OUGD501 Studio brief 2

Evaluation

all in all, this has been one of my favorite projects within second year. while i personal found the essay side of the project difficult, i feel like i've been able to really stretch into an area that iv'e not had experience before and the end product came out as i wanted. If i had more time then i would have liked to create some moc ups of the package but i didn't reallise how long the design process would take when designing packaging. in the for next years cop, the lessons learned from this essay such as time management and to get some more feedback sessions to further my practical element. One thing that i was reluctant to to this year was to go to student support, i guess i wanted to prove something to myself that i can do academic writing without seeking help. but after this years CoP module, i think i'm going to be using that college resource more often with CoP 3.

design boards

OUGD501 studio brief 3

OUGD501 Studio brief 2

Final Outcomes

While I haven’t had a chance to get these printed and produce a final model, I’m quite happy with how these 3D renders have come out really well. I’ve kept it brand neutral for the time being but If i where to market it to a specific company i think that the Google pixel phone fits this packaging perfectly. To implement the brand, the logo would be etched into the top of the box.

The design itself works as follows:

The case is held together with a small sleeve that would contain the phones information and details 

When opened, the bottom section would contain the charger and headphones (the lenses and the Velcro to keep the headset flap in place would sit in here too to be added when the box is turned into a VR headset)

The phone would sit in the top alongside with the instructions

Once opened, the perforated sections of the box are to be pushed out and the Velcro pieces added to the top of the headset. Thus turning the packaging into a Virtual reality headset.

This outcome for Context of Practice tackles the question of how Virtual / Augmented reality has become common practise in brand identities by tackling the issue by the source of what is guiding these industry’s to incorporate these mediums. More and more identities are looking at involving mobile VR within their brands and ad campaigns now more than ever with phone packaging being able to give more people access to VR and intern, more consumers interacting with a brand. 

The nature of how the packaging has been designed allows for brand integration to become involved and give designers a tem-plate to work on and further its design if need be. For example, North Face’s latest advert sees them sticking with their outdoors roots by creating a series of 360° video experiences that really match their brand identity in partnership of Jaunt VR. These vide-os are targeted for smartphone viewing and were made to be watched using Google Cardboard to appeal to the larger market of virtual reality.  With this packaging design it removes the need for brands to worry about buying distributing their own headsets.

Production / Distribution

With the packaging to be made with recycled cardboard sheets, the nets are to be laser cut and perforated to allow for mass production to meet the needs of phone manufacturing. The actual construction of the packaging is quite simple in terms of there being only a few folds. The ‘hardest’ part of this would be getting the lenses piece stuck into the package but it would be glued with the likes of W Wood Adhesive to hold it in place.

Obviously this packaging would be distributed with phones but due to the simple and cheap nature of this design, second hand shops can implement these within their stores to hold any phones they sell so it can have the shops brand on it. This could be aimed at shops such as CEX, cash converters, etc.

OUGD501 Studio brief 2

Development - Net

With prototyping out of the way, i had the final design and the task i needed to do was to come up with the net to accompany it. At first it was a tricky thing for me to do, I kept on overcomplicating it in my head but after a few attempts I got the hang of it. There were two books that helped me throughout this developmental stage, the package design book and the book of folds. Both of which helped my further my understanding of what goes into creating a net for packaging.

This design includes perforated edges with in the file for when its laser cut so they can be popped out by the consumer so it can become a headset. The lenses to make the headset work will just pop in to the perforated areas within the package.

It might be daft but the best part of this for me was the measurements side of the design. It took some attempts but due to this packaging being brand neutral, I fit it to the common phone size of 5.5-inch screen. If need be though, the file is set up so that if a phone is a different size then it can be scaled up or down depending on which one it is.  

Feedback:

The design has had some serious though gone into it, would love to see the final piece

How will the headset flap stay in place to hold the phone? Could you include some Velcro bits to stick on once you turn it into a headset?

It’s great that its fit for that specific phone, would love to see some variations of different phone brands using this design

Considering this is your first attempt at packaging design, you’ve made a highly detailed net for your design.

OUGD501 studio brief 2

Development - Prototyping

With the sketches done, I started to develop the nets that were drawn up to start creating prototypes both within 3d software and as mock ups. Using both of these helped me further what needed to be changed so the packaging would fold together properly. While creating the moc ups, the cardboard I planned to use was far too thick. After experimenting with different types of cardboard, the one that i selected on was a piece made from recycled paper that has a gms of 0.34 which is thin enough to fold and sturdy enough to make sure the phone dosn’t fall out. With this it helps further the stance of the product of wasting as little of the final packaging as possible.

An issue I kept coming across within this stage was that the flaps i was using to stick the sides together were tricky to get right, especially for the overarching cover. Working with tabs proved to be too difficult for what was needed so I changed the design to feature a sleeve to keep the cover in place.With this being the first packaging design project I’ve undertaken, there have been many stages that have tested me on the processes such as how to turn a 3D object into a 2D net. While this has been something different for me I have thoroughly enjoyed this stage of the development.  

OUGD501 Studio brief 2

Concepts

Create an identity for a brand to incorporate VR within it

This concept could have been something interesting but I personally felt like it was just adding to what ive already researched. Plus, I want to do something I’ve never done before

Design a packaging design for a smart phone that can be turned into a headset

At of the three, I’m really drawn to this concept as it’s something that hasn’t been done before (in terms of what I’ve researched) plus it’s an area of graphic design that I haven’t really touched yet. I feel like this works with well with my essay.

Create an ad campaign to distribute google cardboard.

It’s a possibility, I feel like it’s not really addressing my issue within the essay. plus, it’s very similar to that of the guardians VR campaign last year

Development - Sketchs

One of the more enjoyable sections of this project was coming up with how to implement the likes of google cardboard into a phone packaging design. There were many ways I come up with, some way more complicated than others. For a while I was solely focused on implementing the google cardboard within the design but this ended up limiting my design process. A few designs stood out and I’ve took them to prototyping to see what works well  

OUGD501 Studio brief 2

Research - Contextual

Aaron Luber, head of Google VR Partnerships, spoke at an event held at the YouTube Beach in Cannes and said that one of the biggest mistakes brands and other content producers make is to overthink VR. In his speech he states, ‘Lots of brands think they need to do a video in VR just to say they are doing it in VR. They need to think about why they are making a VR video in the first place’

With virtual reality set to become a £710 million industry by the end of 2016, the savvy type marketers are seeking to ride on the coat tails for these platforms to bring power to storytelling to set the agenda for VR experiences. Virtual reality has now engaged a wide spectrum of people and according to data by research group Ipsos Mori (which have surveyed 1,117 UK people aged between 16 to 75 year olds) on what their attitudes are towards the technology. 

The statistics of these surveys show an overall emerging awareness of virtual and augmented reality in the United Kingdom, with close to 60% of men boasting a strong understanding of VR, compared with 46% of women. Within the survey, it became clear that men also lead the way in terms of attraction to the technology with 55% expressing a strong interest in experiencing VR versus 40% of women.

OUGD501 Studio brief 2

Research

Looking at the age demographic and which medium is most used within the virtual reality we can see that the mobile industry is leading in how consumers interact with VR. While this is the case, a major factor that restrains people from using virtual reality functions is the fact you need to buy a headset separately which cause people to be turned off from the function. There’s a fair few choices for what’s on offer in terms of headsets such as:

- Google Cardboard 

A cheap alternative that’s affordable, but requires assembly 

- Samsung Gear VR headset

Much more expensive and can only work with Samsung phones, while this is the case it bolds more in terms of features

- Knock offs

A much cheaper headset compared to the Gear VR headset but they don’t have any features outside of holding onto the phone

OUGD501 studio brief 2

Research - Market // Audience

Virtual reality technology is very impressive but remains out of reach for many consumers. That’s why mobile VR, which is more affordable and accessible, which seems to be getting much more attention lately.

According to a report published (top left) by Slice Intelligence, virtual reality had a large push forward at last year’s Electronic Entertainment Expo event in Los Angeles. And while Oculus and Sony got a lot of attention with their showcases, mobile VR also got a great deal of promotion, particularly the likes of Samsung Gear VR and Google Cardboard viewers.
After surveying over four million US shoppers, the report finds that mobile is the preferred format for virtual reality, with 57 percent of sales since January 2015 belonging to the Google Cardboard.

VR can be an immersive medium for marketers and a new way they can tell stories and engage with audiences like never before. This is also indicated in the surge of interest within different age groups (top right) seeing that almost all age ranges are invested within virtual reality. That was 2015, the peak of interest has been growing each year.

OUGD501 brief 2

The Brief

Within my essay, I investigated How Virtual and Augmented reality has effected the overall design process of graphic design and how it is becoming implemented in common practice within brands identity’s.one of the main point raised within my essay was that VR as a whole gets more use from people using their phones instead of using the much more expensive headsets. Some phones such as the new Google Pixel are being marketed for having better VR capability which has seen the increase in sales in most cases, especially with the Pixel. One of the issues that comes up when using phones is the consumer having to buy a headset separately to use Virtual reality properly. This issue is why VR ends up not being used in some cases. For my practical element, I want to focus on combating by looking at the phones most used with virtual reality (such as the Pixel, IPhone, Samsung etc..) to see what’s already been done to develop this sector

essay links and reading materials

Rogers, C. (2016) Consumers are most drawn to travel and music experiences on virtual reality. Available at: https://www.marketingweek.com/2016/06/09/consumers-are-most-drawn-to-travel-and-music-experiences-on-virtual-reality/ (Accessed: 05 January 2017).

Hobbs, T. (2016) Jaguar says VR is helping it sell an ‘incredible amount of cars’ as it launches Andy Murray experience. Available at: https://www.marketingweek.com/2016/06/21/vr-is-helping-us-sell-an-incredible-amount-of-cars-says-jaguar-as-it-launches-andy-murray-experience/ (Accessed: 13 December 2016).

Hobbs, T. (2015) Are car marketers using augmented reality to replace the showroom? Available at: https://www.marketingweek.com/2015/02/10/are-car-marketers-using-augmented-reality-to-replace-the-showroom/ (Accessed: 30 November 2016).

Cassidy, A. (2016) What does virtual reality mean for advertising in 2016? What does virtual reality mean for advertising in 2016? Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/media-network/2015/dec/03/virtual-reality-in-advertising-2016 (Accessed: 15 January 2017).

Vizard, S. (2016) Google: ‘Too many brands are doing VR just to say they are doing VR’. Available at: https://www.marketingweek.com/2016/06/21/google-too-many-brands-are-doing-vr-just-to-say-they-are-doing-vr/ (Accessed: 20 December 2016).

Cooper, J. (2017) Why brands can’t let AI, VR hype blur the importance of mobile. Available at: http://www.adweek.com/news/advertising-branding/why-brands-cant-let-ai-vr-hype-blur-importance-mobile-175389 (Accessed: 10 January 2017).

Luber, A. (2016) What virtual reality will mean for advertising. Available at: https://www.thinkwithgoogle.com/articles/virtual-reality-advertising.html (Accessed: 29 January 2017).

Swant, M. (2016) New study says people are more likely to buy from brands that use virtual reality. Available at: http://www.adweek.com/news/technology/new-study-says-people-are-more-likely-buy-brands-use-virtual-reality-172557 (Accessed: 29 December 2016).

Sherman, W.R. (2002) Understanding virtual reality: Interface, application, and design. Edited by Sherman Josepha and Alan Craig. San Francisco, CA: Morgan Kaufmann Publishers.

inc, frog design (2016) Frog | design and innovation that transforms. Available at: https://www.frogdesign.com/techtrends2016 (Accessed: 29 January 2017).

essay introduction draft

How Virtual / Augmented reality has become common practise in brand identities and what this means for Graphic Design

With new technological advances occurring more and more each year, one of the biggest mainstream devices being implemented in most digital sectors is Virtual Reality. VR has grew and grew over the last few years and has made its way into the creative community with ease.  The aim of this academic essay is to look at how Virtual and Augmented Reality has affected the design process for graphic design and why companies are more likely now than ever to incorporate VR into their brands. With all the hype that VR trend has received and is still getting, it’s under threat of becoming a fad.  The aspect of this technology will also be addressed within this writing as a way of looking at what can be done to prolong its life span. That said, this isn’t a brand new piece of technology. Virtual Reality has been considered to have begun back in the 1960’s but there are early elements of VR that have been traced back to the 1860’s, way before the development of digital technology. One of the first examples of a head mounted display (HMD) was developed around 1962 by Philco Corporation and was considered a marvel at the time. Unfortunately, this first version of the product that most people are used to now didn’t last long as the technology at the time wasn’t at a level that could properly execute Virtual Reality and due to this they fizzled out, until recently. The re-emergence of this product has taken the tech industry by storm and has become something that is slowly becoming accessible with the likes of cheap headsets such as Google cardboard to free augmented reality apps taking phones by storm such as the recent Pokémon Go game (which has fell victim to becoming a fad). The question of whether or not both virtual and augmented reality can be classed as the next big turning point in advanced technologies for creatives and designers is one that’s up in the air.  Most agreeing that it is while the rest state it’s just a fad that will die out eventually.

VR as a concept breaks down borders with its increased consumer availability of virtual and augmented reality headsets from the likes of Oculus Rift to the cheap consumer friendly Google cardboard. People are now free to possess their own personal 3D gateways into an alternate yet shared experience that has already started to emerge. The VR experience now is set to add to the storytelling side of graphic design that will bring the audience into the world of the product in question (frogdesign.com, 2016). The dilemma though is brands trying out virtual reality as part of a marketing strategy and should they be wary about whether spending on the emerging platform is worth it. Research from Greenlight VR suggests the investment could be paying off in brand affinity and increased purchases as a recent survey of 1300 adults found that 71% believed virtual and augmented reality are a forward and modern approach which immerses the consumer into the world of the brand. A further 53% of people surveyed said that there more likely to purchase a product from a brand if they use virtual reality than that of a brand that doesn’t. These figures are perfectly in correlation with large scale brands starting to embrace this technology.

OUGD501 Studio brief 1

Triangulation exercise

Through each of the three texts, the discussion of the male gaze is debated from 3 different viewpoints of: homosexual male, feminist woman and the heterosexual man. Laura Mulvey, a British feminist film theorist stated that the perspective of Hollywood has become heterosexual driven to the point where male stars play an active role to speed up the narrative while the woman is given the passive roles that slow down the narrative. She claims that her claims are backed up by pshycoanalasists but Richard Dyer seems to disagree, saying that she sees these as a product of the patriarchal order in which we are caught up with.

OUGD501 studio brief 1

Identities and consumption

people buy products and services that they belive represents themselfs
- people judge earch other on their material poosseions to the point where consumtions is now a major part in creation and maintenance of identities.
- poeple can ave more than one identity and they are not always anchored to real life. they can be purley be virtual online enviroments

The text given to us was looking at the effect of what products and services do to consumer’s social interactions. These views on how we unconsciously believe that associating our self’s with certain products boost our social standing to the point where we believe that they represent our self. The way products have evolved to the point that you’re buying your way in to a select group, ie becoming part of the apple family by buying its products, has created social class groups that judge one another such as mac v pc, Nike v Adidas, Pepsi v coke, apple v android.

OUGD501 studio brief 1

2014's view on wearable tech for 2016

- 2013 saw the preserve of geeks in vr headsets and clunky smart watches
- 2014 predicted britons would spend £104.7 million on wearable tech
- EYES FRONT, SMART GLASSES WILL BE COMMONPLACE IN 2015
(as we know this is not the case as the likes of google glass died out)
- 2015 trend predictions: Huge growth of smartwatches (while the apple watch isnt comon place now, fitness watches such as FitBit have had a huge surge that has made them an everyday occurance), intergrated technology in clothing (apart from some clothing having led lights in thm, this prediction didnt come true) and accelerated use of wearable in business

The User Experiance

An important point in the UX VR discussion is WebVR - in other words VR developed in desktop and mobile web browsers using standard HTML5 and JavaScript stacks. The new WebVR spec allows current web designers and developers to create fullscreen VR experience with either Oculus or Google Cardboard mobiles. In addition, the A-Frame library (http://aframe.io) lets anyone who can write HTML-style markup create (static) 3D VR worlds which will run in common web browsers. So, the discussion of VR is not just theoretical, but involves the exact web design and dev community that Ux professionals currently work in. In other word, get Google Cardboard.

What is VR

VR is a new audio-visual communication medium whose mission is to sell the idea of entering a computer-generated, three-dimensional environment where the experience is so immersive it tricks our brain into believing this virtual world is actually reality. Its ultimate goal is to allow us to experience sensations that we could never undergo in our daily lives otherwise. Things like getting out of our bodies and seeing ourselves from the outside, or being tele-transported to real and fictional places are now becoming possible with this new medium.
It's now been more than a year since Facebook purchased Oculus Rift, and around the same amount of time has passed since we started seeing VR campaigns, 3D movies, games and one-off experiences coming to life. However, for most people VR is still inaccessible, because the technology is not available yet as an off-the-shelf product.

list of accesable//affordable vr (kits)

= I am cardboard v2.0
= I am cardboard eva version
= soyan 3d headset kit
= nfcguyz google cardboard kit
= Google Daydream view VR
(The big advantages of Daydream are the motion-controller + smoother head tracking + new Daydream VR software.)
= gear vrvr fashion

VR Trends

VR breaks down borders
With the increased consumer availability of VR/AR headsets -- from Oculus Rift to the Hololens -- our personal 3D gateways into an alternate shared experience will start to emerge. Online webcams are eclipsed by connected VR cams, which allow viewers to virtually transport themselves to points in space around the world and interact with the people there. The interactions are simple at first, but users discover that the feeling of presence engenders a sense of empathy that they never felt watching video on a 2D screen. Aid to refugee camps with installed VR cams increases by orders of magnitude. War zone reporting sees a sharp increase in engagement resulting in increased demand for shifts in political policy, while the ethical implications of providing users ‘first hand’ experience into dangerous situations are debated. As with the introduction of the Internet, VR provides an evolution in the connection of otherwise isolated people and groups. Rather than getting lost in virtual fantasy, we find ourselves more deeply connected to reality.

Companies creating cheap durable VR viewers and cameras have an opportunity to partner with media companies -- as well as government, humanitarian, and other organizations -- to create stories that enable people to connect on a personal level. Rather than providing a static frame of reference, VR will open up new models for people to guide the conversation and engage with their interests and each other in ways that are more meaningful to them.
By Jud Holliday

websites

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/predictions/technology/11306735/wearable-technology-trend.html

http://www.vogue.com/13280612/fashion-tech-problem-silicon-valley/

http://www.cio.com/article/3017995/wearable-technology/13-wearable-tech-trends-to-watch-in-2016.html

http://www.digitaltrends.com/wearables/

http://startups.co.uk/tech-trends-for-2016-advanced-wearable-technology/

http://www.thecoolist.com/the-tech-of-fashion-10-ways-technology-drives-tomorrows-fashion/

http://www.creativebloq.com/ux/the-user-experience-of-virtual-reality-31619635

http://www.letsdnd.com/ux-considerations-web-mobile/

https://aframe.io/

http://frogdesign.com/techtrends2016/
https://dupress.deloitte.com/dup-us-en/focus/tech-trends.html