Week 8 - Final evaluation

1. Briefly describe the final outcome of your project and the progress you have made, and if applicable how it differs from your original Project Proposal:

My final outcome is a Blue-tooth headphone that is designed into a silver earing that sits in the ear. I have created a variety of prototypes and through a series trials and errors, experimentations and peer feedback, I have refined my design to my final prototype.   My outcome differs from my original project proposal as I have not used 3D printing to produce them. This is because 3D printing would have used up a lot of my time and in result of that I wouldn’t have been able to experiment much in my project. Apart from this, I have met all my targets stated in my project proposal.

2. What methods have you used to show how your learning has effected your project e.g. learning journal/ FMP Plan/ sketchbooks etc, and how has this helped with development of your work:

I have recorded all of my physical work such as research, experimentation, development, materials, sketches, drawings and photographs of all my prototypes in my sketchbook. I have evaluated my tasks and discussed my thought process on my weekly blog.  My FMP plan has helped to keep me on track throughout this project ensuring that I don’t fall behind. All of these methods have helped me with the development of my work because I have been able to see what has gone well and what hasn’t, helping me to progress at each step. Constant peer feedback of the work in my sketchbook has ensured that I make the correct decisions in the design of my final product.

3. List the targets met (from the original FMP Plan and any that were added later):

The targets that I have accomplished from my original proposal are conducting thorough primary and secondary research were I have analysed how fashion and technology are becoming interwined. I have also researched into the technological aspect of my project to develop a deeper understanding of the functional aspect of my product  I have demonstrated different ideas which have shown all the mistakes and obstacles I have encountered. I have used a variety of different materials to find out the one that works the best for my product. I have developed these ideas and produced a variety of prototypes.

4. Reflecting on your overall final major project, please discuss any developments which have contributed to the final outcome:

I have experienced a lot of trial and errors throughout my project in different experimentation tasks which have led me to my final income. These include developments in materials that I have used and the structure of my design.

5. Please state what advice you received from others during your FMP, and discuss what you found particularly useful: you should refer to group reviews, one-to-one tutorials and feedback from evaluation groups

Advice that I have found very useful has been from many of my group interviews. I found myself falling behind most of the time and through the feedback from others I was put onto track and made an action plan for every week. Feedback from tutors were that I should think about what technology people already carry around with the and what clothing/accessories they wear on a day to day basis. Other feedback I received was to play around with different materials on the body to see what work the best and to test out a range of materials.

6. Key points to take away – things to change about my approach (give at least 2) e.g. improve time management, what skills you have developed and how this will affect your future course/career and things to continue doing and to build on (give at least 2). What are you going to do next year?  (NOTE – you may find it useful to refer to this document at the beginning of your next self managed project.)

Thing to change about my approach would be to improve my time management. Although I made a plan before starting my FMP, I still managed to fall behind as it wasn’t accurate enough. Another thing to change would be testing out more ways to produce my prototype/model, although I explored a few, I didn’t explore enough and I feel I could have produced my final prototype to a higher standard. I will consider these points and apply them to my work while doing my product design degree.

Week 8 - Final Outcome

Now that I had gone through a lot of development and finalised my designs, I began to create my final outcome. I first of all started out with the initial prototypes. These particular prototypes were to show that my overall product will come in a variety of designs. The way my product will work is that the user will pick a jewellery design of their choice and then they will be able to attach it to the bluetooth ear piece themselves and if they ever want to change the design they can.

To create this these prototype the main steps for each one want to cut out a piece of allumuium with the sizing 4.cm x 4.c.m and then to fold in the edges with a plier and file them down, I then used a range of templates to cut out the particular design and then I crafted them into the different shapes. To create the different folds and bumps I used a flat pair or tweezers and the end of a pencil. After I had crafted the shape I then went on to add some wire or crystals to some of the prototypes. 

 

FINISHED PROTOTYPES

Something I struggled with when creating my prototypes was getting the sizing accurate. Many of my designs were moulded around the ear so to create the exact curve and exact dip in the right proved difficult. I did manage to do it but it took a lot of patience and time. I think this is were 3D printing would have come in to use. If I had more time I would have extended the making of my prototypes and 3D printed them to minimise time and to create the perfect sizings.

Next I began to create my final outcome. The process was the same as creating my initial prototypes. I really wanted to use 3D printing for my final outcome but didn't have enough time. I used a template and crafted my design on the Aluminium sheet. While creating my final outcome I kept attached it to the bluetooth ear piece to ensure it looked just how I wanted to and that the dimensions were correct. I painted the headphone silver as I wanted it to all be one colour.  I then used E3000 glue to attach the Aluminium to the headphone. The final step was to attach the Swarovski crystals to the headphone. Although the steps were easy, they were time consuming as I wanted to create my product to a high standard.

FINAL OUTCOME

Overall I am very pleased with how my final outcome has turned out. The headphone sits in the ear comfortably and the aluminium design does not irritate the user.  I have received a lot of positive feedback on my final outcome. Many people said that it looks very professional and well made and it somthing that they would purchase. I have decided to present my headphone in a black jewellery box to keep it looking sophisticated and not to take away from the bling.