Stand on Your Head for a Change

Permalink 08/15/04  

"I stand upon my desk to remind myself that we must constantly look at things in a different way." explains Mr. Dalton, Robin Williams's non-conformist character in Dead poet's society. As designers, we basically do this for a living. But some designs even take the concept of giving the user a different viewpoint as their core functionality.
Dead Poets Society
Perspective is such an important thing to consider, especially in designs with a pilot, like a bicycle, or truck cabin. Small changes in field of view can be the difference between life an death for the driver, and passers-by of the vehicle. The recent, much publicized "all female" design of the Volvo YCC sedan emphasized driver field view as one of its major points. And a recent system developed by the NASA Ames Research Center creates a "virtual window" that will allow airline pilots to see through the floor of their planes for easier landings, while maintaining structural integrity of the plane.
Jon HÅKANSSON took this idea to an entirely different degree, with his design of a new Volvo excavator concept. By mounting the cabin on a computer controlled pivoting system, the driver has full control over positioning of the cabin for the best view of the work. Some very interesting positions are possible. Obviously, it's going to be a good deal of trouble to get the mechanical side of the design working, because of the weight of the cabin. And the control of the capsule is not explained - the operator will be using their hands already for the arm, which is a two-joystick control. But those problems seem worth solving given the greater precision with which the operator will be able to work.
What other opportunities are there for perspective giving in design? How could you apply these ideas to kitchen appliance function? Or to clothing? It's definitely an opportunity.
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