our approach & process

conduct secondary research
conduct co-design research sessions with target users
create low-fidelity feature sketches + validate with target users
define a set of principles and guidelines for applying adaptable design to the home space
iterate on sketches + prototype high-fidelity 3D feature renderings

design questions

how might we design home features that accommodate progressive changes in function to disabilities and aging?

how might we design home features such that they also promote positive psychological and social health for their users?

secondary research

we conducted a literature review, subject matter expert interviews, and a competitive analysis in order to gain a better understanding of the state of inclusive design in the architectural space.

co-design research sessions

we conducted 5 co-design sessions with individuals over 60 who experience mobility challenges.

Our focus in these sessions was to identify key challenges and advantages of participants’ kitchen and bathroom spaces, and collaboratively design potential features that could help address these challenges.

key physical challenges

Difficulties with:

Bending | Turning and Torquing | Lifting | Standing for long periods of time | Low energy levels

key emotional challenges

Concerns about:

Psychological identity | Aging in place / needing to move | Finding community | Physical safety

early sketches & concepts

Fueled with findings and ideas from co-design sessions, we created low-fidelity concept sketches in Procreate and conducted short concept evaluation follow-up sessions with 3 of our target users.

A sketch of a movable kitchen island on wheels and a swivel cutting board on top. On the side of the island are openings for compost and garbage.

A sketch of a large kitchen island with a top-loading dishwasher, push to open storage, and a pull-out microwave.

A sketch of a movable kitchen island with recycling and trash bins that can be pulled forward

A sketch of an ergonomic shower chair that can be moved around. Also pictured are a detachable shower head on the wall, and storage that doubles as a grab hold

A sketch of a set of pulleys above a bathtub. It indicates that the pulleys can be moved up and down and be used to help get into the bathtub

A sketch of a zero-entry shower that has a foldable bench with foldout arms.

adaptable design principles

In order to make our work actionable beyond the scope of our project, we also defined a set of principles and guidelines that synthesize our most important learnings from our process.

We worked to connect our high-fidelity prototypes to the guidelines developed, so that other practioners can understand how to apply them.

You can view these principles + guidelines on the adaptable design page and see how they are exemplifed by our designs in the home tour.

high-fidelity concepts

Based on our evaluation sessions, we iterated on our concept sketches and created 3D prototypes using SketchUp, resulting in the renderings below.

Check out an interactive walkthrough of these features on the home tour page.

Kitchen

Movable island + pullout cutting board

$A close up on a kitchen stool that has four wheels, a foot rest, and a rounded back. The stool is located between the kitchen\'s back wall and central island.$