The development of conceptual models and frameworks to inform design for co‐design in mass customisation

As mass customisation (MC) grows in both popularity and accessibility, there is an increasing understanding of its practical implementation. Much of the current research in the field of MC is quantitative; driven by the business, engineering and management perspectives crucial in operationalising the process. The customer codesigner is acknowledged as an integral part of the MC product and purchasing process, yet the experience of the customer as a co‐designer remains relatively unexplored in the literature. This thesis stems from the design research disciplines and reports on an investigation of individual customer co‐design experiences. This research study posits that the experience of co‐design consists not only of the specific activities at the ‘product configurator’ (as commonly described in the literature), but instead that a co‐design experience comprises four distinct stages that encompass the entire purchasing experience from the beginning of co‐design activity through to the receipt of the customised product and beyond; these stages being ‘explore’, ‘engage’, ‘anticipate’ and ‘own’. A multi‐method research design is used comprising: literature review; immersive research techniques; customer journey mapping and design probes. From case studies of each customer codesign experience, relatable information and insights can be drawn that inform designing for co‐design. This doctoral study presents series of new relatable models and frameworks that surpass anything currently available in the literature. They conceptualise and visualise the customer co‐design experience, and inform design for co‐design. These reveal not only what is happening now, but also support proposals for what could or should be happening now. The product envelope model brings together the findings from both the MC and customer experience literature to place the solution space within its broader context, highlighting the importance of service and brand within an MC product offering. The customer corridor model characterises the stages and phases of a co‐design experience within the product envelope and choreographs the interplay between co‐designer and producer. The experience matrix provides a visual representation of the placement and duration of key touch points that occur across the customer corridor, and offers a systematic approach to considering the role of enduring touch points throughout a co‐design experience. In concluding this phase of the work, new opportunities have emerged that provide alternative approaches for understanding and designing for customer co‐design experiences

Participatory Design in a compressed timeframe, through an unConference format

The paper proposes a model - the 4 Es - for delivery of co-design activity over a short timeframe. This is discussed through the context of a case-study around an unConference event in Nairobi with the Fuel from Waste Network

Development of a design probe to reveal customer touch points in the sale of mass customised products

As mass customisation (MC) increases in both popularity and accessibility, it raises questions as to the nature and notion of the customer co-design experience; what is a ‘co-design experience’, and how can this be best designed for? This paper posits that by its very nature, a co-design experience consists of activities that relate to the co-design of the product via the product configurator (physical store, online store etc), but also that a co-design experience is broader than that, comprising both tangible and intangible elements, and encompassing the entire purchasing experience from the beginning of co-design activity through to the receipt of the customised product and beyond. Traditional research methods will often fail to capture the entirety of this experience. This paper highlights the need for empathic research methods which go beyond current research within the field of MC, and discusses the development of a design probe used to gain insight into co-design experiences

X-ray specs, stickers and colouring in: seeing beyond the configurator using design probes

The broad spectrum of research within the field of MC to date has done much to further knowledge relating to the practical implementation of designing and manufacturing custom, co-designed products. However, research into the customer experience remains limited. There is a need to understand both the nature of the codesign experience in MC, and how to design for it? The selection of research methods used to explore this area appears imperative in uncovering useful and relevant data and insights. This paper discusses the application of design probes as a research method for a means of exploring what the literature refers to as the 'multifaceted phenomenon' of customer experience, and introduces a research project using these tools for the construction of conceptual models

Design for subjective wellbeing: towards a design framework for constructing narrative

We explore the role that interaction with products and services can play in the narratives that we develop about ourselves. We propose a four-level model, which seeks to explain this and use it as the basis for analyzing eight immersion studies. In each, we investigate the role that products and services play in shaping narratives, which in turn reflect our self-identity. We also look at archetypes – the various ideals that we can have about ourselves – and at how the alignment of narratives with these enhances our wellbeing. The model offers the potential to link narrative to design features and to identify new market opportunities. However, we recognize there may be challenges in enabling people to articulate narrative and identify their ideal archetype

Hard-to-get-at data from difficult-to-access users

This paper reports on the design and development of a suite of tools to collect, analyze and visualize a diverse range of data from sufferers of mental ill-health. The aim is to allow researchers and ultimately sufferers and clinicians to better understand the ‘individual signatures’ of factors that indicate or identify episodes of ill-health. The tools have been applied as part of a study working with clients of a mental health service that demonstrates positive results con-cerning the applicability and acceptability of the approach in developing a bet-ter understanding of the factors surrounding self-harm behavior

SenseMap: supporting browser-based online sensemaking through analytic provenance

Sensemaking is described as the process in which people collect, organize and create representations of information, all centered around some problem they need to understand. People often get lost when solving complicated tasks using big datasets over long periods of exploration and analysis. They may forget what they have done, are unaware of where they are in the context of the overall task, and are unsure where to continue. In this paper, we introduce a tool, SenseMap, to address these issues in the context of browser-based online sensemaking. We conducted a semi-structured interview with nine participants to explore their behaviors in online sensemaking with existing browser functionality. A simplified sensemaking model based on Pirolli and Card's model is derived to better represent the behaviors we found: users iteratively collect information sources relevant to the task, curate them in a way that makes sense, and finally communicate their findings to others. SenseMap automatically captures provenance of user sensemaking actions and provides multi-linked views to visualize the collected information and enable users to curate and communicate their findings. To explore how SenseMap is used, we conducted a user study in a naturalistic work setting with five participants completing the same sensemaking task related to their daily work activities. All participants found the visual representation and interaction of the tool intuitive to use. Three of them engaged with the tool and produced successful outcomes. It helped them to organize information sources, to quickly find and navigate to the sources they wanted, and to effectively communicate their findings

SenseMap: Supporting Browser-based Online Sensemaking through Analytic Provenance

Sensemaking is described as the process in which people collect, organize and create representations of information, all centered around some problem they need to understand. People often get lost when solving complicated tasks using big datasets over long periods of exploration and analysis. They may forget what they have done, are unaware of where they are in the context of the overall task, and are unsure where to continue. In this paper, we introduce a tool, SenseMap, to address these issues in the context of browser-based online sensemaking. We conducted a semistructured interview with nine participants to explore their behaviors in online sensemaking with existing browser functionality. A simplified sensemaking model based on Pirolli and Card’s model is derived to better represent the behaviors we found: users iteratively collect information sources relevant to the task, curate them in a way that makes sense, and finally communicate their findings to others. SenseMap automatically captures provenance of user sensemaking actions and provides multi-linked views to visualize the collected information and enable users to curate and communicate their findings. To explore how SenseMap is used, we conducted a user study in a naturalistic work setting with five participants completing the same sensemaking task related to their daily work activities. All participants found the visual representation and interaction of the tool intuitive to use. Three of them engaged with the tool and produced successful outcomes. It helped them to organize information sources, to quickly find and navigate to the sources they wanted, and to effectively communicate their findings

Co-creating solutions to local mobility and transport challenges for the enhancement of health and wellbeing in an area of socioeconomic disadvantage

Introduction: The paper describes and examines a novel methodology to co-define transport and mobility challenges and co-create solutions with residents of a socioeconomically disadvantaged area within Oxford in the UK. The co-creation methodology is examined in relation to the extent of participation, inclusivity, transparency, interactivity, scale, sustainability/continuity, replicability, potential for co-benefits. Methods: A Citizen Mobility Community was established with local residents at the core, and including representatives from the local authority, and other stakeholders. The paper describes the main elements of the co-creation process applied to identify mobility challenges, identify solutions, endorse the mobility solutions, and develop the solutions into practical action. Setting: The setting was the Eastern Arc of Oxford, the most socioeconomically deprived area in Oxford. Results: A sequence of co-creation activities helped identify and understand the transport challenges in Barton in the Eastern Arc of Oxford. Challenges included the high cost of public transport, traffic congestion, particularly during morning peak times, and the lack of cross-connectivity and direct public transport routes to desirable locations including affordable supermarkets, train stations, workplaces, health services such as hospitals and other neighbourhoods. The co-creation methodology led to the development of three pilot interventions to address these challenges, namely face-to-face transport app training, a transport to supermarkets shuttle service, and an information campaign about concessionary bus passes. Analysis of the co-creation methodology found that the process achieved its aims of empowering citizens in decision making about addressing locally experienced transport challenges, and building social capital. Conclusions: The co-creation enables communities in areas of socioeconomic disadvantage to identify their transport challenges, and to co-develop and co-design practical solutions. Co-creation to address local transport needs builds community empowerment, creates social capital and may contribute, through plausible causal pathways, to improved health and wellbeing in an area of socioeconomic disadvantage

Compound-specific Carbon Isotope Compositions of Aldehydes and Ketones in the Murchison Meteorite

Compoundspecific carbon isotope analysis (13C) of meteoritic organic compounds can be used to elucidate the abiotic chemical reactions involved in their synthesis. The soluble organic content of the Murchison carbonaceous chondrite has been extensively investigated over the years, with a focus on the origins of amino acids and the potential role of Streckercyanohydrin synthesis in the early solar system. Previous 13C investigations have targeted amino acid and hydroxy acid Strecker products and reactant HCN; however, 13C values for meteoritic aldehydes and ketones (Strecker precursors) have not yet been reported. As such, the distribution of aldehydes and ketones in the cosmos and their role in prebiotic reactions have not been fully investigated. Here, we have applied an optimized O(2,3,4,5,6pentafluorobenzyl)hydroxylamine (PFBHA) derivatization procedure to the extraction, identification, and 13C analysis of carbonyl compounds in the Murchison meteorite. A suite of aldehydes and ketones, dominated by acetaldehyde, propionaldehyde, and acetone, were detected in the sample. 13C values, ranging from 10.0 to +66.4, were more 13Cdepleted than would be expected for aldehydes and ketones derived from the interstellar medium, based on interstellar 12C/13C ratios. These relatively 13Cdepleted values suggest that chemical processes taking place in asteroid parent bodies (e.g., oxidation of the IOM) may provide a secondary source of aldehydes and ketones in the solar system. Comparisons between 13C compositions of meteoritic aldehydes and ketones and other organic compound classes were used to evaluate potential structural relationships and associated reactions, including Strecker synthesis and alterationdriven chemical pathways