IDEO is a company I respect very much since the day I found out what they do. My Introduction to Mechanical Engineering professor presented their “Shopping Cart” special on ABC Nightline. Their process, leadership and overall philosophy surrounding human-centered design is incredible. Check out some of the books they produced here.
So when a position opened up, I was eager to throw my hat in the ring. Below is a small snippet of the position summary.
Mechanical Engineer (Remote Eligible, Contract)
IDEO Play Lab is seeking a designer with advanced prototyping and mechanical design skills for contract work (remote eligible).
IDEO’s Play Lab is looking for a talented designer to help our toy invention team. IDEO’s Play Lab creates innovative, fun, and engaging products and experiences with a focus on toys for kids. Our skilled team of designers and engineers dream up and bring toy concepts to life through prototyping. We’d love your help as a contractor, building one-off mechanical prototypes to impress our toy manufacturer clients. Show us your passion for toys and abilities to design and prototype them.
The application required that I answer the following questions.
If you could redesign a toy, what would it be, why should it be redesigned, how might you make it better?
My response which I included on my application:
Toy Redesign Idea/Preliminary Concepts
CONTEXT: If I could redesign a toy, I would make changes to a toy that formed who I am as a creative, an inventor, and engineer – the classic LEGO or Erector set! I had the most fun with the “ordinary” or “classic” set of these products, the ones without the directions or prescribed final state.
This was the exact set I had as a kid, from when I was 10 or younger until now. I ripped that paper cover and lost the “directions” the moment I opened the gift. So I did not have a concept of what was supposed to be created.
As a kid, I would disassemble my family’s [INSERT ANY HOUSEHOLD PRODUCT HERE], combine it with pieces from my LEGO set, my erector set, and somehow be allowed as a kid to heat up plastic from a water bottle to form it into a boat propeller; all turning into a boat which I had no problem trying to make work. The set served solely as raw materials to this young kid.
I was a courageous creative and have lost it to some varying degree as I got older. I believe kids are on a spectrum of creative courage. Toys like LEGOs, an Erector Set, magnet tiles, and the sort all serve to allow open-ended creativity which is a beautiful thing. On the other end of the spectrum, kits such as these offer the option to build completed models of cars or flowers for example. As someone with ADHD, I struggled to follow directions from a manual. So where is the in between?
WHAT: My suggestion would be to offer a kit without the pre-established designs with custom parts. Instead, offer the generic pieces with an INSPIRATIONAL BASE that sparks imagination. Every kid could create a different design. For example, kids love building cars so why not have a frame-like piece that you purchase for an inexpensive amount. With it comes a guidebook of the mechanics of the LEGO toy. For example, “This is an axle {image} and wheel used to create a rolling motion”; this is how this particular element of engineering works, now go use that and apply it on your own. LEGO offers a SERIOUS Play Starter Kit as a way to stimulate innovative processes and comes with an Imaginopedia booklet (I like this) with simple model building instructions. I am suggesting a very small kit or part that you add on to your existing LEGO or Erector set.
WHY: In teaching, I observed that the most learning occurs when students understand the context of the assignment versus the exact steps to get there. Children learn best when they can connect new information to their existing knowledge and understanding. Providing context helps them build mental frameworks to integrate new concepts.
The goals of this redesign are:
- Spark inspiration instead of take it over for a child by providing instruction
- Good design, as argued by Don Norman, requires no instruction.
- The Add-On kits are inexpensive; to create accessibility and not be cost-prohibitive like some of these products can be
- Transition to creative prompts, from instructions which can be restrictive for some