Team Activity

Before starting the journey of designing a product inspired by Richard Sapper’s Tizio Lamp, I participated in a group project in which we created a model of it out of basic materials such as cardboard and foam board. From this experience I learned the advantage of working with others and how vital their input is to lead to the success of a product. I also learned the value of sketching things out and planning before you jump right in and start making as things can get quite chaotic without proper planning. It was also valuable to learn the properties of the materials we would be using for this product before we started designing. There is a surprising number of ways in which cardboard can be manipulated which I wasn’t aware of before this project.

 

Initial Sketches

I really liked how the way in which the lamp moved and felt that movement could be useful in other products. I decided on creating a table. There are a lot of people these days who are attracted to the minimalist lifestyle and are dramatically downsizing the space in which they’re living so I wanted to create a table which was useful to that lifestyle. Initially it was just going to be a table which could be folded down and easily sored away, but then I came up with the idea of it being multi functional. I still wanted to keep the idea of it being easily stored, but also be able to become a coffee table. I also explored the potential of wheels to allow for ease of movement and surface detail which would allow it to further reflect the aesthetics of the Tizio lamp.

 

Model

Initially I was going to have my table top connected to the legs but after creating the model quickly discovered that wasn’t possible for the movement which I wanted to achieve. I then made the table top and the legs separate components. The legs sit at an x and the table sits on top. the two sides allow for it to be moved easier and makes it more tidy as a coffee table.

 

To convert the table, the top is first removed,

the legs are then pushed down so they sit flat on the ground

and then the table top is flipped over and placed on top. it can then either be used as a coffee table or stored away neatly.

Final Drawings

The sizes of the table I got from comparing the sizes of similar products. I wanted the table top to be reasonably large so it could be used for a multitude of things. The table, when at its highest height, would be the ideal height for a dining table, so people can pull up chairs and eat at it, but can also put it in front of a couch and use it as a coffee table when at its lowest. The legs of the table would be made from painted polycarbonate, the same material which the Tizio lamp is made from. the table top would be a stained hardwood such as oak. this would make the table more visually interesting and will less likely get scuffed when there’s a multitude of items being put on it. I believe there is still a lot of room for development in this product, and its far from meeting its full potential. I could introduce chairs or make it more compact, the opportunities are endless.