The Bongiovi Aria
Company J. Walter Thompson New York
Introduction Date May 15, 2018
Project Website http://viewthework.com/aria/
Why is this project worthy of an award?
Tony Bongiovi is an award-winning engineer and record producer known for his audio technology breakthroughs that revolutionized the music industry. Through the traditions of Tony’s world-renowned Power Station Studios, Bongiovi Acoustic Labs brings unique, cutting-edge and high-quality sound to people all over the world through their patented DPS (Digital Power Station) technology. After Tony Bongiovi conferred with prominent medical doctors, technologists and researchers, Bongiovi Medical & Health Technologies (BMHT) was born and now holds the patent rights for DPS in the medical and health fields. The patented, FDA-listed, MDPS (Medical Digital Power Station) algorithm is specially calibrated and verified for commercial and medical applications. MDPS has the ability to remaster audio in real time – instantly mapping shortcomings lost in digital conversion, restoring frequency responses and delivering advanced audio quality. Together, J. Walter Thompson New York and Bongiovi Acoustic Labs incorporated this audio technology into a medical device for the first time. By combining carefully studied ergonomics and user experience in the fields of audio technology and healthcare, J. Walter Thompson discovered new possibilities for Bongiovi in the future of telemedicine. The Aria is a prototype of a 3D-printed digital stethoscope, enhanced with Bongiovi’s MDPS technology. It is a design approach to audio innovation in healthcare that delivers a low-cost telemedicine solution to those in need around the world. According to our research, 65% of Americans think healthcare is too expensive and almost 9% of adults have no medical insurance coverage. In fact, more than one third of Americans have claimed not to visit their doctor when they should have because of cost. Through the creation of the Aria, we aim to show that audio technology can be applied affordably to medical devices, to make healthcare more accessible. Through our customized mobile platform, the Aria offers remote patient monitoring to healthcare professionals and patients across the globe. In order to maintain cost-efficiency and maximize reach, we designed the Aria platform for Android devices and created the acquisition unit using low-cost 3D-printed materials. The acquisition unit was designed to capture vital sounds as naturally as possible and then the MDPS processes the audio signal in real-time. The algorithm’s 120 calibration points optimizes sound quality by adding definition, depth, clarity and stereo imaging. Most of the Aria’s functionality, like hearing, visualizing, recording, and storing patient data is possible without an internet connection, but once connected those file can be shared. The Aria also features a disposable hygienic shield that covers the acquisition unit to help reduce the spread of disease in high risk situations. By incorporating Bongiovi’s MDPS algorithm we were able to put most of the heavy on the technology and design a more affordable telemedicine system.
What else would you like to share about your design? Why is it unique and innovative?
Through our strategic partnership, J. Walter Thompson was able to move Bongiovi Acoustic Labs’ audio technology into the world of healthcare. Enhanced with Bongiovi’s patented algorithm, the Aria now adds clarity, depth, definition, and stereo imaging to improve vital sounds in real-time. This advanced technology in conjunction with the telemedicine platform and low-cost acquisition unit, allows us to deliver a more affordable healthcare solution to those in need around the world. It has the potential to improve accuracy of medical diagnoses by allowing doctors to easily seek second opinions from colleges anywhere in the world. Its ability to provide continuous monitoring from home helps reduce the number of office visits and its associated costs while still allowing doctors to check on their patients’ progress. Aria puts superior medical diagnostics into the hands of doctors, home-care workers and telemedicine operators around the world.
Who worked on the project?
Ben James, Chief Creative Officer Brent Choi, President & Chief Creative Officer Sherri Chambers, Chief Marketing Officer Kathleen Boehl, Art Director & Copywriter Vaibhav Bhanot, Experience Designer Conor Bennett, Account Supervisor Reiss Gaspard, New Business Coordinator Justin Snow, Co-Director & Editor Kevin Tkach, Co-Director & Motion Graphics Designer Aaron Padin, Head of Art & Design Emely Perez, Senior Designer Christine Petrosky, Designer Kamran Aslam, Director of Technology Jennifer Usdan McBride, Director of Digital Sujay Debsikdar, Quality Assurance Manager Connor Zazzo, Associate Producer Paul Greco, Director of Music & Radio Will Sandwick, Head of Data & Analytics Joanne Beltran-Lam, Associate Director, Analytics Juan Turcios, Associate Director of Technology - Front End Development Scott Lewis, ECD and Creative Consultant Veronica Cohen, Resource Coordinator
View the project video: http://viewthework.com/aria/, http://viewthework.com/ariawellbeing
The Dive/VR Games for Leadership
Company Resourceful Humans
Introduction Date January 9, 2017
Project Website http://www.resourceful-humans.com
Why is this project worthy of an award?
The type of leadership needed to solve the problems of the world today is different than the leadership style we have been teaching for decades. “Command and control” leadership limits people’s ability to be innovative and contribute their talent and skills fully. “The Dive” was design as a Virtual Reality game that allows leaders to experience first hand a new bread of network leadership that is already transforming companies such as Accenture Technology. By playing “The Dive” Leaders are confronted with the limitation of centralized power. They experience how to lead without telling others what to do. Enabling individuals to be self-led with the most clarity on the missions they are being confronted with. Having a Virtual Reality experience allows top leaders to understand immediately, emotionally and psychologically how will it feel to (let-go) but still lead the team to achieve their goals. We believe that “The Dive” can transform leaders way of thinking as a key step of organizational transformation. Based on the incredible story of Captain (retired) David Marquet in turning the nuclear submarine USS Santa Fe into the best performing Navy vessel in history, we partnered to digitise his crew’s journey in virtual reality. Supported by the executive advise of Dan Walker, former CHRO of Apple during Steve Jobs second coming, we infused Leadership Change with an incredible amount of emotionality. Instead of sanitising the change process, we have leaders embrace the emotional turmoil of Change, and directly translate that into operational behaviour for the Leader-Leader environment where both manager and employee are both considered leaders.
What else would you like to share about your design? Why is it unique and innovative?
Research by has proven (see references below) that experiences people have in virtual reality are carried with them into real life. What makes The Dive so powerful is that network leadership can be taught virtually and immediately applied in work environment. Helping to solve the biggest hurdle in transforming organizations. Quote from Psychology Today: “What’s remarkable is that exposure therapy using VR is just as effective as taking people into real situations. That’s because if you take someone with acrophobia in a virtual glass-fronted lift up a skyscraper, for example, their reactions (heart racing, stomach churning, panicky thoughts) will be the same as if they were truly zooming to the top of One WTC” https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/know-your-mind/201605/how-virtual-reality-could-transform-mental-health-treatment https://www.mitpressjournals.org/loi/pres
Who worked on the project?
Accenture Technology: Juergen Pinkl; Turn the Ship Around: Captain David Marquet (retired), Jane Marquet; Resourceful Humans: Angela Maus, Heiko Fischer, Ricardo Pillosu, Joan Pons, Albert Jane, Rita Chadwick, Martin Juhasz, Brent Lowe, Idan Tobais, Kevin O’Brien
View the project video: https://www.dropbox.com/s/yi3oo1lfq2a48da/The%20Dive%20VR.m4v?dl=0
The Future Of External Vehicular Sound
Company ustwo
Introduction Date April 3, 2017
Project Website https://ustwo.com/blog/a-glance-at-the-future-of-external-vehicular-sound
Why is this project worthy of an award?
Electric Vehicles (EVs) have brought a myriad of benefits to the consumers that drive them, the cities that host them and the environment. In fact, by 2040, 35% of new cars will be electric. This is great news for drivers, who will benefit in the cost savings and convenience of electric cars, and of course, reduced emissions are a net benefit for the environment. Pedestrians seem to be caught in the crossroads however, as the lack of an engine sound in EVs has proven to be an ever-growing risk for the people around it. A study by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration shows that hybrid and EVs are 37% more likely to cause accidents involving pedestrians; and when it comes to cyclists, 57%. As a result, the NHTSA recently passed a rule which mandates that all EVs must emit a form of sound when driving at slower speeds by 2019. Today’s cars feature all manner of safety equipment and sensors that can help with this. The same technology that tells you when someone is in your blind spot or helps you avoid backing into a pole can tell your car there's a pedestrian standing on the corner. As cars gain increasing autonomy, this technology can help them understand more complex and potentially dangerous scenarios involving pedestrians and other cars. It’s time for the auto and technology industry to seize the opportunity to put pedestrian safety first via a smarter, more meaningful use of sound, rather than defaulting on replicating motor or the already out-of-date combustion engine sound. In partnership with the sound experts at Man Made Music, ustwo embarked upon an experiment that increased pedestrian safety by developing a range of sounds EVs can emit to warn pedestrians. Rooted in ustwo’s research and model-based design work, we developed a risk scale concept (comprised of low, medium, high and extreme risk) that allows EVs to calculate risk of a collision, based upon the likelihood of an impact. Then, with the help of the developers at Man Made Music, we paired various risk zones with corresponding sounds. To give you some context, some scenarios of this might look like: – An EV emits a sound that gets progressively louder and more frequent as it nears a pedestrian – The volume of the sound changes with each increasing risk zone – The type of sound changes with each increasing risk zone (perhaps a gentle clicking, then a louder whomp, and then an annoying beep) – In those cases with the greatest risk of a collision—someone stepping off the curb in front of an oncoming car, for example—the car might emit an ear-piercing alarm
What else would you like to share about your design? Why is it unique and innovative?
The trick to bringing this innovation to life lies in addressing the real-world variables. It came down to understanding what pedestrians want to know. The scale can’t assume that every car barreling along in the general direction of a pedestrian presents a threat, so we needed to consider how sounds should indicate risk to a pedestrian at varying levels -- in order to reduce pedestrian panic and noise pollution. Simultaneously, we needed to create a sound distinctive enough for people to recognize but not ignore; it can't be too melodic because that does not convey urgency. We need a sound that elicits the quickest reaction time. Any practical application of these ideas also must consider things like the impact of ambient noise on these sounds, what happens when several cars emit alarms simultaneously, and cultural norms—what works in New York may not work in Shanghai. There are a million different things we could think about with cars in a city ecosystem. In order to test this hypothesis, our designers used VR technology as a prototyping tool to create simulations of risky situations and determine what type of sound / volume resulted in the safest outcomes.
Who worked on the project?
Cesar Corral-Castilla- Designer Kevin Harper - VR Engineer Kota Kobyashi - Designer
View the project video: https://vimeo.com/211233094
The iCASS Platform: Nine principles for landscape conservation design
Company Institute for Landscape Conservation Design (iLCD)
Introduction Date May 5, 2018
Project Website https://www.lcdinstitute.org/approach/
Why is this project worthy of an award?
The dawn of the Anthropocene—an era characterized by human-induced global ecological change and uncertainty—presents a preview of a possible future quite different from the environment that fostered the emergence and prosperity of present-day human societies. Adapting to the Anthropocene's complex array of change is a "super wicked" problem, comprised of multiple, contingent, and conflicting issues. Finding adaptive solutions for how to thrive in the Anthropocene rests on human ingenuity fostering transformability toward social, economic, and ecological sustainability—an overall condition of low vulnerability and high resilience—and that it is best achieved using the adaptation strategy of landscape conservation. To that end, we propose a platform for an emerging and evolutionary step change in sustainability planning: landscape conservation design (LCD). Erlhoff and Marshall (2008) note the design discipline includes the people, processes, and products that facilitate people’s intention (or purpose) to transform their environment into a more desirable one. Cope and Kalantzis (2011) describe design as “an engine of change” (p. 49), and Roozenburg and Eekels (1995) define it as “conceiving [of] an idea for [development of] an artifact or system, and expressing the idea in an embodiable form” (p. 53). Within the context of landscape conservation, design can be an adaptation pathway—a transformative decision-making approach that challenges, if not contributes to, the body of existing strategic frameworks. Our intention is to further landscape conservation through stakeholder-driven design processes, undertaken at regional scales, which identify desired landscape configurations and adaptation strategies that promote sustainability. Our theory of change (Fig. 1) is grounded in the belief that just as Earth’s biomes and human civilizations evolved during the Holocene and will continue to do so in the Anthropocene, so too must the governance structures and processes societies use to guide decision-making. To be successful in tackling wicked problems, natural and cultural resource professionals need a flexible, multi-stakeholder governance structure that transcends single-institution interests and siloed decision-making. To attain that vision, we used established adaptation principles to develop an innovation systems framework—the iCASS Platform: a set of five attributes (Fig. 2) and nine principles (Fig. 3) for designing sustainable landscapes in the age of the Anthropocene. Because the iCASS Platform incorporates universal truths in adaptation planning and governance, it can be applicable, not only within the United States, but the global community at large and thus promote landscape conservation globally. Our intention is to ignite transformation from single-institution, siloed assessment and planning to stakeholder-driven, participatory design, leading to collaborative decision-making and extensive landscape conservation.
What else would you like to share about your design? Why is it unique and innovative?
A single design process for landscape conservation would stifle the innovation needed to address the challenges of wicked problems. As an alternative, we propose a heuristic for landscape conservation design (LCD): the iCASS Platform. It is an innovation systems framework: a holistic, yet flexible systems-based approach that encourages innovation to solve societal challenges. It consists of five attributes (Fig. 2)—innovation, convening stakeholders, assessing conditions, spatial design, and strategy design—and nine principles (Fig. 3). The iCASS Platform is a synthesis of adaptation planning concepts and methodologies presented as a set of attributes and principles organized around four cornerstones of innovation: people, purpose, process, and product. It emphasizes a design process that is inclusive, interdisciplinary, interactive, and informative. The iCASS Platform can facilitate LCD via processes that create and empower social networks, foster stakeholder involvement, engender co-production and cross-pollination of knowledge, and provide multiple opportunities for deliberation, transparency, learning, and collaborative decision-making. By providing organizational guidance to stakeholders on the overall design process, while allowing space for local customization and innovation to unfold, the iCASS heuristic offers practical and flexible guidance for practitioners to follow and may contribute to the larger body of strategic decision-making approaches that exist. Landscape conservation requires a design process that facilitates innovation: the exploration, development, and application of ideas that address wicked problems and improve human well-being. Innovation emerges when a systems framework is used to facilitate social learning among diverse stakeholders who use that knowledge to question existing norms and design new concepts, services, and products. Social learning is a foundational principle in innovation systems frameworks and stakeholder efforts to address change and uncertainty. LCD requires iterative processes to facilitate social learning in addressing complexity and uncertainty. The application of prototyping is integral to the iterative design process, foundational to experimentation, and key to social learning. Facilitating innovation capable of addressing landscape change requires integrated governance: stakeholder-driven, participatory decision-making grounded in social networks, experimentation, and empowerment. Integrated governance can foster innovation by promoting and facilitating transdisciplinary communication, expanding stakeholder knowledge by sharing ideas and perspectives across organizational boundaries, and considering multiple stakeholder perspectives in making decisions. Our intention is to pivot from single-institution, siloed assessment and planning to stakeholder-driven, participatory design, leading to collaborative decision-making and extensive landscape conservation. We understand that advocating a collaborative, multi-objective design approach to landscape conservation represents relatively new territory for many. While it is our assertion that the iCASS Platform provides a theoretical construct that facilitates making such a leap, only through monitoring many iCASS projects, and evaluating if resilient and sustainable social-ecological landscapes are achieved as a result, can its success or failure be determined.
Who worked on the project?
Robert M. Campellone (Lead Author), Kristina M. Chouinard, Nicholas A. Fisichelli, John A. Gallo, Joseph R. Lujan, Ronald J. McCormick, Thomas A. Miewald, Brent A. Murry, D. John Pierce, and Daniel R. Shively
View the project video:
The IRUS
Company Stonehill Taylor
Introduction Date November 27, 2017
Project Website https://www.theirus.com/
Why is this project worthy of an award?
Today, hotels are destinations in their own right, with thoughtful design schemes and alluring amenity programs. What does the future hold? NYC-based architecture and interior design firm Stonehill Taylor set out to create a hotel as transient as its guests. The firm envisions global, decentralized hotel rooms—the prototype for which they’ve dubbed The IRUS. The IRUS is new visionary travel concept aims to highlight the part of ourselves that travel awakens. The name, The IRUS, references the "iris,” the component that defines human eye color and symbolizes the diverse cultures of the world, as well as the collective “us,” connected on a global journey. The project seeks to change the role of the hotel designer from someone who prescribes experiences to someone who facilitates them.
What else would you like to share about your design? Why is it unique and innovative?
Originally conceived in NYC, assembled in Istanbul, and unveiled in London, The IRUS allows guests to check-in and out as they need, and, upon arrival, travelers will be pleased to find a well-designed shell outfitted with “shoppable” accessories that help give back to the community that houses it. Despite the location-specific references, the IRUS can exist anywhere in the world, as a collection of pods in a seaside community or as a series of pop-ups in different metropolitan cities. The ultimate luxury here is freedom. Guests can adapt the pod to their needs and become fully immersed with the surrounding culture. Thanks to flexible and multi-tasking features—like a three-piece bed that separates to form seating arrangements, tables that fold away, and in particular, a unique wall component composed of bungee cord cables that stows seating, kitchenware, and even artwork—no two guests will use IRUS in the same way. What’s important is that these well-designed minimalist shelters offer guests a toolbox to create their own experience, aligning hospitality with a state of mind rather than a fixed address.
Who worked on the project?
• Vince Stroop – Principal of Architecture and Interior Design at Stonehill Taylor • Nikoletta Stagias – Interiors Associate at Stonehill Taylor • Steven Eshleman – Industrial Designer at Stonehill Taylor • Ellen Wu – Interior Designer at Stonehill Taylor • Lee Hantz – Designer at Stonehill Taylor
View the project video:
