Full-service product development consultancy Carbon and design consultancy Artefact unveiled Impact - a suite of four concepts designed to motivate energy-efficient behavior in the home.
When Dave McColgin of Artefact first began researching the green design arena, he saw a lot of products designed for the motivated minority-people who were already green-minded and willing to make wholesale changes to live a more sustainable lifestyle. What were missing were solutions for the masses. "Small changes made by millions could have a far greater impact than big changes adopted by just a few," realized McColgin. Artefact and Carbon have frequently partnered for top-tier clients including Intel and Panasonic. Since they shared similar roots, the collaborations have been rewarding, so Artefact invited Carbon to join in on the project.
The core team, comprised of McColgin and Johanna Schoemaker and Jonas Buck of Carbon, brainstormed with a larger group made up of designers from Artefact and both designers and engineers from Carbon. The scope was to envision smart-grid-enabled technologies for energy-use reduction in the home. Traditionally, smart-grid technologies have been approached from the perspective of governments and large corporations. While it's true that these entities will be essential for smart grids to be put in place, these "top down" approaches can overlook an essential component of the energy consumption picture. The consumer. Without engaging the consumers in energy reduction, smart-grid technologies will never reach their full potential.
With the intrinsic value of the user perspective in mind, the team leveraged insights drawn from energy experts and advisors and identified key trouble spots in home energy use. Through this exploration, the team realized that they needed to devise ways for consumers to create impact without giving up convenience. "We felt the most effective path to a more energy efficient life shouldn't be lined with negative feedback or require big lifestyle modifications," explained Schoemaker. A gentle nudge could be worth far more than a hard correction.
The group identified four cornerstone concepts that would be embodied in this "gentle nudge":
Be Aware - Awareness of one's impact is the first, most essential element in creating a cultural shift.
Be Informed - Providing information and feedback at the time you make energy usage decisions.
Motivated - Providing economic and social incentives to increase the desire to change behavior.
Just Be - The greatest impact will be achieved when minimal or no additional user effort is required.
With these four guides, the team created four Impact concepts:
Impact Clock
As much art as it is an expression of energy usage, the hour hand of the Impact Clock etches usage patterns into the clock face, enabling you to see how your current consumption compares with your history. The inner ring displays usage from midnight until noon. The outer ring from noon until midnight. An "energy fingerprint" of your day-to-day usage is created over time. "We chose an analogue indication for this clock because of its lower power consumption, beauty, and the potential to be an heirloom object, less likely to be discarded," explains Schoemaker.
Impact Fridge
A refrigerator door releases a cascading avalanche of cool air the instant it's opened. As the door of the Impact Fridge is opened, a green efficiency bar of light appears. Leave the door open and the light bar becomes shorter as cold air is lost and more energy will be required to replenish it. Close the door and the light bar slowly grows as the inside air temperature is gradually restored. "The efficiency bar gives you a good feeling of the impact of your actions," says Buck. "You see how quickly the temperature increases when you open the door, and how long it takes to cool it again." When the temperature is fully restored, the green bar disappears.
Impact Dishwasher
When not in use, the Impact Dishwasher's control panel lights are switched off. When touched, the control panel comes to life, displaying the setting used. When selecting dishwasher cycle options, you increase the green energy efficiency bar by removing energy-hogging options. "Contextual intervention is key," explains McColgin. "You need to give people the information they need at the exact moment they need it. This enables them to make better choices and take clear, effective action with minimal effort." Fitting naturally into how people live their lives was essential. For example, rather than deciding how long you want to delay the start of the washing cycle, you set when you need the dishes to be clean. This lengthens the green bar further by allowing the dishwasher to run when power grid demands are low. When time allows, the door pops open to air dry the dishes instead of expending energy for heat drying.
Impact App
For those hungry for more information, the Impact App is designed to deliver additional guidance and insight. Socially-generated suggestions from your contacts' real activity provides actionable motivation to stay on budget. Remote control capabilities allow you to turn down your thermostat and immediately see the projected impact of your actions. Share achievements with pride as helpful tips for friends. Devices and behaviors responsible for causing increased usage are identified with suggestive corrective actions.
While all four Impact concepts are smart grid inspired, in many instances, they aren't smart grid required. The Impact Clock, Impact Fridge, and much of the Impact Dishwasher functionality could begin reducing home energy usage far in advance of smart grid technology becoming ubiquitous.
"The Impact designs target barriers to behavioral change to illustrate how well-designed interactions can help consumers make better choices about their energy efficient consumption," added Rob Girling, co-founder of Artefact. The common thread is that you have choice, you have control. The Impact concepts provide you with the information and insight that enables you to make better informed, more energy-efficient choices.
"Both Carbon and Artefact share the vision to make a positive impact on people's lives," said Craig Chamberlain, president of Carbon. "The Impact project is great evidence of this vision."