Anna Carter

Co-creation of the Lookout

Abstract

This thesis focusses on the creation of an interactive, outdoor public display blueprint to be adapted and deployed within the development site of Swansea city centre. The main purpose of this display was to inform the public of the scale, nature and detail of the major redevelopment of the Swansea waterfront area to the east of SA1, which is part of the ongoing Swansea Bay City deal. In addition to being a source of information, the design of this display had two underlying themes; to be fun and engaging and to be as inclusive as possible for as many people as possible. To achieve this, a human-centred methodology has been used which has focussed on the use of cocreational studies to enhance the use of the final prototype and achieve responsible innovation.

The cocreation of initial ideas with the main project stakeholder (Swansea Council) involved the analysis of several modalities for interaction resulting in the choice of a binocular based visual display. These initial design meetings took place just before the lockdown due to the Covid-19 pandemic. As the full extent of the lockdown became apparent, the design was adapted to become Covid friendly and touch free. The co-creation element of the project involved four iterations of the content development with feedback taken from domain experts and end users. This led to a final physical design containing two installations; one display for adult pedestrians and one at a more convenient height for wheelchair users/children. Both of the proposed displays included an interactive aspect using elbow levers to trigger screen panning and a Bluetooth button controlled by an elbow push to select different aspects of the content. The final design resulted in an interactive visual experience where the user was able to choose a point of interest to locate to, pan the content screen and have their picture taken and shown within the display. Further iterations included the addition of audio tracks for different locations and the removal of trip hazards to help partially or non-sighted users to be able to use the installation. Within the final design blueprints an interactive public installation was presented that was as accessible as feasibly possible for all members of society and one that has been co-created by potential users to fit i the purpose of the local area in where it will be situated.