Abstract
This chapter includes the final phase of the Re-Coding Homes Project, which has been conducted as a TUBITAK (The Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey) research. In the case of Istanbul-Maltepe Başıbüyük Housing, which was constructed by TOKI (Housing Development Administration) within the final phase of the study, a digital interface has been designed and operated in order to bring all the outputs of the project as variations, which are customized for different users. The interface works as a website, which includes representation and information on different variations offered by the design model. With the web interface, a system has been obtained in order to provide user participation and mass customization as well, as it will contain information about the project and will be used as a communication tool to share this information.
TopBackground
User participation issue in design fields was examined in different ways and for different purposes. Sanoff (2008) argues that design processes with user participation are applied in many different disciplines from urban design and planning to industrial and information technology. He defines participatory design as an attitude about a force for change in the creation and management of environments for people (Sanoff, 2008). The activity of community participation is based on the principle that the environment works better if citizens are active and involved in its creation and management instead of being treated as passive consumers (Sanoff, 2000).
Today, user participation in design can be provided interactively and effectively for different purposes, thanks to digital technologies. Different professions engaged in the design actively involve the participatory design within the design process. As an example, industrial designers carry out surveys for the designs of refrigerators, teapots or walnut crushers and generate a large dataset to ensure that their product meets the user requirements.
Interior design studies deal with user participaton in design in different ways. In recent years, a wide variety of applications have emerged in the fields of interior architecture and furniture design with different perspectives and objectives. As workplaces are places that we spend most of our time, their interiors need to be reconfigured so that creativity and productivity can be better promoted. Campos et all. (2018) designed a prototype of personal working environment which composes an interactive furniture. To gain initial understanding factors effecting the creativity and ergonomy in working places, a pilot study was conducted with participants from a local co-working space, who were invited to take part in an interview, as well as to submit a diary over disruptions in their work over two weeks’ time. By using a multi-sensorial interaction process by means of participatory design an interactive furniture was designed which increased the creativity and comfort.
Key Terms in this Chapter
Participatory Design (User Participation in Design): Involving the users in design and management process instead of being treated as passive consumers.
Modular Design: Design based on interchangeable components in order to increase flexibility.
Expert System: A computer program that uses artificial intelligence (AI) technologies to simulate the judgment and behavior of a human or an organization.
User-Centered Design: Design that evaluates user needs and preferences at all stages of the design process.
Genetic Algorithms: A computational and generative design approach which is used to solve non-lineer design problems.
Flexible Interior Design: Interior design that can be used for different activities and purposes at different times.
Mass-Customization (MC): Producing products that are customized due to the clients’ requests, characteristics, etc.