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Hydra Swimming Resistance Trainer by Pratik S Bendale |
Home > Winners > Design #64836 >Interview |
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FS: What is the main principle, idea and inspiration behind your design?
PB: Designing training a dedicated machine for swimmers using ergonomic design principles and modern technology. The problem was observed when I was a Lifeguard at the college swimming pool and combining my design education with my personal experience was a driving force behind this idea.
FS: What has been your main focus in designing this work? Especially what did you want to achieve?
PB: The interaction of the swimmer with the machine as well as its non usage life (maintenance and storage) was the main focus in my design . A machine which could be easily operated and intuitively used by swimmers as well as moved away and stored easily by lifeguards.
FS: What are your future plans for this award winning design?
PB: I m currently working on developing a fully functional prototype based on this device and plan to test it out with real NCAA athletes
FS: How long did it take you to design this particular concept?
PB: 2 months for research,data collection and synthesis and around 1 month for the concept and CAD
FS: Why did you design this particular concept? Was this design commissioned or did you decide to pursuit an inspiration?
PB: I was a varsity water polo player in my Under Grads and have been swimming since the age of 4. Naturally having been on the pool for a long time I combined it with my passion for design inspiring myself to approach this problem.
FS: Is your design being produced or used by another company, or do you plan to sell or lease the production rights or do you intent to produce your work yourself?
PB: I intend and actually have been working on the product ( a version of the above) a
FS: What made you design this particular type of work?
PB: Passion for solving real world problems and my experience being around a pool and swimming.
FS: Where there any other designs and/or designers that helped the influence the design of your work?
PB: This is an individual project however it has been contributed through interviews and feedback by athletes and the NC State swimming team.
FS: Who is the target customer for his design?
PB: Professional Swimming teams and swimming pool owners.
FS: What sets this design apart from other similar or resembling concepts?
PB: This is a first of its kind swimming specific machine
FS: How did you come up with the name for this design? What does it mean?
PB: The name Hydra is from the Greek mythology meaning a water dragon and the ruler of seas.
FS: Which design tools did you use when you were working on this project?
PB: A lot of design research methods and data synthesis. Tools like the Adobe suite for 2D development on the Wacom as well as Solidworks and Keyshot for CAD and rendering.
FS: What is the most unique aspect of your design?
PB: THis is a first of its kind design
FS: Who did you collaborate with for this design? Did you work with people with technical / specialized skills?
PB: My class professor and professional swimming coaches
FS: What is the role of technology in this particular design?
PB: Swimming training was a sport which used a lot of traditional training methods in the pool. THis was a first application of modern technology for swimming.
FS: Is your design influenced by data or analytical research in any way? What kind of research did you conduct for making this design?
PB: Yes. Surveying and focus groups of professional swimmers, coaches and lifeguard staffs were conducted.
FS: What are some of the challenges you faced during the design/realization of your concept?
PB: Developing a architecture for the mechanisms which is elegant, robust as well as ergonomically right was a big challenge.
FS: How did you decide to submit your design to an international design competition?
PB: Getting great feedback from the peers and the swimmers was a huge motivation.
FS: What did you learn or how did you improve yourself during the designing of this work?
PB: I learnt the importance of understanding the user in this process as this was a completely new product, understanding the people who I was designing for proved vital
FS: Any other things you would like to cover that have not been covered in these questions?
PB: How you got to the problem is as critical as how you solved the problem. :)
FS: Thank you for providing us with this opportunity to interview you.
A' Design Award and Competitions grants rights to press members and bloggers to use parts of this interview. This interview is provided as it is; DesignPRWire and A' Design Award and Competitions cannot be held responsible for the answers given by participating designers.
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