Chopstick Redesign
This design challenge was the first in which students were expected to rapidly generate product designs from speculated user scenarios. In pairs, we were asked to discuss problems we face or see others face in our lives, and come up with ways to solve those problems. My partner and I began to ease into a very engaging conversation, musing a variety of directions for our final design proposal.
Above is both sides of the sheet of paper we shared to begin jotting our ideas down. We had previously been introduced to a range of designs via PowerPoint, so we began by discussing which solutions we liked best. From there we continued onto problems in our own lives like losing your phone or hair ties, or stackable clothing hangers. Through a process of discussing each of the idea seeds and distilling them to our most successful, we ended up deciding on a redesign for chopsticks. Originally inspired by an intertwined pair in the presentation, we sought to create an improved user experience through our design updates.
We focused on two specific elements, the shape and the interior. The idea for the shape originally began as a triangular prism going the whole length of the stick. This would stop them rolling on and off the table, as well as give food cutting/grabbing edges to the user. The issue however is that the triangle would make the user’s hand sore and may also confuse which end is which. We updated the shape to transition from a triangular prism at the eating end to a rounded shaft where it’s held. A hollow section was also added throughout the length of the sticks. This hollow is made to be filled with sand. The sand serves to balance the thicker end flat against the table, so the eating side doesn’t actually touch the surface. It also weights the front end when you’re eating with them and gives an overall more dynamic motion to the utensils.
Above is a simple rendering of what advertising for these chopsticks may look like. I rendered them in Illustrator and added a product description,
These renderings act as callouts for the function of the sand inside the chopsticks. It illustrates the motion and explains the benefits of this element.
I thoroughly enjoyed working on this design challenge. Having to come up with a good, helpful design with the only restriction being time is a fun exercise for ID students. It allows for peak potential creativity, due to the lack of perimeters and element of stress.
