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Collaborative Product Design

Course project

The project was a collaboration between PAX Scientific and MCAD to redesign the Flair Fan. The Flair Fan can reduce up to 85% of power usage and 72% of loudness compared to some other fans on the market. Responsible for the improvement in performance was the fan blade that was designed according to the natural flow of whirlpool. A few redesign options were created to help spread the adoption of the fan blade.

There were five members in the MCAD design team, including the author. The author was responsible for the disassembly of the product, the management of the Life Cycle Assessment worksheet and calculation, the derivation of the bushing solution to retrofit the PAX fan blade onto some existing fans, and the 3D modeling of the redesigned fan. The disassembly of the original product included characterizing of the components by weight and by type, and documenting the disassembly process.

About the course

"How do we design real products for real companies, benefiting customers, the companies themselves, and the rest of the world? And how do we know they are better? This studio course provides tools for sustainable design innovation and metrics to measure success. Students use creative and analytical skills, generating new ideas and 3D CAD renderings and evaluating designs with screening-level life-cycle assessments and two eco-labeling systems (Cradle to Cradle and EPEAT). Green innovation tools taught include systems thinking, energy effectiveness, lightweighting, design for lifetime (repair, recycling, etc.), material choice, biomimicry, and persuasive design. Some assignments are individual and theoretical, but the bulk of the course is spent working in groups, using tools such as message boards and screen-sharing video chats."

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