︎


Fire Alarm, a redesign of the established form with a specific use location in mind.


Tools:
Duration:
SolidWorks, Keyshot, 3D priting, basic electronics
4 weeks



As a location, the Carnegie Museum of Art and Natural History presented an unique challenge with emersive and disorienting exhibits.


Studying environment and visitors of the natural history and art museum



Considerations:

On instinct, people in unfamiliar locations return the way they came when presented with danger. This is often not the most effective option and when time is of the essence and understanding surroundings is crucial, the fire alarm should prime and guide people towards safety.


Constraints:

The redesigned firealarm should not detract from the carefully curated and layed out environment of the museum. Simultaneously, it should also have enough presence that when needed, it can be easily identified and used. Interaction should remain striaghtforward and identifiable in a glance. The firealarm should still maintain some of the classic qualities of current fire alarms like being wall mounted and possessing red detailing.



    Thoughts & Process






Form / Motion Decisions:
A shape that guides in nature is nonnegotiable, additionally the motion which accompanies the physical form should prime users toward the direction of the closest exit. Pointed shapes heavily imply movement and direction, I experimented with containing this shape inside a more circular outer shell or having it fully exposed. Many fire alarms conatin two motions to activate (usually a push and a pull down) as a feature to prevent accidental triggering.

By having a twist and push, the arm guides the body and posititions it to face the direction which the alarm points, the nearest exit.




Adding in a tilt switch activiated LED allowed an additional level of tangible realism and understanding to the product and it’s intended use.








Key Takeaways:

  • Rapid prototyping tends to not be so rapid, know what your looking to assess and change and how the prototype will affect this. 
  • Think about what you imagine the prototype will be like and compare what it actually shows.
  • Tolerancing depends on interaction desired between two parts, fitted, sliding etc
  • efficency and quality changes depending on infill
  • additional structure can be provided with things like toothpicks
    Glues and adhesives melting acrylic or the two parts together