Nate Kaylor
Week 2: Backpack Design Study
The first thing that comes to mind for me when considering “the common book bag” is the classic Jansport backpack that everyone has owned at some point in their lives. This bag is the poster child for book bags and I think the secret is in its simplicity. They nailed the design as an early proponent for the modern polyester backpack. The classic Jansport consists of one large pocket and a smaller front pocket. In my experience, especially as a younger human, I would always find myself sporting intricate backpacks with a plethora of pockets that were rarely utilized.
I remember that backpack looking something like the one below. A backpack like this is only suitable for certain situations. For a hiking trip, it would be perfect for storing all the things one would need to survive out of doors – but for a daily use bag, its overkill. I remember using maybe two pockets while the rest collected trash and food particles of sorts.
On the opposite side of the spectrum are the hip backpacks that have picked up as a trend in recent years. This is the kind of product design that violates exactly what IDEO stands for among other designers from the readings. According to Tim Brown’s ted talk, successful design should originate from “human-centered exploration” in which design tends to the needs of its user.
On one hand these type of bags can be really “cool” and “stylish” but they originated out of a purely aesthetic nature. This results in poorly made design that ends up not fulfilling all the needs of its users. In my experience with these, they are cheaply made, tear easily, and hold things very awkwardly while mounted on your back.
In terms of a future design I think it would be interesting to do a thorough study of a military grade backpack. Given the nature, it would be valuable to study aspects of the pack that could apply to an everyday consumer such as: comfort, durability, types of access, materials…etc. In terms of beginning design with the users, military personnel would be a solid source for these questions, in correspondents with everyday backpack toters.
Sources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/JanSport
http://www.urbanoutfitters.com/urban/catalog/category.jsp?id=M_ACC_BAGS2
Nate Kaylor: Design Thinking 