This was a group project that Haoting participated in during his undergraduate study. There were a total of four designers in the group. The project started in Apr, 2018 and finishe on May, 2018.
Context
The goal of this project was to improve the user experience of sink water in the U.S. through technology integration and implementation of sink IOT (internet of things) and ubiquitous computing systems.
Problem
When people are using the sink, they cannot control exact water temperature and do not know the quality of water coming out of the tap, such as how much particle are in your water that should be filtered out.
Solution
By implementing AI and IOT technology, we created a product called Maelstrom. Maelstrom is a home automation device that makes water filtering and water usage tracking super easy.
The interface of Maelstrom connects to a water filtration and heating system under the kitchen sink. Allowing users to easily adjust temperature and keep track of monthly water usage. Maelstrom will also offer easy access to details like the quality of water, and compare with before and after filtration.
Research
When we started our IOT research, we looked at Nest and Echo Dot for inspiration. After learning about smart bathroom appliances, we decided to create a device for the sink water filtration and temperature control.
Good water pressure is something most homeowners take for granted. There's nothing worse than coming home from a hard day at work, looking forward to a nice shower, only to be met by trickling water due to low pressure. On the other hand, excessively high pressure can be a source of great stress and frustration. Our original concept was a water filtration and usage tracking device for the shower. We conducted our research and sketched out ideas, but we realized that most people don’t really care about the water quality in their shower. We decided that our concept would be better suited for the kitchen sink, and Maelstrom was born.
Sketches
Final Design
User Interface
Bill of Materials
Maelstrom can be easily disassembled for recycling. The entire device comes completely apart with only 4 screws. One of our goals was to design a device that was both easy to use and easy to recycle.
Team
Francisco Rullan
Victoria Black
Elijah Terrell
Haoting Guan
