The goal of this graduation thesis is to design a bicycle computer mount (BCM) that connects bike computers with road cycling handlebars in a visually appealing, and aerodynamic way. Initiated between Delft University of Technology and a leading sports equipment company, the project addresses the evolving needs of cyclists regarding maximum integration and aerodynamic optimisation of their material.

Through context research, user research and aerodynamic research, ideas were generated and formed into concepts. From those concepts the most promising was selected to further develop into a detailed design. This design was then validated with vibration tests, computational fluid dynamics (CFD) and finite element analysis (FEA).

The final design is a one-piece thermoplastic BCM that weighs 38 grams. It is made from injection moulded carbon-reinforced nylon (CF/PA12) to optimise weight and structural performance. A physical prototype was made for validation with different computers and vibration testing.

This design project marks the collaborative efforts of Translas, a prominent welding company based in the Netherlands, and Skelex, a scale-up enterprise specializing in exoskeleton design. Translas developed the 8XE fume extractor torch. However, a common complaint of the new torch is its decreased usability and potential ergonomic risk. To address this problem, Skelex and Translas have united their expertise to develop an exoskeleton-lite solution, aimed at assisting welders in carrying the torch. The aim is to alleviate the physical strain of welding and enhance overall ergonomics. A literature review of welding, ergonomics, and exoskeletons reveal that musculoskeletal disorders form a significant societal problem with large financial losses, which provide opportunities for cutting-edge companies as Translas and Skelex, and form the groundwork for a problem definition, design goal, and drivers. Through a numerical model the specific ergonomic concerns of the 8XE torch are analysed, which is also used to assess the final design. It was found that generally static welding forces with the 8XE are within safe parameters as recommended by ergonomic experts. The bending stiffness of the 8XE cable contributes significantly to the wrist moment, being estimated to reach values of 0.5Nm in conventional welding, compared to the 0.7Nm contribution due to weight. Friction in the ball-and-socket joint, and inertia ore comparatively low, and do not significantly cause ergonomic concerns. An iterative prototyping phase diverges to explore various ways to offload the 8XE’s weight on the wrist to stronger body parts, converging to two good concepts. A simple strap off loading the weight on the wrist to the lower arm for a limited amount of welding positions, and an exoskeleton worn on the waist and shoulders carrying the full weight of the torch using a tool balancer. After three user tests, two of which with welders in industry, both concepts were combined which led to the creation of AeroGrip. AeroGrip is an exoskeleton-lite product that eases welding by changing the weight distribution on the upper extremities, improving ergonomics and helping welders ‘be their ultimate’; they can weld safely for longer, with more precision, whilst experiencing less strain. It is a system that attaches to the welding cable through a ladder strap and buckle. A hook attached to a Kevlar cable can be pulled out and attached to the special AeroGrip Gloves, which feature a leather tab with grommet. The Kevlar cable is attached to a power spring via a spool in the casing, which ultimately results in a Tension of ~12N. Two final user tests, and comparative numerical analysis show that AeroGrip eases welding, provides an ergonomic benefit, and is convenient to use. FEM analysis and friction analysis ensure feasibility, whilst an assembly plan and business case ensure viability.

Providing a bodily injury-free experience might be a promising opportunity for the adoption of VR and force feedback-based equipment in a gym context. Nevertheless, it is still uncertain how these systems could compromise the users’ physical state and how they should react a posteriori.

This Graduation project begins with the exploration of the bodily injury risks associated with the Ethereal Engine, an ultimate VR-based equipment that seeks a revolution in the fitness industry. Resulting in four different clusters -collision, posture, balance loss and long-term exposure-related risks-, a study on the current market-ready technologies that could minimize these risks is performed together with an assessment on how safety can be boosted while keeping the experience’s engagement.

Thanks to the research, posture evaluation is selected as the challenge with a differential potential over the rest to bring Ethereal Engine to the next level, providing an experience in which bodily injury risks could be reduced, motivating users to adopt better postural habits when working out. Right after, a design vision is formulated, emphasizing the need for inspiring users to self-correct their posture instead of imposing rules in order to avoid possible immersion breakages.

In this context, three concepts are proposed, which present different feedback alternatives that vary in terms of explicitness, immediacy, and strictness. However, a priori there is no clear answer on which of these alternatives could most positively affect the experience. To overcome the knowledge gap an experiment that not only assesses the performance of the 16 participants but also their perception of the understandability, usefulness, performance, posture correction, general engagement, confusion and criticism of the feedback is conducted. During three different experiments where different feedback alternatives are assessed -immediate visual clues, statistics after certain repetitions, and immediate pop-up messages- participants are asked to perform 10 squats while lifting a water jug and receiving different scores depending on its displacement.

In order to do so, a partial prototype that allows for the first time to experience certain functionalities of the Ethereal Engine is developed. These functions are: a) a hybrid MoCap system that merges a Oculus Quest headset with a multi-camera-based skeletal tracking system -named MoCapForAll-. ; b) a calibration process that adjusts the range of motion according to the participant’s height; and, c) a demo game that enables a more intense workout while keeping track of your posture while squatting.

After discussing the results, including a calibration process that enables fair competitiveness and feedback at three different levels to communicate diverse information are spotted as desired features to include in the Ethereal Engine. Through these recommendations a virtual trainer that inspires users to self-correct their posture will be possible, and, subsequently, enabling a bodily injury-free experience.

There is a need for environmental sustainability also beyond the atmosphere: Human activities are causing a tragedy of the commons in outer space, and most of the world population does not know anything about it. Outer space has become a non-cooperative game for a few players with infinite resources, in an environment with limited resources. The threat of space debris is real and governments will spend hundreds of millions in the following years trying to solve it, by using the money of unaware taxpayers. This is the legacy for the future generations of space citizens.

With this graduation project I aim at raising awareness about the space debris issue and at enabling people to give a small individual contribution, which can be worth much as a collective action. I designed a cultural metaverse to educate the new generations of space citizens through the use of advanced immersive technologies. People can get access to its services by purchasing a NFT connected to a specific piece of debris in orbit. Once the piece is actually removed the NFT becomes part of the Museum of Space Resilience, a virtual environment paying a tribute to the NFT owner, to the company who made the removal mission possible and to the government that allowed it. The initiative is intended as non for profit, since all the income generated will be spent to fund other removal missions, in a circular business model. A cosmopolitan approach to help humanity make space truly democratic, by turning space situational awareness into a civilian service.

My research is based on the most recent theories about systemic transitions (Geels, 2017) and governance of the commons "beyond markets and states" (Ostrom, 2010). As a designer, I have applied speculative processes and co-generative methods to envision alternative futures for space. In this way, I have demonstrated how the so-called "cryptocommons" can represent a novel strategic use of blockchain technologies to rebalance economies towards higher human values, like culture and sustainability. This result has been possible by developing in six months a wide and diversified network of experts throughout Europe.

This project respond to the goal of an existing company to design an improved version of a pinpoint erotic product. This type of very targeted stimulation gives the opportunity to many FBP to explore their preferred hotspots, get to know themselves better and enrich their masturbation process. Apart from the fact that the stimulation of these targeted hotspots can be an effective way to reach orgasm, designing a product that focuses on clitoris stimulation also communicates the importance of this organ for sexual pleasure. Due to the typology of this product (different options for the stimulating part can be included), it is possible to make it customizable until a certain degree, which can result in a versatile product that adapts to different needs.

Based on previous studies from the company and a literature review, a list of hypotheses was created. By user testing prototypes and current products, these hypotheses were accepted or rejected, thus resulting in a list of requirements that considered the desired interaction, the competitors and the internal positioning of the brand. These requirements focused on three areas of development: the physical stimulation, the ergonomics and the aesthetics. This project explored these areas with the purpose of fulfilling the design requirements and giving recommendations for the further embodiment of the project. The project resulted in a functional prototype that “works like” but “does not look like” and “it is not produced like” and a guide for embodiment that includes some proposals for the ergonomics and aesthetics of the product.

This project started with the following assignment: redesign the Adria Action caravan to fit in a circular economy and to have less CO2 emissions. However, the outcome of this project is not a redesign of a caravan but a framework for Adria to work towards (partial) circular As an example of the functioning of this framework, a redesign of the bathroom floor was done.To get to know the particular caravan and the caravan industry an analysis of the context was conducted. An eco-analysis on material basis of the Action caravan was done and visits to experts in the industry, repairmen and a caravan recycling company, were made. The main conclusions from the analysis were that the structural body has the most value, both economically as environmentally, and therefore needs to be used for a longer time. There already is an effort made but it is complicated due to components that are hard to repair and due to a lack of support and instructions and availability of spare parts. In the caravan industry and this company there is also little standardization which means there are a lot of unique parts. This makes it hard to find fitting components and to reuse perfectly good components in other vehicles. The successful business of repair and recycling companies shows that there is value after the sale of the caravan but it is made unnecessary complex to retain this value by the organization of the caravan companies.The framework shows that designing caravans for a circular economy involves more aspects than just redesigning the individual parts for reuse, repair and recycling possibilities. There are different levels on which actions can take place and to become completely circular, these levels must work together. First, analytical capabilities, such as LCA and hot spot mapping, are needed to assess the current condition of the caravans and evaluate improvements. To do this, a different way of documenting will be required within Adria. Next, with this objective way of assessing the caravan, focus points can be found and components can be redesigned using the circular economy ideals. Those adjustments can then again be evaluated.One of the focus points found is the bathroom floor. It is a critical part because it protects the frame from moisture, the bathroom is not functional without the floor and it is very difficult to disassemble and reassemble the floor. At the moment, the floor is being repaired with polyurethane, which restores the value of the caravan at that time, but the repair makes the component non-recyclable and therefore no longer part of the circular economy. It is more sustainable to replace the tray as a whole. So when redesigning the tray, it was looked at how this can be done easier. It requires minor adjustments to the part and larger adjustments at a company level. On a company level, some variables should be agreed on as a fixed standard. This makes future designs backward compatible and therefore makes it easy and cost-efficient to produce an extra part when a customer orders it, enabling the replacement of the tray.

The way people are cooking is shifting. Were people have had gas hobs for a long time it is now changing to cooking on induction. Cooking on gas will be banned from 2050 on and is disappearing already. The way induction hobs are implemented at the moment is with a glass plate on top while still taking up space on the countertop like with a gas hob. Boretti thought of a solution to use another kind of ceramics able to have the looks of all kinds of materials like marble or nature stone. The concept provided by Boretti at the starting point of this graduation project was a standalone oven with this induction hob solution on top. The assignment was to create a version totally integrated into the countertop since the whole countertop can be made of the same ceramics. To make a design that fits the needs of possible user groups, fit with the trends at the moment and in the future and suit the ways of living from 2021 on, an analysis was performed. Main conclusions were the shift in the marketing Boretti has to make., the change of the way people are living, house are becoming more open, smaller houses in cities are getting more expensive and multifunctionality of space with also making more connection between living room and kitchen are trends to take into account. This results in design changes in kitchen blocks, the need for better air circulation and purifying and multifunctionality in countertop space. The analysis was followed by an ideation phase in which partial problems were tackled with different solutions. The topics ideated on were the user interface, multifunctionality cooking zone indications and the integration possibilities of a combined air extractor and air purifier. This ideation resulted in three different concepts were combinations of partial solutions were made. After making three different concepts, two were combined. The new combined concept has an accessory bar that breaks up the countertop surface into a living part and a cooking part. This accessory bar has space for a range of simple accessories to things like a Boretti water tap. Personalisable Qi charging spots can be chosen while the consumer configures the countertop. To make sure the surface above the cooking zones can be used totally for other purposes, the control interface is not fixed. This interface is a smart rotational knob with which all cooking zones can be controlled. The final concept is a kitchen island version is worked out in detail. The control knob has a light ring which refers to a gas burner and has haptic and visual feedback for the intensity of the selected zone. The main USPs are the multifunctionality and styling made possible with the material, an improved orientation during cooking and the smart knob. Since there will be differences in the needs and configurations consumers will want to have for this concept. A range of product is suggested to Boretti around this concept.