Meal Buddy

keeping utensils clean on the go

Design I

For the 3D printing project, I made a medium-fidelity utensil head case for covering a spoon, fork, or knife. This product was built to help store my cutlery in public before and after the cutlery would be used. We were given the choice of using any CAD software to design the product. The only design requirement was utilizing at least the following 3 operations:

• Extrusion

• Revolve

• Boolean

Firstly I began thinking about what product would be useful in my life. Initially, I pulled the sketches from the weekly sketching activity in HCDE 318 to draw some inspiration. A leak-proof soap bar holder, toothpaste squeezer, a spatula strainer, a hanger with straight arms were some potential options. However, none of them would serve an unmet need I face currently on a daily basis. Therefore, I began thinking of my present routine and identifying design opportunities within.

Most weekdays I bring lunch with me to school. Some of these meals require cutlery that does not always fit into the food container. So I carry the clean cutlery separately in my bag without a case. At college, when the cutlery is used after finishing a meal, it becomes dirty. I cannot throw the used spoon away since it's not disposable. So I wipe the spoon with a napkin and use another clean napkin to bandage its head. This is not an ideal solution and addressing it through 3D printing might solve one of my major pain points these days.

Prototype I

As illustrated in the image below, I drew several prototypes for covering a single piece of soiled cutlery. These designs were sketched, keeping in mind the size, shape, height of the cutlery as well as how the aforementioned CAD operations could be incorporated into the design.

Modeling the design in CAD software was the hardest step of the process. Each implemented Onshape (the CAD software I used) tutorial resulted in an unsatisfactory outcome on Onshape. With time and software constraints (free vs paid programs) I explored 3D print templates of objects having a similar design. Fortunately, I was able to find a compact toothbrush case (depicted below) that closely matched my prototype sketches.

Since STL files (the template’s file type) are not editable in Onshape, I had to utilize another free software to edit the template. After researching which free CAD programs allow STL file modification, I ended up using Autodesk Fusion 360. The template was opened in Fusion 360, converted into a mesh, and then altered in the following ways:

• To prevent food leakages, the holes at the base of the template case were blocked with a joint extrusion technique

• Some edges and faces on the inner side of the case were subtracted from the design to avoid unnecessary waste of PLA

• The body was made wider to accommodate utensil size 

Here is the final printed case:

Test

A series of 5 tests were conducted with my peers, friends, and family to test for utensil head case feasibility and desirability. These factors were tested by presenting the product to the user and asking them to share their thoughts on the practicality of the case design, how they would describe the design and any general feedback. Questions asked regarding practicality were if users would use the product? if they would buy the product? The number of positive and negative adjectives were counted in the answers to how users would describe the design. This method of determining desirability of a product was derived from a UX Matters article by Michael Hawley.

Analysis I

The testing results showed which components of the prototype turned out to be effective and which components required improvement. Almost all users found the cutlery head case to be a useful product they would buy and repeatedly reach out for in their lives. Most product descriptions centered around positive adjectives like functional, impressive, universal, portable, desirable and positive comments like wow, love this, I need this. Negative adjectives such as tight and afraid were used in the context of the case clasp being tight and the user being afraid that the case won’t fit bigger utensils. One user wondered about the cleanliness of PLA with food. 

With regards to what I would do differently with the prototype in the future is to investigate the ideal head case size suitable for various cutlery pieces. In addition, I would modify the clasp in a manner that fastens the base and top container sections not too tightly or loosely. While ideating clasp designs, I hope to take into account the medical hand conditions (eg: arthritis) of some users. Lastly, for future versions, I would coat the prototype with food-safe epoxy resin to address the PLA cleanliness concern.

Reflecting on the process I pursued, I wish I had spent more time learning the CAD software. Going forward, I aim to practice this. Doing so would help me create a more tailored design instead of relying on a template.

Design II

For the Product Promo assignment, I taped a one-minute video of a medium-fidelity cutlery head case and cleaner using a Sony a7 III digital camera and Adobe Premiere Pro software. The video demonstrates the motivation, usage, and functionality of the cutlery case cleaner. We were asked to redesign one of our earlier prototypes, reimagine it as a smart object and film a pitch to seek a product investor. The following product design requirements were given:

• Clear

• Effective

• Creative

Firstly I began revisiting my prototypes from past assignments, these include a shower control interface, phone stand for shooting videos and a utensil case. I decided to refine the utensil case because it would serve one of my daily needs. The case refinements were guided by the testing and critique sessions.

The testing results had shown which components of the prototype turned out to be effective and which components required improvement. Almost all users found the cutlery head case to be a useful product they would buy and repeatedly reach out for in their lives. Most product descriptions centered around positive adjectives like functional, impressive, universal, portable, desirable and positive comments like wow, love this, I need this. Negative adjectives such as tight and afraid were used in the context of the case clasp being tight and the user being afraid that the case won’t fit bigger utensils. One user wondered about the cleanliness of PLA with food. To address the above concerns, I aimed to make the following changes:

• Modify head case size to fit various cutlery pieces

• Modify the clasp in a manner that fastens the base and top container sections not too tightly or loosely

• While ideating clasp designs, I hope to take into account the medical hand conditions (eg: arthritis) of some users. 

• Coat the prototype with food-safe epoxy resin to address the PLA cleanliness concern

With regards to the smartness of the utensil head case, cleaning functionality was chosen as a sustainable option to save user’s time spent cleaning and allow the same utensil to be used repeatedly.

Prototype II

As shown in the image on the next page, I sketched prototypes for covering a single piece of soiled cutlery focusing on the head size and clasp design. The image next to the sketches displays the design 3D printed (case size dimensions according to typical utensil height width, flap at the bottom of the case removed to prevent tight closing of the case, clasp slimmed/left slightly hollow from inner side for easy opening/closing, epoxy resin applied).

After printing the refined utensil case, I shot video clips using a Sony camera. The video clips were stitched into a sequence (led by a rough storyboard drawn in advance, shown in the figure below) and trimmed in Adobe Premiere Pro. To arouse emotions regarding sustainability and the action on screen, music with changing pitch and slow feel was added to the video.

Product Promo

Analysis II

The utensil case promo was shown to my peers, friends and family to gather feedback. All viewers could tell what the smart object does. Some viewers had difficulty following the narrative of the video after 37 seconds in, when I switched to reading a book. They’re feedback was:

• Add captions to support the scenes

• Include more context of why Meal Buddy is needed

• The soundtrack is depressing and somber

• Zoomed in view of the case

• View of the case from multiple angles