Let Him Cook.

A headset designed to help you

lock in and keep others locked out

A headset designed to help you

lock in and keep others locked out

ALL WORK /

LET HIM COOK

BACK TO

PLAY

Let Him Cook.

A headset designed to help you

lock in and keep others locked out

ALL WORK

LET HIM COOK

BACK TO

PLAY

Kevin Park wearing the Let Him Cook headset with its blinders closed and the LED glowing red

Background.

01 / 04

A warm-up project to get back into the studio mindset and think about interaction: a headset with built-in blinders and LEDs that help the wearer focus and signal to others when to give them space.

ROLE

Designer, Programmer

TIMELINE

4 Weeks

ADVISOR

Noah Posner

ROLE

Designer, Programmer

ADVISOR

Noah Posner

TIMELINE

4 Weeks

TOOLS

Programming

3D Printing

Laser Cutting

Cardboard Prototyping

Form Development.

02 / 04

Sheet of thirty quick sketches of head-worn concepts expressing different emotions

SKETCH IDEATION

Thirty thumbnail sketches explored how emotions could be expressed through wearable products.

30 SKETCHES / 8 EMOTIONS

Hand sketching headset concepts on a tablet beside a laptop

Concept 1 board: a gag-activated foldout bag, with storyboard and wiring diagram

Concept 2 board: an emotionally reactive cowboy hat, with storyboard and wiring diagram

Concept 3 board: the locked-in headset, with storyboard and wiring diagram

Prototyping.

03 / 04

PHYSICAL PROTOTYPING

After crit narrowed the ideas to three concepts, I tested physical mechanisms to see which ones fit each idea.

Orange 3D printed scissor mechanism parts and a cardboard blinder frame on a cutting mat

Cardboard and orange 3D printed mechanism prototype wired to a microcontroller

BREADBOARD MODELING

A one-panel scissor mechanism tested the wiring and components from my research, and a cardboard model checked whether the IMU sensor could detect posture.

Integrated breadboard model with LED strip and folding blinders mounted on a box

INTEGRATED MODEL

The integrated model ran servo motors on scissor mechanisms that swing out as blinders.

PROOF OF CONCEPT

It worked as a proof of concept, so I followed this tutorial to build a simple cardboard helmet that holds everything cleanly and comfortably.

SKETCH PROTOTYPE

CARDBOARD FORMING

3D PRINTED SCISSOR MECHANISM

Final Model.

04 / 04

FINAL MATERIAL CHOICE

For the final model I styled it like a chef’s hat, which led to mylar. The side panels were laser cut and folded to follow the scissor mechanism, so they extend and collapse exactly as intended.

Line drawing of the scissor mechanism that extends the blinders

Higher fidelity prototype with a translucent lampshade top and pleated paper blinders

Wearer's view through the headset's blinders while playing a video game

Wearer seated at a laptop with the headset open and the light green, stage one

Wearer focused at a laptop with the blinders half closed, stage two

Wearer fully locked in with blinders closed and the light red, stage three

INTEGRATED SYSTEM

An IMU sensor along the spine reads which way gravity points to sense posture, then drives the servos and LEDs.

THREE STAGES

Stage one keeps the blinders out of view with a green LED that invites conversation. Stage two turns the LED yellow as a warning and starts closing the blinders. Stage three closes them fully and turns the LED red to ask for space.

THREE STAGE SYSTEM

SCISSOR MECHANISM

COLOR WARNING LIGHT