Works Like: Tricia Flohr

Showing posts with label Tricia Flohr. Show all posts

Wednesday, 8 April 2015

Almost done!!!

Final Prototype for my collapsible and modular water tank, for Longido, Tanzania. The project is coming to an end and I'm excited to present my ideas at the Carleton Industrial Design Exhibit.

You can read more here: http://id.carleton.ca/exhibition2015/student/tricia-flohr

Thursday, 5 March 2015

Fourth Year Major Project Process: Testing and Prototyping Collapsible Tanks

Context

Longido, Tanzania suffers from chronic water shortages which lead to a variety of related problems including poor health and sanitation. Collection of water in Longido is an inefficient process, with negative impacts affecting mainly women and children. Women and girls spend a large portion of the day collecting water from a town reservoir, waiting in line for several hours, or walking up to 10 kilometers to gather water from the fresh water springs on Mount Longido. When it rains, people put out buckets to collect the rain, but most of the water goes uncollected and is washed away in seasonal rivers, sometimes leading to flooding.

Problem Statement

There is a critical need in the community for solutions related to water collection and storage. Solutions must be financially viable and technologically appropriate. The solutions should reduce the effort people must make to collect water and provide better long term storage.

Direction

The project direction has gone through many changes. Very early research focused on agriculture and related issues. After examining the root issues associated with farming in Longido, water was identified as a main problem.

This led the research towards rain water collection, specifically in the form of eaves troughs. After visiting Longido, however, it was found that there were very few solutions in place to support the storage of rain water. Making note of this, the direction of the project now focuses on water storage for domestic use.

Tuesday, 18 November 2014

Kitchen Garden - Progress

My kitchen garden project is progressing along well. I have to finish the branding and the details on my CAD model, but I'm happy with wear I'm at right now. I expect to be finished my final details in the next 3 weeks.

Friday, 7 November 2014

Recent Doodles

Thursday, 16 October 2014

Kitchen Garden II : Geoponics vs Hydroponics vs Aeroponics

Introduction

There are many emerging technologies that are used for growing plants. I have explored the three main methods to determine which one I will use for my kitchen - planter concept.

	Geoponics Geoponics refers to the traditional method of growing plants. It uses natural biomatter (soil and dirt) as the medium in which seeds grow. This is the natural method for plants to grow, almost all plants will grow in this condition (save for plant which grow in water such as lily pads).
	Hydroponics Hydroponics refers to growing plants in "water" or a liquid nutrient solution. Usually the water must be aerated, or it will only cover the roots partially, to allow the roots some exposed to oxygen. Clay tablets may also be used to regulate moisture around the plant. By submerging the plant's roots in water, the plant is able to absorb a higher percentage of nutrients from the solution than it would from the soil. This leads to faster growth rates and larger plants. However, the water must be changed frequently, and the plants risk becoming water logged; many plants do not grow well in these types of conditions leading to the opposite of the desired effect. If too much light reaches the nutrient solution, bacteria and algae may grow.
	Aeroponics Aeroponics is a subset of Hydroponics; it uses the same nutrient solution to feed the plant but sprays the solution onto the roots instead of submerging the roots in it. By spraying the solution, the roots are exposed to more oxygen. This leads to an even higher growth rate and larger biomass produced. This method is suitable for large scale plant production, and can even be used in space / "zero-gravity" environments. Similar issues exist with this method; the moist environment may lead to bacteria growth.

Conclusion

I believe that for the purposes of my project, Geoponics is the best solution. Hydroponics and Aeroponics are excellent for large scale projects and industrial purposes, They are technologically advanced and use many superior techniques. However, since I am working with the average user and on a very small scale, it is unlikely that the garden would actually make use of the full potential of those methods. Geoponics simplifies the process, will use less energy on this small scale and will require fewer additional products to be bought by the user.

Monday, 13 October 2014

Side Project: Kitchen Garden

As one of my industrial design projects this year, I've begun to design a small scale garden suitable for urban kitchens, such as those in apartments with little to no natural light. The following images describe my research process. Part of my process includes generating "critical project drivers" or CPDs. CPDs state all the features that a product must have, as well as feature that are nice to have or should be integrated if possible. These drivers focus on risks, costs, quality and timing associated with my project.

More details after the break.

Jackalope Work In Progress

Jackalope Work in Progress

-T
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Friday, 8 November 2013

Lullabies and Taunts

Family Poems as Illustrations.
I think I might make a book...

T.

Monday, 21 October 2013

Older things again

More stuff. All of which I still have and would like a home.

Fascinators Available for Sale

A variety of fascinators I've made in the last few weeks or so. Most are still available, or I can make something similar. If you see something you'd like contact me. Each fascinator is mounted on a soft headband for comfort.
Prices range from $15-$20.

T.