The development of a performance hand wear and tools product innovation framework
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Date
2020
Authors
Sokolowski, Susan L.
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Springer Open
Abstract
Humans wear products and use tools that interface with their hands to provide abrasion
resistance, impact protection, grip, thermal comfort, and detailed maneuvers. The
skills needed to design new and innovative products for the hand are multi-faceted.
Academic programs in the US typically focus on soft goods (textile and apparel) or hard
goods (industrial and product design/engineering) based design. Therefore, students
often do not learn all of the available skills and technologies needed to design hand
wear performance products because of the pedagogical split between the different
academic disciplines. This case study outlines a three-phase innovation framework, for
use by designers throughout the product creation process, specifically for creating performance
products and tools for the hand. The phases include strategies for: (1) understanding
the hand wear and tool project background, (2) defining the user’s 3D and 2D
hand and (3) hand wear and tool product innovation. The paper will also demonstrate
how the framework was implemented by students in a graduate level design studio,
to create new gloves for athletes. The framework could also be used by students and
professionals to design innovative products for other users and to improve safety and
overall performance.
Description
18 pages
Keywords
Innovation framework, Hand wear, Gloves, Tools, Design
Citation
Sokolowski, S. L. (2020). The development of a performance hand wear and tools product innovation framework. Fashion and Textiles, 7, 1-18. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40691-020-0205-1