FRIDGEBY
What is Fridgeby?
'Fridgeby' is the concept I designed for one of my third year university modules, where I was asked to design and prototype an interactive box. I pitched it as a device that
'remembers the dates on food so you don't have to'
Fridgeby would be a physical device (and accompanying app) used to scan in and manage inventory of food items.
My video tells the story of Fridgeby from the problems which inspired it to how it would work in practice.
FRIDGEBY
Concept Statement
'Many people regularly find out of date food in their fridges. Fridgeby is a device designed to help keep track of these dates, and in turn, helps to reduce food waste. You shop as normal, and as you put away your shopping, you pass each item in front of Fridgeby’s camera. Fridgeby uses AI-powered technology to recognise the product and record the vital date information from the package. Fridgeby displays the product on screen and stores its details. Items are shown in the application, listed in order of date, with a traffic light system to further highlight importance. They can also be sorted by category, e.g.- ‘Dairy’, or ‘Desserts’. The menu under each item includes options for reminders, recipe suggestions and nutritional information. The mobile app sends notifications about food needing used and also allows you to check your fridge contents from the shops, to help prevent overbuying.'
Where did Fridgeby come from?
From the brief:
“Building on in-depth research, you will develop a concept for a custom designed box that can be used to facilitate some form of activity within a particular setting.”
Inspiration led me to thinking about designing something for home, for the kitchen and I set out to do my initial research on food storage, asking the question:
"How do people store their food and what are common issues that arise?"
My research survey unveiled some interesting insights, connecting limited fridge space to increased food waste.
I felt there was potential to create a device to help people keep track of use-by dates, particularly for kitchens where space is tight and it is difficult to check dates or organise items appropriately.
I developed the idea by thinking of the functions and features for both the box and connected mobile app. At this point I also created a persona and a couple of storyboards to show a scenario where the device would improve someone's food management. I brainstormed words and phrases relevant to this theme of food storage, shopping, use-by dates, etc, and after combining some of these, I landed on Fridgeby.
Another part of my research was looking at existing boxes and shapes within the kitchen to consider appropriate materials and form-factors. Knife blocks proved to be a big inspiration in terms of the angled shape and wooden appearance.
The Prototyping Process
I made early prototypes for the box using cardboard, and early prototypes of the interface using sticky notes and then Adobe XD.
For my final prototype, I used Figma to design an app interface, creating a version for both a phone and a tablet to use in my demonstration of the experience prototype. The physical prototyping in this project became limited due to the Covid-19 lockdowns of March 2020, but I was able to put together an improved physical prototype that would hold a tablet and allow me to demonstrate the design.
