Increasing independence of visually impaired swimmers
Guido is a smart swimsuit focused on visually impaired swimmers. During the process, there was a great focus on the user. I loved the fact that I could design for a real client. Together with my group, we had a really user focused approach, and had close contact with our user group. It was an honor to meet a Paralympic gold medal winner and actually design for her. I came to realize how important it is to actually involve the user within design processes. Desktop research can be useful, but I am convinced that going out in the field to see what your user group is facing with is much more valuable. You get social contact, as well as a deeper insight into the needs of your user group. In this way, you can create relevant designs, which is really rewarding for both the user and the designers themselves.
Concept explorations
Final prototype
The final concept design of Guido utilized vibrations incorporated in the swimming suit to indicate the swimmer needed to make a turn, or was drifting to either side of the swimming lane.
