Safer Together
This project explored solutions to the problem of how individuals can feel safer while commuting or walking through public spaces at night. Safer Together is a small companion toy that can improve an individual's perception of their safety, with personal protection features built in.
Work For
Capstone Project - The University of Sydney
Tools
Figma, 3D printing, Arduino, Adobe Creative Suite
Skills
Behavioral Science, User Research, Product Design, Wizard-of-Oz Prototyping
Year
Fall 2021
In 2015, the United Nations member states presented their aim to "provide universal access to safe, inclusive and accessible, green and public spaces." We aimed to contribute to this by exploring the question:
How might we inculcate the feeling of safety within individuals travelling in public spaces at night?
Context Building
We conducted interviews and learnt from behavioral science and architecture to understand why people feel unsafe. We found that perceieved safety had a greater impact than actual safety, as user confidence changed their behaviors in public spaces.
The Product
Our solution was finalized after two rounds of paper prototypes and Wizard-of-Oz testing, where we tested both the effectiveness of the companion toy and the functionality of the app.
The companion toy was found to create friendship and confidence, by providing a light in the dark, pairing individuals walking alone with other individuals feeling unsafe, permitting family to track their location, or alerting the police at the press of a button. The toy created a sense of familiarity within the user, by being an easily attachable cute plushie. The app allowed for additional support in case of an emergency by creating a loud noise to alarm any attacker and alert those around.
Gallery
