Reimagining Restroom Hygiene
School Project | Design thinking, Iterative design, UXresearch, Industrial design
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Project Overview:
Many men have reported experiencing splash-back from poorly designed urinals, leading to unhygienic and embarrassing stains on their clothing. To address this issue, I designed a urinal that significantly reduces splash-back, improving hygiene for male users.
This project was part of my final assessment for the International Baccalaureate (IB) Design Technology Higher Level (HL) Internal Assessment (IA). I applied the full IDEO iterative design process, working through the stages of Empathize, Define, Ideate, Prototype, and Test.
Access the full design document here.
Recognition:
Scored 7/7 in IB Design Tech HL (May 2023), a global Top 4.3% achievement
Role
UX Designer, Industrial Designer, Product Manager
Timeline
Jul 2022 - Apr 2023
(10 Months)
Task
Product Design, UX research, Prototyping, Usability testing
Tools
Adobe Indesign, Fusion 360, Blender, Physical modeling tools for Foam, Acrylic, Cardboard
1. Problem
Urinal splash-backs are ANNOYING
Many men have reported experiencing splash-back from poorly designed urinals, resulting in unhygienic and embarrassing stains on their clothing. This issue raises hygiene concerns, causes psychological discomfort, and increases the cleaning workload for janitors.
2. Research
2.1 User Interviews
How significant is the splash-back issue?
Everyone Has Experienced Splash-backs
9 out of 10 interviewees age ranging from 17 to 35 reported "Yes" to previous encounters with the splash-back problem.
70% of interviewees want this issue to be resolved
Increased workload for maintainance
Maintainance workers reported that "Many many" splashes ended up on the floor, increasing their workload.
2.2 Literature Review
2 ways to prevent splashing
Method 1 - A consistant stream
Due to Plateau-Rayleigh instability, a stream of falling liquid will break up into many smaller droplets (left). These droplets are the cause of splashes. In contrast, a consistent stream shows little splashing (right).
Method 2 - Smaller impact angle
Footage from the experiment shows that a lower impact angle (left) resulted in fewer splashes compared to a higher impact angle (right).
3. Ideation
For more on Ideation, checkout the full document here
All of the concepts attempt to reduce splash through either Method 1 (reducing the urinal-user distance) or Method 2 (reducing the urine impact angle).
4. Prototype + Testing
For more on Prototype + Testing, checkout the full document here
4.1 Listening to user feedbacks
After showing the design to 6 of the initial 10 interviewees, I received their feedbacks on the protype.
"I don't like the look"
Anonymous 1
The tip design of the prototype appears to be too intrusive for some users.
"Where should I aim?"
Anonymous 2
While my intension was for users to aim at the urinal tip to minimize distance hence reducing splash. However, this turned out to be counterintuitive.
5. Iterating
For more on Iterating, checkout the full document here
Following the principle of reducing the urinal-user distance to minimize splash, I enhanced the design by making the urinal less visually intrusive.
Key Improvements:
1. Flattened urinal body design
The thin urinal body design encourages users to stand closer, reducing urine travel distance and preventing splashing.
2. Curved splash guard
The curved-out splash guard, shaped like the gap between human legs, encourages users to step forward, reducing urine travel distance and preventing splashing.
Final Design
For more on Final Design, checkout the full document here
6. Reflection
1. User Insight Matters
During the testing stage, I was surprised to receive feedback that had never occurred to me. For example, many users found the original design to be intrusive, which discouraged them from using the urinal.
2. Iteration is Key
Iterating through the design process is a lot of work, but it's essential for making the design more effective in addressing users' needs. For future projects, I plan to gather more user feedback throughout the entire design process to ensure my design doesn’t deviate from what users actually want.
3. What I would do differently next time
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