FINAL CONCEPT
The final concept is based on the selection of our customers. We were asked to further refine the idea of the carousel, but with more changes than in the last refinement.
Initially, this storage cabin had a capacity for an average of 36 preserves (depending on the size of the jars or bottles to be stored). Our customers asked us to reduce the capacity by half, as the users who live alone do not have the need to prepare so much food. At the last meeting we had, we discussed the best way to reduce the capacity: by making the cabinet lower, thinner or shallower. Our customers indicated that they just wanted to make it thinner. In order to keep the weight balance evenly distributed, in addition to making it much thinner we also reduced the depth a bit.
This change in dimentions, has lead to a modification in how the bottom notches ( the ones that store the bottle racks) are orientated. Previously, the bottle racks where inserted from the front, now from the sides . This decision (with the new dimentions ) increases capacity. We also had to dismiss the idea of having a drawer separation in the middle, cause the compact dimentions make it unnecessary.
Even so, our customers were still concerned that the cabinet might be too heavy to be moved only by an old man. The wood used in the furniture is plywood, which is already quite light, so the solution applied was to replace the tiles on the sides with wallpaper, thus preserving the Turkish-inspired decoration that our customers initially liked so much.
Lastly, our customers were concerned about the height of the interior drawers, because in the case of low canning jars, the user would not be able to see what food is stored in them. They asked us if there was a way to prevent this from happening. In our case, initially we stablished the height in order to provide stability and prevents taller jars from falling over, so the dimentions are quite tight. Our solution has been to replace the small labels that were originally placed in the trim, with a white board that takes up the whole front of the drawer. In this way the user can write down the type of food that is preserved, the date of packaging and the expiration date.
In the close up look of the oppening of the cabinet, number one refers to the fact that there is a horizontal groove through which the first slat of the door is inserted. This ensures that the door, when closed, will not fall under the weight of gravity.
In this sketch you can see the new geometries and dimentions. The rest of the features remain the same as in the previous concept.
Other considerations about the design
- Dimentions of the crank
- Metal details aesthetic
- Wallpaper inspiration
Now we provide some videos on how does the carroussel and slider drum door mechanisms work.
Drum door mechanism
* This video includes handcrafted processes that might be inspirational for the mockup building
Carroussel mechanism
The carrousel mechanism is used in some existing products like for example a paternoster elevator, a shoe storage and much more industrial supplies storage.
*As we asume that in 1 week it is not posible to create an accurate moddel of the mechanism, we also provide some other methods to make something similar and still functional. Focusing always in asuring the stability of the box storage.
For example: If you create a prototype in a reduced scale you can use the gears of a rolling tip-ex. To conect the drawers to the mechanism you can use some wires or sticks in the sides or that pass through (from side to side).
