The Task
The first step of the design process focused on identifying the problem we are trying to solve with our product. Other activities in this step included conducting surveys, reaching out to possible mentors, creating a demand and wish list, and researching the market and audience. This design step ended off with a project proposal for our product. We had two weeks to finish this step. All of the work was conducted over Zoom or individually. It was difficult managing time and juggling tasks with peers, but we managed to pull through successfully.
Organizing with a Gantt Chart
Organization is by far the most important thing to have in the Capstone Project. Without organization, the project will fall apart. In the first week, Mr. Tronconi taught us about Toggl Plan, a website that creates Gantt charts. Invented by Henry Gantt in the early 20th century, a Gantt chart allows tasks to be organized in a clear, concise way. We will use this chart to coordinate tasks with the team in the future. The following is our Gantt chart.
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Brainstorming with Padlet
Mr. Tronconi also introduced us to Padlet, a website that allows us to brainstorm visually. Padlet creates notes that can have text, links, or images. These notes can be moved around and connected together. We put ideas, useful resources, and references in the Padlet. Our Padlet had a critical role in helping us come up with our main idea.
Our idea is to create an XLR cable with limited preamp and EQ functionality. |
Mentors
In order to help the project move more smoothly, we reached out to potential mentors for the project. Because of personal connections and extracurricular activities, we were able to reach out to very helpful mentors who now assist us with the project. We will regularly contact them using Zoom and Slack.
Emanuel LaCarrubba - Audio Engineer, Sausalito Audio
https://www.secretsofthepros.com/mannylacarrubba/ [email protected] |
Logo
Our team name is Ampliteam, and we were required to create a logo for it. Although the team is limited in terms of art skills, we were able to hire some out-of-state help through connections. Our logo has little pop, but makes up for it with the calm color scheme. The cursive in the center says "Ampliteam" and is wrapped by an XLR cable. The logo was vectorized with Inkscape and it will be used in future documents.
Big thanks to Isabella and Emory for creating the logo! |
Human Centered Design Research
With our problem determined, our next step was to research the market. In our case, it is the audio engineering market. We had to research products that already solved our issue and the weaknesses with those solution. From there, we also considered our target audience with our product. Our product can't appeal to professional musicians with higher quality gear. So, amateur musicians is the better choice because it provides a cheap solution to unbalanced audio during rehearsals. This document shows our research.
The Demand and Wish Lists and the Surveys
After determining our problem, market, and target audience, we had to come up with demands and wishes. These demands and wishes applied to our product. It represents what the features or characteristics the product needs (demands) and should have (wishes). We created an initial version, then conducted two surveys to gather the opinions of the student body regarding rehearsing. After looking at the date, we revised the document, creating a new one. The new one also has the survey data and analysis of it.
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First Version
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Revised Version
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Project Proposal
All this work and research was consolidated into one final project proposal. In the proposal, we present the issue we're trying to solve and why. We discuss our research in the market and target audiences and our developmental process. We define any important terms, mention the budget, and credit our mentors. Lastly, we talk about our plans moving forward and any potential roadblocks we will have to overcome.
Reflection
The first step of the Capstone Project sets the overall tone for the team. We face major challenges, with COVID-19 and wildfires forcing us to stay home. Despite these setbacks, the team was able to work around these. My group has been extremely efficient in meeting deadlines and finishing tasks on time. We have put in our best work so far, and plan to continue this trend. One of my strengths during this first phase was my work in outreach. I was able to connect with Chris Fehring, an extremely valuable mentor who gave us tons of websites and books to use as reference. I was also able to reach out to my friends and give them a commission for the logo. These individuals helped out project run more smoothly. Another strength I had was my work on the demand and wish list. Working on this objective required critical thinking, research, and data analysis, and I was able to pull my weight in all those sectors and more. I was able to deduce many facts from our survey data and wrote it down. In addition, I was able to look at the market and note the demands and wishes of those in the market.
With these strengths came weaknesses. One weakness I had was my contribution to the Human Centered Design Research Document. One of my teammates focused most of their energy on the document and I did very little to assist. In this project, we need to work in every sector for the most efficiency. Our teammate was certainly under a lot of pressure and I should've helped alleviate some of that pressure. Another weakness I had was my minimal contribution to the Padlet. While it was true I worked and brainstormed some ideas, my teammates did a lot more on the Padlet. I could've and should've brainstormed more ideas. Our current idea is good, but if I brainstormed more we would've arrived at the destination faster.
Despite these weaknesses, I still worked very hard and pulled through despite the current status quo. Ampliteam is extremely efficient and hard-working and I am glad I chose this group for the CAPSTONE Project. I can't wait for what is in store next.
With these strengths came weaknesses. One weakness I had was my contribution to the Human Centered Design Research Document. One of my teammates focused most of their energy on the document and I did very little to assist. In this project, we need to work in every sector for the most efficiency. Our teammate was certainly under a lot of pressure and I should've helped alleviate some of that pressure. Another weakness I had was my minimal contribution to the Padlet. While it was true I worked and brainstormed some ideas, my teammates did a lot more on the Padlet. I could've and should've brainstormed more ideas. Our current idea is good, but if I brainstormed more we would've arrived at the destination faster.
Despite these weaknesses, I still worked very hard and pulled through despite the current status quo. Ampliteam is extremely efficient and hard-working and I am glad I chose this group for the CAPSTONE Project. I can't wait for what is in store next.