Project type: IoT Device // Client: Peter Mayer // Employer: Peter Mayer
The device was offered as a POC for one of our clients, Sazerac Distilleries.
THE CHALLENGE
Exploring new modes of interaction
I planned and implemented an innovation lab which allowed our UX and dev team to branch out and cultivate a new kind of environment for creative thinking. We were empowered to take the time and make a space (Tinker Lab) to develop our own solutions to client problems, using technology and IDEO’s Human centered design methods to bring our ideas to life. The lab offered us a place to explore, experiment and iterate.
The result of our effort was Tinkershot, an IoT device that poured a shot, took a picture, posted an image and Twitter message to a user’s account. In hindsight, I think it was ahead of it’s time. Tinkershot would be perfect for a pandemic. Remotely celebrate co-workers by sending them a shot. Contact-free, socially responsible and delicious!
MY ROLE ON THIS PROJECT
Understand: Discovery research
Analyze: Opportunity statements, design synthesis
Design: Facilitated ideation sessions with staff via sketching exercises, paper prototypes, product design and build
Validation: Facilitated a lot of user testing sessions!!
I was basically the hardware guy and designer. My partner (the software guy) was the talented Mr. Keegan Brown
The lab was an unused cubicle.
How it was built
The hardware that made up Tinkershot included a Raspberry Pi, a Gertboard (an add-on GPIO expansion board), an Arduino microcontroller, a 7” screen display, a Raspberry Pi camera module, a force resistant sensor, and a peristaltic pump. The brains of the machine: Node.js runtime environment and Twitter API.
How it worked
User tweets => Raspberry Pi receives message => Pi instructs microcontroller to start pump => Shot glass fills with liquor => User lifts shot glass => Force sensor triggers camera => Camera takes picture of user => Pi tweets picture to user’s Twitter feed (image also contained a company’s logo as watermark) and to the device’s Twitter feed => END
