inclusive design

The 27 Jan issue of Professional Engineering magazine mentioned about "inclusive design" in the article Get a grip. One of the examples cited in the article is the OXO Good Grips which is like the textbook example in product design. If you have the chance, do read up on its design process and the difficulties faced.

I first heard of the term "inclusive design" in my product design course back in university days. When they say inclusive, it means you try to design a product suitable for most if not all of the population. It is not "exclusive" like designing only for the silver generation. You design it such that both old and young can use the product with ease.

Another example in the article is the cordless phone, which reminds me of something at home. There was once my Old Man had finished a phone conversation but forgot to press the hang-up button. Technically I'm not sure if the timer at the telco would continue ticking, but at least I know incoming call couldn't get through. I think the idea of pressing a button instead of physically hanging up the handset needs a bit of getting used to for the older generation, which I think can be solved by an auto hang-up function when the handset is put back into the cradle.

To make everyone happy has always been challenging.