Facebook touts it “…helps you connect and share with the people in your life.”  In what other others ways could technology connect you with the people in your life? Could a lamp or a pillow do that?

ApartmentTherapy.com alerted me to Pillow Talk by the design firm Little Riot, which is designed to connect two long distance lovers, but I change that to two long distance people who love each other.  “Each person has a ring sensor they wear to bed at night, and a flat fabric panel which slots inside their pillowcase. The ring wirelessly communicates with the other person’s pillow; when one person goes to bed, their lover’s pillow begins to glow softly to indicate their presence. Placing your head on the pillow allows you to hear the real-time heartbeat of your loved one.” Be sure to watch the video.

The first time I heard of techie, glowing, subtle connection innovations to connect people was in 2003 from Eric Dishman of Intel when he described the Presence Lamp,  “…a simple off-the-shelf motion sensor on a lamp. It could let an adult child know that Mom, who is 85 and living alone in another home or city, has gotten home safely and is sitting in her favorite room in her favorite chair. The system would turn on a lamp in the home of the person the elder chose to share that information with-and vice versa, because we found that the elders weren’t really willing to do this unless it was a two-way street. They wanted to know when the person they cared about was home, as well.”

There are many ways technology can connect us in our personal lives with those we love. How do you use technology to remain connected?

What is the impact of a celebrity highlighting aging, frailty, and in this case the temporary use of mobility assistance? Who can identity the make and model of the new royal carriage?

The Blog-Health-o-Meter™ reads This blog is doing awesome!.

Crunchy numbers

A Boeing 747-400 passenger jet can hold 416 passengers. This blog was viewed about 6,300 times in 2010. That’s about 15 full 747s.

The busiest day of the year was January 6th with 104 views. The most popular post that day was THE GREEN HOUSE® Design Charrette.

Where did they come from?

The top referring sites in 2010 were, digg.com, and linkedin.com.

Some visitors came searching, mostly for Mcdonalds Happy Meal, Ideo method cards, ambient intelligence, Ron Arad product design, and bathroom concepts.

Attractions in 2010

These are the posts and pages that got the most views in 2010.

THE GREEN HOUSE® Design Charrette January 2009
1 comment

McDonald’s Happy Meal of the Future November 2008
2 Likes on WordPress.com

Bathroom Innovation October 2008

Not Your Father’s Grab Bar. January 2009

What is important to notice is the absence of someone representing a later lifestage. In fact, the lack of an older demographic in the commercial probably helps Samsung reach out to people who might have been scared away with the special design that could accommodate a special need.

What would happen if you stopped marketing your later lifestage product or service directly to that demographic and removed them from the marketing conversation completely? What new ways would you create to excite and engage people?

It is becoming increasingly important to create living environments that allow people to live in their own homes of choice for as long as comfortably possible.

Builders and housing developers can help extend livability in a home by incorporating design solutions that maintain quality of life and independence as people age. Milgard is a window and patio door manufacturer that develops universally accessible products with a user-centric design process.

An example is Milgard’s patented SmartTouch™ lock, an innovation that made Milgard the first window manufacturer to receive the Arthritis Foundation Ease-of-Use Commendation, and  the only window manufacturer to receive a 2008 Bronze IDEA award for design.

Milgard also makes two vinyl patio door lines that come standard with the patent-pending SmartTouch™ door handle. The handle is recognized for one-touch ease of use, and is also a recipient of the Arthritis Foundation Ease-of-Use Commendation.

Be sure to download the Milgard white paper on “baby boomer behaviors toward livability and home ownership.”

Other companies and manufacturers need to join the efforts of Milgard to design products and solutions that support people to live in their homes longer, more safely, comfortably and enjoyably.

Some may think multiple videos is distracting, but the hope is the longer you watch the triptych the more you will become immersed in the multiple video messages centered around a common theme. The multiple videos lets one abstract to higher levels of thinking about the topic, which is a whole new element that wouldn’t happen if the videos were viewed individually or even sequentially. The whole is intended to be greater than the sum of its parts.

1: Microsoft Vision of Healthcare.  2. Dove Commercial.  3. Playing the Wii

Tell you the story of who I am

So many stories of where I’ve been

And how I got to where I am”

Good design, no matter what kind of artist you are, (I use Seth Godin’s definition of artist) can find inspiration in music.  Brandi Carlile’s song, The Story, is my recommendation for a dose of inspiration because it honors the passage of time

What musician or song inspires you? What is the story of your wrinkles?

Rubber tips don’t glide well on most surfaces.  They are great for stability while standing still, but their stickiness requires the user to slightly raise the rear legs of the walker to take a step forward. This maneuver requires balance and upper body strength, which can be difficult for some who needs to use a walker in the first place. As the durable medical equipment suppliers keep producing and selling walkers with rubber tips an adjacent industry grows, the Walker Ball industry.

The question arises, why don’t the “metal bender” (not my label but their own) durable equipment manufacturers understand how their walkers are modified by consumers and incorporate the needed hacks into the original design? The need to customize everyday objects in order to make it useful is disgraceful design. Customizable objects to reflect your personal style are welcomed.

Here again is a problem for design-thinkers to solve. The challenge continues and it welcomes your talents.

It was interesting to learn “…the laptop is the center of the business traveler’s life and should be the center of the design innovation.”  What is at the center of your customer’s life?  Is it an object or a lifestyle; a variety of social events, opportunities to be active, a mix of private and public space, or a support network of heathcare options? Find what is most important to your target market and use that as the guide for ongoing innovation. Some of the other key learning points of the redesign of Courtyard hotels that could be applied to senior living communities are:

• Flexible, movable furniture to customize how the public space is used from a communal table to private quiet areas.
• A physical environment and service options that is under each persons control and offers a high level of choice; a variety of food options and highly flexible meal time schedule.
• A lobby that is a destination as opposed to being a mediocre pass through to secluded rooms.

If you won’t be traveling to one of the refreshed Courtyard properties any time soon get a feel of the new environment with this commercial.

There are many  examples of well designed lifestage communities and facilities across the continuum of care but they are far outnumbered by the quantity of poorly designed facilities that are not prepared to meet the lifestyle needs of a new generation of adults seeking innovative housing and care options.

If you really listen to your current and prospective residents what small and large scale innovations can you implement that will transform their experience?

When Tim Culvahouse, FAIA, arcCA editor and Andrew Sharlach, Associate Dean and Professor of Social Welfare at the University of California at Berkeley presented the issue at the monthly San Francisco meeting of the AIA Design for Aging knowledge group I knew I wanted to pass the information on to others who might be interested in a beautifully designed journal with over ten articles by leading experts in the field with interesting perspectives on aging and the built environment. Enjoy. While you’re checking out the Journal, also visit the AIA DFA site; I think you will be excited by what it does.