The Role of Comfort in
Product Design – Page
4
Logitech’s Definition of the
Role of Comfort in Product
Design (n.)
2. Comfort is a
critical component of the
design process; the value of
comfort urges companies to
create tailored products
designed to fit the unique
shape of the human body.
OXO
OXO Good Grips
Swivel Peeler.
Logitech’s Definition of the Role
of Comfort in Product Design
(n.)
3. Comfort is a source of
support, both physically and
emotionally; comfortable
products strengthen our lives
because we can rely on them to
make our lives easier.
Products that have a high level of contact with our bodies often
evolve into more comfortable versions due to people and
companies who carefully consider the body’s shape and its
point of contact with the object. Trapper, Kelty and Lowe were
all motivated by the pursuit of comfort. They understood that
rather than force the body to conform to the backpack, the
backpack needed to conform to the body. Their thoughtful
redesign benefited us all.
The Vegetable Peeler: A Gripping Example of the Importance of Comfort
The evolution of the vegetable peeler is an example of how
one small change to a single product can affect the comfort
of millions of people. For centuries people used a knife to
take the skin off potatoes and other vegetables. Then Sam
Farber came along.
Having retired after decades running the Copco
kitchenware company, Farber must have felt pretty
uncomfortable watching his wife peel apples. The strip of metal that served as a grip just wasn’t
acceptable. And, to make things worse, Betsey Farber suffered from
arthritis, which gave her more and more pain. At some point, Mr.
Farber’s concern led to action - he knew there must be a better way.
With the help of Smart Design design agency, Farber began creating
models to test the motions – twisting, turning, pushing, pulling,
squeezing – people use when peeling vegetables. As a result of this
research, Farber concluded that an enlarged handle and a rubberized
grip could dramatically improve comfort. He could never have predicted
the response.
Today, more than 20 years after its introduction, an OXO Good Grips
peeler sits in the Museum of Modern Art in New York. And Mr. Farber’s
company, OXO International, produces an entire line of more than 500
products covering many areas of the home – each one featuring OXO’s
trademark plump, rubber grip.
Which makes us wonder: Why did we put up with the old version in the
first place? And why did it take so long for this simple concept to come
to market? What is it that motivates an individual to research and
explore the possibility of a more comfortable product design?
A Shared Concern: Desire for Comfort Inspires Logitech Comfort
Wave Design
In the examples of the car seat, backpack and vegetable peeler, it’s a genuine desire by an
individual or a company to provide the best tools for accomplishing a task – whether it be driving
to and from work, walking a couple of miles or peeling vegetables in preparation for a family
dinner.
Like those involved in the evolution of the car seat design, like Trapper and Kelty, like Sam
Farber, it was a genuine desire to create a better, more comfortable typing experience that led
Logitech’s keyboard development team to create the Comfort Wave Design. Recognizing that
fingers aren’t all the same length, the team created a wave-shaped keyboard to mirror the varying
height of your fingers. And like the redesigned car seat, backpack and vegetable peeler, once you
try one of the new Wave keyboards, you’ll realize that you could never go back to your old
keyboard. You’ll realize that you deserve to be comfortable. And you’ll wonder why no one
thought of the design sooner.
