Continuing physical therapy at home can be stressful, challenging and unmotivating, especially for children. Researchers and students from the Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences, Utrecht University, Eindhoven University of Technology, University of Twente and partners (Ijsfontein external link, Roessingh Rehabilitation Centre external link, Phillips Research external link) are researching how to design smart toys with self-adaptive play complexity to motivate children with cerebral palsy (CP) to continue hand therapy at home. The Magic Monster prototype was presented during the Dutch Design Week 2022 as a part of the Embassy of Health exhibition.
MULTIFILE
Many interesting smart textile concepts have been developed, however there are only a few relevant examples of concepts that are producible and valuable for our society. The so-called ‘killer application’ has not been found yet. That is why it is extremely important that multi-disciplinary parties team-up during the ideation process to come up with innovative solutions (Toeters, 2007). The goal of STS CRISP (Crisp, 2011) is to integrate existing knowledge from partners in the separate domains of textile (soft materials), technology and service providers. To investigate the different kinds of expertise necessary for the development of Smart Textile Services we initiated an assignment to develop new Smart Textile Services concepts for elderly that can be used during rehabilitation (ten Bhömer, Tomico, Kleinsmann, Kuusk & Wensveen, 2012) and executed this project in 2 different institutes: Saxion University of Applied Sciences and Eindhoven University of Technology (TU/e). Through some pre-set contact moments, the use of a gatekeeper (Vertooren, 2007) active in both institutes, and analyzing the final reports we are able to acquire an insight in the different approaches and focus preferences of the institutes. The analysis lead to the following observations: 1. Saxion students spend more time researching existing technologies and how to implement them in their concepts. A more theoretical approach from what is already there, applying existing materials and opportunities that are already there. 2. The TU/e students consistently focused on on user research to find out their perspectives. More user-centered. 3. Saxion students start with ideation and validate this by analyzing what is available in the market at the beginning of the process. 4. TU/e students work from a societal perspective towards user focus and an idea. TU/e students found out that there is a lot more steps after prototyping. Saxion takes the next step: where TU/e students stop, they continue. Out of these observations we can conclude that the institutes are active on different levels on the time-to-market line. We have to take into account that every collaborator has a different time-to-market horizon. For the STS CRISP consortium this means that efforts have to be made to define the time-to-market expertise of the partners. As a next step, we will continue to explore this concept of parallel collaboration assignments and start a new collaboration assignment in sequence in different institutes. Test the time-to-market approach and gather strategies to create a more in depth approach to relevant marketable products can speed up the process of bringing concepts to the market, so that it can have a true added value for society.
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Sustainability transitions are not hindered by technological barriers but above all by the lack of well-qualified people. Educating the next generation of engineers and product designers is therefore more important than ever. However, a traditional widely used model of instruction and evaluation is not sufficient to prepare this next generation for the demands of society. It is appropriate that curricula should be adapted. If necessary, in a disruptive way. The question was how to develop an education module in which students are agents in their learning. In which students decide what and how they will learn, and in which they can prepare for a role in society that is in shock. To propel them in a new direction a disruptive education innovation has been designed and tested. This new method turns the traditional education model upside down. Students and lecturers are transformed in equal partners in aninnovation consultancy firm with a passion for engineering, product design, and with a focus on sustainability transition. Students explore their emotionally intrinsic values that enables them to accomplish great things, to experience meaning in their lives and work, and leads to a significant learning experience.Purpose of this paper is to give individuals and organisations involved in higher education insight into a new method of education based on new values such as student agency, equal partnership, partnership learning communities, significant learning experience, and the strong belief students have the capacity and the willingness to positively influence their own lives and environment
