E.D.E.N

For this individual project I had to speculate the future design of a Smart Home. I was tasked with determining a vision for what the home of the future may be like, how users interact with it, and the context or rationale behind your choices.

The main outcome of this project was a report on the future scenario and a simple prototype which could be implemented today as a first step towards the future scenario.

How might we create a home for the future that will reverse climate change and avert a possible climate crisis in a realistic and achievable way?

This was a solo project in which I completed the following:

• Desk-based research

• Interviews

• Stakeholders

• Persona creation

• Empathy mapping

• User journey mapping

• Ideation

• Branding

• Wireframes

• Prototypes

I decided to focus on the possibility of living in a world where we are actively trying to reverse climate change in response to growing concerns and climate catastrophes.

1. Discover - I conducted extensive desk-based research, exploring the climate crisis and what can be done to combat it. I also investigated current technologies within the home and the potential future of the smart home. I then interviewed members of a family to understand their needs and opinions.

2. Define - Based on the research, I created personas within the family home and looked at each members needs and wants. I then created user journey maps, empathy maps, and storyboards, focusing on one member of the family at ages 15, 20 and 40 to investigate how his needs within the smart home change over time.

3. Develop - I completed brainstorming sessions, mind-mapping, and crazy eights. I developed branding which is suitable for young families and have avatars that are endangered animals. I created wireframes to plan the essential features.

4. Deliver - I created a fun and interactive phone and smartwatch prototype which can be connected to a smart hub.

For a more in-depth look at the process, please take a nosy at my Notion.

For my present-day app prototype, I created E.D.E.N.

E.D.E.N. makes being sustainable at home fun and interactive. The app teaches users about sustainability while connecting to their homes' smart appliances to track energy usage and control their homes from their phones or smartwatches.

With technological advances, this app can eventually adapt and integrate with our future smart homes. If the scenario I described in my report is the future, this app can be one of the government-recommended platforms to adopt to track your home and lifestyle.