibilities of 2012. This bag, called the crocque-au-tile, should match the same goals as ‘The paper bag’; more customizability and better interaction. The crocque-au-tile is a shoulder bag that enables customizing by the use of printable magnets. The owner can express their own identity by text, graphics or pictures. The crocque-au-tile has some features for a specified target group, the fashionista’s; an insulated food compartment and an extra pocket for make-up equipment. Interactive magnets can be made to create more interaction like mirror magnets or phone light magnets. User research shows appreciation for the way of customizing, the food compartment and the interactive magnets. The intended use of the laptop compartment, working instantly on the laptop by just opening the compartment, is also appreciated. The specified target group uses lockers and therefore the shoulder bag can fit the fashionista’s lifestyle. Problems occur however with the appearance. The dislike of the pattern needs more research before it can be solved. Color issues can be solved by providing the bag in several color-combinations. The bag can be introduced to the market if these problems are solved. The financial evaluation shows just a small revenue per bag. Thella has no experience in producing bags and has no clientèle or image yet. This makes it a very high risk to enter a saturated market, especially for only small margins. A partnership with an experienced, high end, fashion brand, like Bjorn Borg or Converse, would be the best way to get this bag on the market.

KICI is a non-profit clothing collecting company, the third largest in The Netherlands. For over 30 years, KICI’s core business is organising the collecting of used and unwanted clothing. This is mostly done via the 800 KICI containers in the public space. Additionally, clothing can be collected during collecting events or directly via retailers. The collected clothing is sold to sorting companies which sell the wearable and fashionable clothing to Africa and Eastern Europe. The non-wearable clothing is processed by other companies and currently used in low grade applications such as cleaning cloths, non-woven sheet material and insulation material. The second hand clothing which can be worn again (wearable) is the most profitable activity, but the amount of wearable is decreasing for years. The non-wearable part is increasing, but is barely profitable. This trend threatens the existence of KICI in the long term. The assignment was to examine the options for higher grade applications which could eventually lead to an increase in demand for non-wearable clothing and secure the future of KICI and its partners. The solution must found with sustainability in mind. Early on the option of constructing a composite out of textile materials was identified as a promising possibility. Producing and strength testing material samples revealed that Acrylic based composites perform equally or better than the main competitor: non-woven hemp based composite. A Life Cycle Analysis (LCA) showed that the eco-impact (so-called eco-cost) of such a material is lower than glass fibre, but slightly higher than the hemp composite. The ecocost is largely determined by the choice of resin. Most commercially available resins consist entirely or partly of oil based monomers. Better, so-called bio-based resins are under development and will reduce the impact of composites considerably. An estimation of the material cost price revealed that the non-woven textile composites are slightly more expensive than the non woven hemp variant but the composites with woven textile fibres are cheaper, while offering better tensile strength. A new indoor collecting container was chosen as the product which will demonstrate the material. . This container can counter the trend of decreasing wearable clothing temporarily, while demonstrating the material and convincing partners for future products. Alternatively, if KICI can find a committed partner, another product could take the role of material demonstrator. NPSP, a composite manufacturing company, has shown interest in such a product in the form of a counter for a clothing shop. In combination with the other KICI innovation projects, such as the pressed non-woven sheet material and the development of the Identitex automatic sorting machine, the textile based composite can provide the needed stimulus to increase the value of the recycled fibres and ultimately secure the future for KICI.

This report describes a graduation project for the master programme Integrated Product Design of the faculty Industrial Design Engineering of Delft University of Technology, the Netherlands. The report describes a research concerning the influence of buyers’ gender differences on appealing packaging design and a redesign of whisky bottles based on the results of research. This project was conducted for CARTILS, a branding and packaging design consultancy with offices close to Amsterdam, the Netherlands, and in London, England. Starting point The reason for this project was a publication with the fact that women are responsible for 80% of the purchase decisions in the western world (Nummerdor, 2011). CARTILS wondered, “How should spirits packaging design be adapted to convince these female buyers?” Findings At the start of the project the context of the project was explored. The focus on marketing aspects of packaging, and differences between genders were explained. An online questionnaire was held to explore the consumer context. The outcomes showed that packaging design plays an important role in purchase decisions, when a consumer stands clueless in the store, without a servant to give advice. A small research showed that in the case of spirits, the purchase decisions are almost equally divided between men and women. Hence, it became relevant to focus on the differences in appealing packaging design between genders, instead of solely focussing on the feminine aspect. Another relevant question rose: should the packaging design be adapted to the buyer’s gender, when the buyer’s and the consumer’s gender are not similar? Taken into account was the probable outcome that the purchase decision are almost equally divided between genders. In literature was found that a product appeals to a consumer when the product personality matches the self-concept of the consumer. The product personality is based on evaluation of aesthetics. In case the buyer is not the final consumer, it is unclear to what buyer matches the product personality. Proposed is that the buyer matches the product personality to the ideal personification of the product concept, named the prototypical product personality. It has been researched whether the ideal personifications of gender specific products differ between men and women. This was done by discussing a masculine spirit category (whisky) and a feminine spirit category (cream liqueur) in gender specific focus groups. Clear differences in the prototypical product personality appeared between genders, while the stereotypical consumers were comparable. Both the male and female personifications of whisky were translated into three bottles of The Famous Grouse brand, varying in strength of expressing the personification. The designed packages were used in testing whether the difference in product personality was reflected in the buying decision. The results of the test could not indicate significant relations between gender and the purchase decision based on packaging design. Neither a relation could be found between the expressed personifications and purchase decision in general. Limitations A number of limitations need to be taken into account regarding the presented study. The study is conducted with the typical masculine spirit whisky, from which the packaging design generally is not a key element in the purchase decision. Secondly, one should always take into account the consistency controversy (Liska, 1975) stating a discrepancy between what people say and their actual acting. Thirdly, the participants of the research were relatively young; more than half of the participants was aged between 18 and 25, almost a fifth was aged between 26 and 35. Fourthly, the discussions were lead by a female facilitator. This might have influenced the outcomes, since genders do react and communicate differently compared to a situation wherein the opposite gender is present. Finally, apparently cream liqueur is not popular among the chosen focus groups. The image of cream liqueur was clearly less strong compared to whisky’s image. This makes the prototypical product personalities described in this report for whisky more reliable than for cream liqueur. Implications CARTILS is advised not to consider gender differences between the buyer and the actual consumer. They could better continue focussing on reflecting the actual consumer’s personality to make the package appealing, until research shows new factors affecting the purchase choice based on packaging. For similar research, is advised to conduct multiple focus groups per variable. Next to that is advised to simulate a more realistic situation in either an online questionnaire or real life. This would request a higher amount of participants Designers, who want to represent a personality in their design, are advised to translate the personality into design terms and create inspirational collages based on these. The collages help to create a common understanding among people. This is useful for discussing the designs with colleagues. And since the design terms are not one-to-one translatable into design, advised is to first explore widely the directions, before choosing a basis design with boundaries to elaborate. Recommendations Recommended for further research is to conduct a similar test to research the effect in purchase decision of these differences on a typical feminine spirit. Next to that, advised is to research in what way the gender differences in prototypical product personalities are reflected in purchase decisions, taking into account it might not have significant effect.