Minor Project
Minor Project
23.9.2025 - 29.12.2026 (Week 1 - Week 14)
LONG BOJIANG | 0375362 | Bachelor of Design (Honours) in Creative Media
INSTRUCTION
Personal Reflection on the Project
This project was a collaborative experience that brought together students from different specializations, and it was also a valuable learning process for me personally. The main goal of the brief was to combine our different knowledge, skills, and perspectives to create a solution that could genuinely respond to the client’s needs. Working in a cross-disciplinary team allowed me to see how different ways of thinking can influence the design process and improve the final result.
Throughout the project, I learned how important communication and teamwork are when working with people from different backgrounds. Everyone approached the problem differently, and although this sometimes led to challenges, it ultimately helped us develop a more balanced and thoughtful solution. This experience strengthened my ability to listen to others, explain my own ideas clearly, and adapt when necessary.
Project Background: Social AI Robot for the Elderly
As the elderly population continues to increase, many older adults face problems such as loneliness, limited social interaction, and difficulty keeping up with modern technology. These issues became the starting point of our project, Social AI Robot. Instead of designing a complicated humanoid robot, we wanted to explore a simpler and more emotionally approachable solution that elderly users would feel comfortable using.
Our idea was to design a physical figure box that projects a 3D virtual companion, inspired by Hololive-style digital characters. Compared to traditional robots, this approach feels less intimidating and more friendly, while still offering emotional support and a sense of companionship.
Research Process and Insights
We began the project by conducting interviews with elderly individuals and caregivers. This research phase was particularly important because it helped us understand real user concerns instead of making assumptions. Many participants mentioned feelings of loneliness and emotional isolation, as well as a reluctance to use complex or unfamiliar technologies.
After collecting the interview data, we used an affinity diagram to organize the information and identify key themes such as companionship, ease of use, emotional comfort, and trust. This step helped me better understand how user research can directly influence design decisions and shape the direction of a project.
Ideation and Design Development
Based on our research, we created problem statements from both the elderly users’ and caregivers’ perspectives. This helped ensure that our solution addressed emotional needs while also considering practical issues like safety and usability. We then transformed these problems into several “How Might We” questions to guide our ideation process.
During the ideation stage, we used the Crazy 8s method to quickly generate a wide range of ideas. From there, we evaluated our concepts using the MOSCOW method and a prioritization matrix. This process taught me how to balance creativity with feasibility, and how to focus on features that would provide the most value to users within a limited timeframe.
Final Outcome and Personal Learning
Our final design is a figure box that projects a 3D virtual character acting as a Social AI companion. The physical form makes the product feel familiar and safe, while the projected character adds personality, warmth, and emotional presence. The companion is designed to provide simple conversation, emotional reassurance, and daily interaction, especially for elderly users who may feel isolated.
Through this project, I gained a deeper understanding of user-centered design and the importance of empathy in the design process. I also realized that meaningful design does not always require complex technology—sometimes, simplicity and emotional connection are more important. Overall, this project helped me grow both as a designer and as a team member, and it has influenced how I approach future design challenges.
During the production process, we used 3D modeling software to build the virtual character step by step. We started with the basic structure, establishing the head and body proportions, and then gradually refined details such as facial features, hairstyle, and overall form. Since the character is designed for elderly users, we were careful to avoid overly exaggerated or complex designs. Instead, we focused on creating a character that feels friendly, gentle, and reassuring. We also paid close attention to facial expressions, adjusting subtle details to ensure the character could convey warmth and a sense of companionship rather than a cold or overly technical feeling.
Throughout the modeling process, my teammate and I maintained close communication and collaboration. We frequently compared our progress with the original sketches and made adjustments accordingly, while also proposing improvements based on the product’s overall positioning. For example, we refined the character’s proportions, facial expressions, and overall style multiple times to ensure that the final result aligned with the original design intention and was suitable for 3D projection. This iterative process of discussion and revision helped me better understand the importance of teamwork in a design project.
By participating in the creation of the AI virtual character, I not only improved my practical skills in using 3D modeling software, but also gained a deeper understanding that virtual character design is not just a technical task, but also an emotional design challenge. A successful virtual character needs to balance visual appeal, emotional expression, and user acceptance. This experience gave me a more comprehensive understanding of digital character design and highlighted the importance of details in shaping the overall user experience.
REFLECTION
Experience
This module provided me with meaningful experience in designing for a real-world problem and a user group that I was not very familiar with. Through the Social AI Robot project, I gained a deeper understanding of the emotional and practical challenges faced by elderly users, particularly issues such as loneliness, emotional isolation, and difficulty adapting to digital technology.
My main responsibility in this project was the creation of the AI virtual character. After receiving the initial character sketches from a teammate, I worked closely with a friend to translate the 2D design into a 3D model using 3D modeling software. During this process, I had to carefully consider how the character’s appearance, facial expressions, and overall style would be perceived by elderly users. This experience taught me that designing for the elderly requires simplicity, warmth, and approachability rather than complex or highly technical visuals. Working on this part of the project pushed me to think more empathetically and design beyond my usual comfort zone.
Observations
Throughout the project, I observed that effective teamwork was essential to the overall success of the design. Since different members were responsible for different parts of the project, clear communication and collaboration were necessary to ensure consistency between the concept, character design, and final outcome.
While working on the AI virtual character, I needed to frequently communicate with teammates to align the 3D model with the original sketches and the overall product concept. I noticed that when team members were willing to give feedback, support each other, and stay committed to the project goals, the design process became more efficient and productive. This made me realize that good teamwork is not only about dividing tasks, but also about continuous communication and mutual support.
Findings
Through this project, I realized that my design thinking skills still have room for improvement, especially during the early ideation stage. Designing for elderly users was particularly challenging for me because it was outside my usual design experience, and I initially struggled to generate strong and suitable ideas.
However, I found that I was able to contribute more effectively during the development phase. By working on the 3D character modeling, UV mapping, figure box design, and simple character animations, I could apply my technical skills to support the team and improve the quality of the final design. This reflection helped me understand the importance of stepping out of my comfort zone and developing stronger empathy and adaptability when designing for diverse user groups. In future projects, I hope to improve my ideation skills and become more confident when working with unfamiliar target users.
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