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Not all experiments are successes.

As a former scientist, I would know. But that's ok. Experimenting is part of the process and a huge part of the fun. Here are some experiments, pieces of work, and "other stuff" that just didn't quite make the cut, but have enabled me to create better products along the way.

Nike Social Run

Allows people to run together with friends even when they are not in the same physical location. View each other’s BPM, Distance Covered, and Pace and talk to each other while you run. Mobile app and wearable concept.

What didn't work:

A fun concept to be used on occasion, but many users noted that they often preferred to run alone or listen to music. For those that run in groups, talking isn't the highest priority as they're focused on breathing.

What I learned:

Understanding when a design solution is for an edge case or a gimmick vs a high impact solve for a major pain point. Just because we can design something, doesn't mean we should, especially when allocating brand investments and resources.

Hinterlands National Park

Hinterlands National Park, the world's first indoor/outdoor national park allowing people to have an outdoors experience regardless of where they are.

Check out the concept website here!

What didn't work:

The cost and scale to build such a thing is just economically unfeasible. Much more productive solutions to bringing outdoors access to all. But one can dream...

What I learned:

So much about Cinema 4D and Octane for building models, rendering and textures. Fantastic opportunity to practice experiential design in physical spaces.

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Terminal

Terminal, the best app for finding your way through the airport.

What didn't work:

This concept was mostly used as an experiment to test out and develop my prototyping and interaction skills design. If I had to think critically, I would ask whether or not this needed to be a stand-alone app or if it could be integrated into existing navigation apps.

What I learned:

We take good interaction design for granted. Designing how screens transition for a more natural and intuitive feel was very challenging. I did gain good fluency in the prototyping app Principle.

GearTrail

Yeah, I'll admit to it. I have a gear problem. I spend way too much of my time researching gear and apparel for my backpacking trips. Of course researching and finding the best gear would be way easier if there was a web platform like Geartrail, where users could have access to a comprehensive database of gear and expert reviews to plan out their next outdoor outing.

What didn't work:

I'll be honest, I love this concept and wouldn't consider it a "failed" experiment at all. Rather it was used as practice for good UI design. Areas of improvement I would work on would be filter interaction design and thinking about if this design can be responsive across different devices.

What I learned:

My very first interaction with Sketch and attempt at UX/UI design. I learned a lot about creating intuitive user flows and identifying the right type and iconography sets for better aesthetic design.

Monument Ave. AR Exhibit

Richmond, VA saw racial equality  movements on the historical Monument Avenue during the summer of 2020. This AR exhibit is meant to be incorporated into Apple Maps and provide visitors and non-locals a perspective of what the monuments on Monument Avenue symbolized in the past, and what their removal represents for the future in the fight for progress and racial justice.

What didn't work:

Again, not a "failed" experiment per se, but rather incomplete. When designing something that touches upon the sensitivities of topic like racism, it is important to be completely thorough in understanding and empathiszing with the populations I am trying to serve. Otherwise, there is a real risk of "virtue" signaling.

What I learned:

Designing AR experiences through Spark AR and Adobe dimension.

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Project No. 7

Nike Social Run

“80% of people said they would be more motivated to run if they were running or competing with a friend”.

Nike Social Running allows people to run together with friends even when they are not in the same physical location. You can view each other’s BPM, Distance Covered, and Pace. Talk to each other while you run and also enable distance pacing audio option where the audio levels vary based on how the differences in pace between you and your partner. Finally get updates when your friend is ready to run.

Mobile app and wearable concept.

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Project No. 13

Hinterlands National Park

What if people can have an outdoors experience regardless of where they are? That's the concept behind Hinterlands National Park, the world's first indoor/outdoor national park, located just outside of NYC to maximize access to populations who might be missing out.

Cinema 4D used to build models Octane for rendering and textures.

Check out the concept website here!
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Project No. 2

Terminal

Flying is stressful, especially when you have a short layover and you are struggling to find your gate in some far off terminal.  Wouldn't it be nice if you could immediately pinpoint your location, find your destination, know it takes exactly 15 min to walk there, and that there's a Dunkin' Donuts along the way?

Introducing, Terminal, the best app for finding your way through the airport.

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Project No. 4

Gear Trail

Yeah, I'll admit to it. I have a gear problem. I spend way too much of my time researching gear and apparel for my backpacking trips. You should see my spreadsheets.....I have gear planned out for any temperature range, at any location, for any activity. Of course researching and finding the best gear would be way easier if there was a web platform like Geartrail, where users could have access to a comprehensive database of gear and expert reviews to plan out their next outdoor outing.

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Project No. 14

Monument Ave. AR Exhibit

Richmond, VA saw racial equality and justice movements on the city's historical Monument Avenue during the summer of 2020. The Monument Avenue AR exhibit is meant to be incorporated into Apple Maps and provide visitors and non-locals a perspective of what the monuments on Monument Avenue symbolized in the past, and what their removal represents for the future in the fight for progress and racial justice. AR component allows users to interact with the monuments from the comfort of their own home.

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Dennis Liu

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