Future Kitchen
Beko
In recent years Beko has successfully differentiated its range of home appliances by integrating user-centred innovations that take advantage of the latest technology. By mapping key consumer trends against emerging technologies Dovetailed were able to facilitate a process of ideation with the company’s internal R&D team which resulted in a vision for the connected kitchen.
This vision combined advanced sensor technology, wireless connectivity and a user-centred workflow to produce a compelling range of kitchen products including innovations for smart cooking, food preparation and storage. Our work on the smart fridge freezer experience was demonstrated at IFA 2017 in Berlin. We describe it in greater detail in this case study.
“You and your team have done a great job with the user trials and UI development, as well as the concept development in our previous project. I really appreciate that you have worked so hard on this, gone beyond initial scope and been so helpful in providing us with a working interface. We’re very happy with your work and the end product you have delivered.”
Project Manager
The best ideas will fly
We organised and ran an ideation workshop together with the Beko team. We generated many ideas, about 50, until we narrowed them down to the smart fridge concept.
Understanding users
Everyone knows what a fridge is and how to use it. But we wanted to see how different people with different lifestyles were using it. How do fridges and other methods of food storage fit into everyday routines? We decided to apply ethnography to observe, log and analyse these everyday routine behaviours. For this, we designed and ran an in-situ user research study of eight individuals and families. We designed and developed probes that allowed us to capture data unobtrusively and observe behaviours and habits from a distance. We collected a high volume of fantastic high quality data which gave us deep insight and helped us discover new behavioural patterns.
Iterative Design Process
Our design & research team iterated and quickly translated research into early concepts for the smart fridge through hand sketching and marker rendering until a winning product, embodied with intuitive UI, was designed and completed.
Result
The results of the in-home trial and subsequent usability testing on more finessed prototypes built Beko’s confidence in the value of smart fridges and connected kitchen appliances. This led to the demonstration of a prototype at IFA 2017, a top-tier expo for showcasing the latest home appliance innovations.
Skills
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Consumer and technology trends analysis
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Ideation workshops
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User studies and contextual enquiry
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Live-data collection and analysis
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Translation of user insights into design concepts
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User Experience (UX) design
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Industrial design
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Wireframes
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Interactive prototypes
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