This UX project was an exercise in high-fidelity prototyping a smart-phone application to operate in combination with wireless enabled smart growing cubes.
The motivation for this project was to explore the potential for a modular indoor growing solution, aimed at people who are enthusiastic about growing their own food but have yet to develop the experience of tending to a crop of plants with differing needs, and lack the requisite outdoor space to grow them.
Prototype GrowCubes would feature a full spectrum LED lamp built into each unit. At the base of the unit is a programmable hydroponic cell tasked with watering the plants, and a nutrient reservoir used for periodic feeding. A combined moisture/pH sensor and temperature sensor monitor plant health and feed this back to a mobile app.
The mobile app enables the user to monitor and manage all aspects of plant growth and health.
A watering cycle feature allows the user to set individual schedules for each modular GrowCube. Setting a water cycle ensures plants receive the correct amount of water, when they need it.
A Light cycle feature can be programmed to provide different light conditions (germination, vegetation, flowering) and a scheduling function to ensure each plant receives the optimum lighting conditions.
Nutrient reservoirs can also be programmed to ensure adequate food is provided to each plant. The sensors based inside each GrowCube provide realtime plant data and can shut down individual cycles where the plant is determined to have been overwatered or overfed.
This was originally a collaborative project, which was shelved. The above are my own reinterpretations of the app prototypes. Visually, these differ enormously from the original prototype designs. Man yfeatures and functions have been maintained but given a more immediate, interactive and visually engaging interface design.
LUKEWORGAN.COM 