Prototyping and Insights

Key Questions

Using our refined product dimensions, what is the best material composition?

How do we best incorporate NFC touchpoints into the product?

How can we increase the intuitiveness of our design?

3D Printed

Using the Prusa MK4S 3D printers in the Blow Things Up Lab at CU Boulder, we printed over 20 different prototype models out of PLA filament. The goal of these prototypes was to experiment with aesthetics, understand our manufacturing demands, and improve the fidelity of our pretotypes.

Resin Printed

Using the Form 3 printer in the Idea Forge at CU Boulder, we printed 10 prototype models out of SLA resin. The goal of these prototypes was to continue to experiment with shape and aesthetics, explore our options for material selection, and improve the fidelity of our pretotypes.

Various NFC Shapes and Attachments

In the second phase of our printing process, we combined various NFC sticker shapes and sizes (rectangle, large circle, micro circle) with two different attachment methods: internal or external adherence.

For the internal NFC stickers, our first iteration included a CAD model with an internal void for NFC sticker placement. Our second and preferred iteration involved pausing the 3D printers and gently placing the NFC sticker inside of the product before resuming the print. For the external NFC stickers, we simply wrapped or placed the stickers onto the outside of the product. In doing so, we were able to fine-tune our NFC methodology and improve the user experience, aesthetics, and fidelity of our product.

Intuitive Labeling

In the third phase of our printing process, we explored labeling our prototypes with NFC/RFID and tap-to-share symbols. Drawing from tap-to-pay symbols that exist in the world currently, this step refined our viewpoint on intuitive design features and potential pursuit of multicolor 3D prints for improved fidelity and user experience.

Prototype Testing

To test our prototype concepts, we conducted user clinics with music enthusiasts around the Boulder area:

First User Clinic: David Stuhlemmer, Marketing Manager at Roots Music Project

Second User Clinic: Zach Goldberg, local music enthusiast and student at CU Boulder

Third User Clinic: Sophia Mehdizadeh of Brain Music Lab at CU Boulder

Fourth User Clinic: Kyle Varra, bass player for Flush (@flushthebandmusic)

To conduct these user clinics, we first created an extensive interview outline to guide us through various categories related to our design: barriers, enablers, potential improvements, sustainability considerations, and several contextual factors. With this guide, we conducted 1:1 in-person interviews with those listed above, which took place either in a designated interview room in the CU Boulder Engineering building or within the professional spaces of our users (e.g. Roots Music Project in Boulder). All interviews were recorded and then assessed for qualitative insights that would go on to inform and improve our KeyTunes design.

Initial User Impressions

Updated User Point_of_View Video.mp4

Latest Insights

Letting the user guide us and our design, we learned that:

Every phone is different: No two phones are the same, and they all have NFC readers in different places. Different operating systems also interact with the NFC differently, so there is more work to be done to ensure a smooth user experience when interacting with our product.
NFC can be a struggle: Users initially struggle with the product especially without instruction, but after getting it to work one time, they generally understand and do not need repeat instructions. This is another nod to making sure that our design is intuitive and that users see a place for this concept in the real world.
The price point is reasonable: Users are willing to purchase a KeyTune at an expected price point of $5 or less.

Lastly, the most surprising insight from users was sheer excitement, that the product was "really cool" and "has legs" in a real-world capacity.

Revised Key Performance Indicators

Based on user feedback, our KPIs:

- - - 1. Functionality: Is the NFC response rate consistent and accurate across different phone brands, material considerations, time, and shapes? Does our NFC design allow for individualized customization? Does our design concept add something new to a saturated market of music products?

-Potential Trade-offs: Concept design, quality of NFC, cost, user satisfaction

- - - 1. Size Hand-Feel: How does the product feel in the user's hands? How does it feel in their pockets? What shape is the product (cassette, vinyl, CD case, etc)?

-Potential Trade-offs: Usability, user satisfaction, material selection

- - - 1. Durability: Is our product impact resistant? Can our product survive through daily wear and tear, from shipping to carrying? Does our product provide haptic 'tap' feedback to guide users?

-Potential Trade-offs: Size (thickness) of product, user satisfaction, material selection

- - - 1. Satisfaction Emotional Appeal: Does the product evoke a sense of nostalgia? Does our product achieve a social connection between users? Does the product spark joy?

-Potential Trade-offs: Concept design, material selection, cost, shape

- - - 1. Cost: Is our product accessible in cost to the average user? What's the lowest cost we can achieve without negatively impacting our fabrication process?

-Potential Trade-offs: User satisfaction, manufacturing efficiency, material selection

Evaluation: In this stage, we made excellent progress and approached an excellent product fit. Our product was fully functional, although we were actively working on making the process even more efficient and streamlined. The 3D printed prototypes seemed fairly durable, although a final product may need to be made of a material more geared towards mass production or injection molding.

Overall, the product had a strong emotional appeal. Several test users requested a prototype for themselves, a strong sign that we were on the right track. Similarly, we continue to aim for a $5 price point, which users have expressed a willingness to pay and leaves us with lots of wiggle room for manufacturing. The KPI that required more work is the Hand-Feel. We continued to try new designs for overall product shape, as well as different 3D printing methods to perfect the texture and enhance the user experience.

As we refind our prototype, we continued to explore the following pretotype ideas:

Vinyl Keychain

3D printed with PLA, external NFC sticker (underneath album art in center)

Guitar Pick

3D printed with PLA, internal NFC sticker

Band Sticker

NFC sticker embedded in adhesive backing

Key Takeaways

FABRICATION METHOD: More practice with 3D printing or other fabrication methods will allow us to experiment with NFC placement, shape, color, and visual design of our product. We can especially work to improve the fidelity of our prototypes to reach a more polished, finished feel.

SUSTAINABILITY: As we hone in on a fabrication method, our product could benefit from a more sustainable model of manufacturing. We could explore biodegradable filaments and further ways to reduce our environmental impact.

NFC FEASIBILITY: Tap precision and programming of NFC stickers most heavily impacts user experience, and there is work to do to improve this user pathway as we continue to refine our prototypes.

Initial CAD rendering of our cassette design

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