GRIP
When designing a PSS, designers try to find a balance between flexibility and control to create effective and socially responsible value for users and other stakeholders.GRIP was about how designers achieve a balance between flexibility and control when designing PSS, leading to the creation of effective and socially responsible value for users and other stakeholders. When designing from a system perspective, the creative control of design is structurally lower than in product design. The designers have to deal with complex, dynamic environments and need to negotiate decisions with a range of stakeholders. The PSS development process is less formalized and is characterized by a high level of co-creation and co-production. This raises questions like how tight should the designer's grip on the processes and outcomes of design be, when working together with end-users and other partners in PSS development?
What questions were being answered?
Teams from 3 universities and Industry partners were working together to answer the question: How do designers strike a balance between flexibility versus control when designing PSS, leading to the creation of effective and socially responsible value for users and other stakeholders?
What have the teams achieved?
Using generalised cases, the team has monitored and measured work related stress in the office environment in order to gain a broader understanding of the problems of the issues of flexibility and control. This helped to create the methodological support needed for the design of effective and commercially viable PSS with a high societal value.
Timeframe and communication:
Grip started in 2011 and finished in 2015. Throughout the project, we have published in a range of professional journals, including the development of manuals for the effective design of healthcare and service industry PSS. Progress was published via this website and explored in workshops.
Who was involved?
Scientific partners: Delft University of Technology, Eindhoven University of Technology and the Design Academy Eindhoven;
Industry partner: Philips Design.
Project leaders
dr. Evelien van de Garde, Delft University of Technology
Dr. Dirk Snelders, Eindhoven University of Technology
publications
prototypes
-
ReSeat
ReSeat is an intelligent office chair recognising sitting postures and behaviour, and their association to stress. Responding to this data the chair mechanically adapts through tilting, to stabilise or destabilise your position, thus physically reinforcing your stress awareness. -
Breathe-E
Breathe-e, can be used within the relaxation space 3.0 to measure HRV and breathing rate during a relaxation session in order to customize the behavior of the installation to personal parameters. -
Chaos vs Stress: Solar Desk
Chaos vs. Stress is about periods of stress, and how you can see the chaos in someone’s mind reflected in his/her environment (e.g. Computer screen, work desk). Solar desk stops energy supply when the chaos has become too much. -
The Office Pet: Submissive Office Stationery
Office pet aims at releasing tension generated by stress and at collecting information about the most stressful moments in a day at work by promoting physical agression through hitting office stationery. The data are recorded every time a device gets hit, are collected and comparable over time. -
Typing Stress
In typing stress products & tools that we use in our daily work are used to gather and visualize data concerning behavior changes that are caused by stress. Data regarding stress is collected through the keyboard (e.g. pressure applied while typing, number of times backspace is used). -
GRIP service model
Stress at work may be unhealthy but is also necessary, at some level, in order to be alert when required – how to find the right balance can differ according to the context and situation. This makes stress a typical topic for Product Service System design – where designers look for a balance between control over the outcome of their work, and flexibility in accommodating a multitude of changing circumstances and contexts. Such designs follow certain principles and are based on models, but have many different (and sometimes unforeseen) outcomes and results. The GRIP service model is a prime example. -
Adaptive Relaxation Space
Work-related stress opens up a wide range of end-users and stakeholders: The employee himself, his co-workers, coaches, family and friends and so on. There are laws and regulations and some of the players in this field are commercially based, some are social organisations. The question for our team was: What is the added value of designers in this case? What is here to be designed? We have started by doing some speculative design research and then focused on the Philips prototype for a relaxation space. The adaptive relaxation space combines several proven technologies. It features pulsing light, which brings down your heart rate. The sound in the room and some other multi-sensory aspects adapt to the number of persons in the room.
-
Rhythm Pad
Device that enhances breathing relaxation through physical movement -
Zen Pebbles
-
Fragrant Breaks Reminder
Fragrant Breaks Reminder releases frangrance to temporarily distract you from work, and subtly remind you to take a coffee, perform some physical activity, go into nature, or take a break. -
Reco
Smartphone app that provides feedback on stress level and tips for relaxation. -
Kükle
Kükle was developed for self-reflection and informative reflection to others, which can be used as stress reliever. -
Beauty of Stress
Beautiful visualisation of stress levels within a group by ink droplets in water. The Beauty of Stress assesses aggregate stress levels of a group of workers over the course of the day. It provides feedback by publically displaying beautiful colour patterns. -
Little Devil
Object to display level of stress to worker and colleagues through negative reinforcement ("an excuse for non-smokers to take a break"). Little Devil registers how long office workers sit at their desk uninterruptedly. Placed on top of the desk, the object shows the progressive build-up of stress, up to a point where it ‘chases’ workers away from their desks. -
Co-cup
Stimulates social connection & break taking between remote colleagues by connected coffee cups. Co-Cup is intended for home workers to share coffee breaks with remote colleagues. They do so by drinking from smart cups that are connected to each other and to an application for casual video communication.