Josh Harfield
Design Solutions
Interface Design : Stihl Angle Grinder.​
​Nov 2011 - Jan 2012
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This project was about the 'Semantic' and 'Semiotic' message that products can have. The chosen product was a angle grinder. The research that was undertaken which included user persona's, Photo-ethnography, Interviews and also working alongside my chosen user group which was Automotive mechanics. The outcome of this project was a grinder which pivoted on the main handle and also had a track and ratchet system which allowed the user to move the side handle around the grinder body to get the desired position for each task. The model in which the user is holding in the board below was a foam sketch model which was done to help represent the form and size of the grinder. This helps to drive forwards the development as it gives the user a sense of scale and ergonomics.
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Project Outcomes
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User Interview/ story board
Sketch modeling
User analysis
Marker rendering
Semantics and Semiotics
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This project has also helped improve the following aspects of the 10 faces of innovation
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Experimenter
Cross-Pollinator
Hurdler
Collaborator
Director
Experience Architect
Set Designer​
Story Teller
Caregiver
Product Design Portfolio
Batch Production ​: Bentley Motors.​
​Feb 2012- May 2012​
The project was a live brief set by Bentley Motors LTD in the 2nd year of the degree Richard Gilmartin was one of the external asseer of the projects direction. There where multiple choices of product areas such as an arm chair, Grandfather clock and a pick-nick hamper. The angle-poise lamp was chosen for my area. The product had to be designed so it represented Bentley motors without the need for excessive branding. It also had to be made from suitable materials that both represented Bentley's quality but also suitable for batch production. The lamp would be made from billet Aluminium arms and base then be polished to a high finish ( or specified by the customer) it also had inserts in the arms which would again be customisable at the customers desecration these could range from matching wooden inserts ( could match the wood used in their own Bentley) or could be leather. The lamp would gets its power from the use of induction which would remove the need of wires. The pivot points on the lamp would be PTFE bushes with a stainless steel collar and when the lamp is assembled the end caps would be tightened up to a specified NM, this would allow the lamp to pivot but be stiff enough for it not to collapse.
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Project Outcomes
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Company research
Industry input
Materials and production methodology
Scale model making
Solidworks
Illustrator / presentation work​
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This project has also helped improve the following aspects of the 10 faces of innovation
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Experimenter
Cross-Pollinator
Hurdler
Collaborator
Director
Experience Architect
Set Designer
Story Teller​
Caregiver
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Advanced Research Strategies ​: Cycle Workstation​
Nov 2012 - Jan 2013

Advanced research strategies is the research stage of the final major project. The area that I chose to research into was cycle workshops. I started off looking at the tools that are used and how they are used to see if there was a sufficient gap in the market for new developments, after much in-depth research I chose to look into bike stands and ones that the enthusiast / semi-professional will use, by doing this I had an idea of the competition and their functions and this also gave me an idea of the product value/ market size.
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Project Outcomes
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In-depth research
Photo-ethnography
User profiling
Market statistics
Brief writing
Presentation layout
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This project has also helped improve the following aspects of the 10 faces of innovation
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Experimenter
Cross-Pollinator
Hurdler
Collaborator
Director
Experience Architect
Set Designer
Story Teller
Caregiver
Product Design Issues ​: RSA - Improving Water Environments
Sept 2012 - Nov 2012
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The boards above are the ones which where submitted for the product design issues module which was based around the RSA competition. There was a choice of 6 briefs and the one I chose was " Improving water environments" The area I chose to look at was agricultural pollution in rural streams. The research that was undertaken for this module was a mixture of questionnaires, interviews, photo-ethnography and web based secondary.​​
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Project Outcomes​​​​
User research
Photo-ethnography
Concept Generation
Concept Development
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This project has also helped improve the following aspects of the 10 faces of innovation
​
Experimenter
Cross-Pollinator
Hurdler
Collaborator
Director
Experience Architect
Set Designer
Story Teller
Caregiver
Negotiated Theory ​​: Sustainable Architecture
Sept 2012 - March 2013

This part of my portfolio is part of my dissertation that was submitted for the Negotiated Theory module. I chose to do a 50/50 option which was split between a visual piece and a essay. The subject area that I chose was sustainable architecture and the question that I asked myself was " What can history teach modern architecture" To answer this I used traditional building methods and mixed them with modern technologies to produce a energy efficient building. I also focused of doing everything by hand and what has modern architecture lost by the plans and visuals being produced by CAD packages. I did a series of A2 development sheets and then for the final visual did a A1 plan for the building. Over all there was probably around 1,000 hours put into the visual piece as I had to learn new skills and had several meetings with a architect to make sure that the drawings where acurate to building standards and regulations.​
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Project Outcomes
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Technical drawing
Architectural input
Model making skills
Scale drawing
Hand typography
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This project has also helped improve the following aspects of the 10 faces of innovation
​
Experimenter
Cross-Pollinator
Hurdler
Collaborator
Director
Experience Architect
Set Designer
Story Teller
Caregiver
Final Major Project ​​: Cycle Workstation
Feb 2013 - May 2013
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My Final Major project has led on from the research that was undertaken within the advanced research strategies module earlier on in the year. The subject are in which it is focused is cycling more importantly the mechanics side to the hobby. The product I have designed is a portable work station which aids the user in maintaining their bike with the ease of use and the way it has been designed. A gear system means that the stand can be adjusted with one action and the use of the 'cam lock clamp' means that the weight of the bike tightens the clamp this removes the issue of holding the bike in one hand while trying to tighten the clamp with the other.​
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Project Outcomes​
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3d Rapid prototyping​
Test models​
Sketching skills​
Solidworks
Photoshop​
Illustrator
Critical Judgement
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This project has also helped improve the following aspects of the 10 faces of innovation which is taken from IDEO's Book 'The 10 faces of innovation' by Tom Kelly. Click here to view the book.​
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Experimenter
Cross-Pollinator
Hurdler
Collaborator
Director
Experience Architect
Set Designer
Story Teller
Caregiver
Re-designed Board
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Above is one of the boards that I redid for the RSA submission. The board on the left was the original one which although portrayed the message it came across as slightly messy. So I went back into solidworks and rendered the image again but with a cutaway image to show the syringe in its position to the body, then came off with information bubbles to highlight the way it works. This board has a much better message of the product function and it also looks more professional.
