With the uprise of people living in urban environments, finding time and space to take care of an indoor garden has become increasingly difficult. Our goal was to design a new indoor herb gardening system that offers fresh and dry herbs on demand with zero hassle, while retaining and celebrating traditional gardening methods. There are existing smart herb growing systems on the market such as Click & Grow and Aerogarden, but they only allow for fresh herbs, are sterile in appearance, and do not allow an emotional connection for the user. Our goal was to promote mental well-being by bringing back that emotional connection with gardening, while providing an effortless growing experience.
5 basic product components- a customized frame for a user to build based on their kitchen requirements, a smart pot for fresh and dry herb storage, a grinder for dried herbs, a smart helper to guide users on watering and light upkeep, and a storage piece for the grinder and other items.
Our modular frame allows users to design and construct their own herb garden configurations. The frame internals are conductive, and placing products on the frame connects them to the circuit, powering the smart pots and helpers. This works much like Mainline Power Tracks.
A beautiful stand-alone object for the home, the main feature of the pot is its ability to monitor and detect soil moisture and temperature for users to better take care of their herbs. It flashes between blue and yellow to alert the user about watering and light issues. The pot is bluetooth enabled and sends the data to the Urthy app for better accessibility and monitoring on-the-go.
The pot is constructed with four different features. The top part for growing herbs, and a drainage system underneath that doubles as a hydroponic base. The bottom half of the pot is reserved for dry herb storage- a transparent section hold the herbs while the bottom piece is a dry herb dispenser. The bottom portion can be detached and attached to the grinder for refill.
The grinder is held together by magnets that allows the user to turn the product and feel the herbs grinding at their fingertips. The dry crushed herbs are stored in the transparent section with the herb dispenser.
An optional component that aids users who need additional upkeep guidance. It comes with watering, misting and lighting features. The red light means the water reservoir needs to be refilled, the yellow light means that the plant light is on, and the blue light indicates misting or watering is taking place. The smart helper receives data from the smart pot and regulates the process based on herb type. The smart helpers fit seamlessly together, and the top tray is good for drying out fresh herb cuttings. Multiple helpers together form a longer tray.
The storage piece connects to the side of the frame and holds the grinder when it is not in use. It can also hold other daily kitchen items.
The Urthy app serves as a companion to our physical product, adding even more convenience to the user experience. Its main function is to display data from both the smart pot and smart helper, and keep track of product activity. Users have the option to select the type of herb they are growing, and the app will provide information on optimal temperature and moisture levels.
An intuitive web store interface highlighting the customizability of our product by allowing users to drag and drop components into their cart, building their garden before ordering it.
Using only cardboard and e-flutes as the main structural material, how might we design a package structure that embraces the curves and organic forms of our product?
A combination of wood, ecoplastic, and polycarbonate. We took price range, weight of the product, and circuitry into account. We had to play close attention to the fact that we would never have water near an electric source.
.jpg)
People do not grow herbs due to lack of space, unsuitable climate, and lack of time. Herbs are commonly grown in kitchens, balconies, or windows. Users store excess herbs by freezing them, or drying them by hanging them upside down or using a dehydrator or oven. Major herb growing issues include regulating water and light, bugs, climate control, and bolting.
The team looked at different types of herbs and how they are best grown. We investigated the psychology of gardening and horticulture therapy, where we found that gardening significantly benefits mental health. We found that a green thumb can help with anxiety and stress.
With an indoor gardening market saturated with smart gardening products such as Click & Grow and Aerogarden, how might we differentiate our product from the competition? We wanted our product to sit in the mid-high price range, while focusing on providing an emotional connection and convenience to our users.
We decided to experience the herb growing process first hand to understand it better. We bought our own herbs, grew them, experimented with methods of drying, and ground dried herbs using different tools on the market.
We were able to break down the herb growing process into seven steps. We identified key user touch and pain points with the tool required at each stage. This helped us identify key problems and opportunities for us to intervene.
Narrowing it Down
We narrowed the process down to four steps- upkeep, drying, grinding and storing. We eliminated the other steps because we wanted to focus on the traditional horticulture methods and retain the emotional connection between plant and user.
Based on survey responses and interviews, we developed two user groups. Experienced planters, who are experienced with the traditional methods of growing herbs but suffer from multiple pain points. Amateur planters, who are inexperienced with plants but want to learn with smart growing technology.
Age: 50 years
Location: Queens, New York
Status: Married with 2 children
Personal income: $200,000
Occupation: Kindergarten teacher, at home after lunch in time for her children to come home. Lives in a house, one of her children has special needs
Age: 23 years
Location: Seoul, Korea
Status: Single
Personal income: $200,000
Occupation: Recently graduated, full time accountant. Lives alone in studio apartment, suffers from anxiety
The focus was ceramic and smooth forms that look more natural.
The focus was simplicity of forms and how their incorporate smart components into them.
The focus was how our product would fit into the kitchen space, a natural aestehtic with a sustainable approach.
We turned to user feedback to help take our concept further. People mentioned the need for a flat bottom pot that would be able to sit upright on its own, issues with water spillage, and obstruction of plant growth.
"You need an extended section of the pot to collect water"
"Consider plant growing height"
"Misting could be a good addition"
"Transparent hydroponic section would look mucky"
"Pot should have a flat bottom so it can stand alone"
