ORISON partners with DDSTUDIO to rethink battery energy storage for the home

Design Thinking for battery energy storage

The most remarkable thing about working at DDSTUDIO is that we are constantly acquiring knowledge and having fun. We have a passion to define and create delight for our customers using Design Thinking. We push to make all aspects of design lead to positive experiences that become part of a life that’s more socially engaged and memorable. We get to encourage people to opt-in to great ideas and embrace new technologies.

Working with Orison to create a beautiful solution for battery energy storage

Our client, Orison, is an example of WHY and HOW great products happen and the way design driven innovation works. From our first conversation, Orison Founder and CEO Eric Clifton was completely focused on the human element for his revolutionary battery energy storage and power back-up solution for the home.

“Congratulations Eric on meeting your Kickstarter goal in one day!”

Eric’s vision was to create a user-centric product experience that enhances quality of life.  Eric wanted to partner with a design firm that could implement his vision.

Over the past 9 years I’ve been building Orison – the first home battery system you simply plug in to install. It started as just a vision – a vision for a better world and I knew I could do something about it. I created the concept, put together an amazing team, and built prototype after prototype to get us to where we are today.”  Eric Clifton

DDSTUDIO is a great fit for Orison because our Experience Design Process provides the framework to incorporate the user’s perspective – effectively uniting the user with the builder from the beginning. Our kick-off workshop includes our client’s core management team and DDSTUDIO’s multidisciplinary design and development team, (including Industrial Design, UX and Mechanical Engineering). We use Design Thinking tools to cultivate an understanding of the user journey. Our empathy maps reveal emotion, motivation and unmet product oriented needs. They provide the inspiration for design delight and peak moments for the user. The elegant results of the Orison Immersion workshop are demonstrated with the first Panel and Tower product designs. These IOT plug-and-play system parts are the first of a list of potential household products with multiple functions beyond simply battery energy storage. These products encase Orison’s revolutionary technology into forward-thinking, thoughtful networked solution for the self-storage of energy in the home.

Wall panel system for battery energy storage
Design concept for expandable plug-and -play wall panel system

The 2.5-inch-thick illuminated-panel is 22 by 28 inches and can be personalized with image and surface finishes to fit different interior schemes. The 34-inch-tall tower also houses an LED light, Bluetooth speaker and a set of USB charging ports. During a power cut, the system can be isolated from the grid and automatically power the home. Whether you get your energy from the grid, a solar array, or some other source, you can control when to store it and when to use it. At DDSTUDIO, we use ethnographic and trend research to develop a deep understanding of context, evolving customer needs and empathy for our users. This is then linked with existing and emerging technologies; cultural influences and our Client’s business objectives. We facilitate workshops with our clients that move through a series of thought provoking exercises from WHY through HOW to WHAT. Orison brings their consumer vision for energy and their individual technology expertise. We bring product and interface design expertise, trend insights, ethnographic research tools, business model acumen, manufacturing process /new materials knowledge and a very creative engineering team. Together we think great products.

battery energy storage workshop
Client Workshop at DDSTUDIO

DDSTUDIO’s proven Design process is the key to our successful product solutions. As CEO and Creative director, I am involved directly in the product vision from the beginning. Our Project Management format provides real time communication with our clients for budget and schedule accountability. I personally ensure that the outcome is a solution that leverages the talent of our multidisciplinary agile team, our client’s expertise and the voice of the user.  We then design, prototype and build for mainstream conditions and outliers. Our main goal is to give delight through magical peak moments – those Ah-ha moments when delight happens. This has been a fun project and we are enjoying watching the successful outcome of Orison’s Kickstarter campaign. The DDSTUDIO Design Thinking Approach:

  • Identify the context and the target audience; build an understanding.
  • Observe users /talk with customers; uncover and articulate their needs.
  • Develop empathy – involve the broadest team.
  • Frame the problems and opportunities before trying to solve them.
  • Make design decisions based on inputs, not on personal preferences.
  • Reinvent – keep prototyping and learning with field research.
  • Invite users and customers to co-create with us (product and interface).
  • Align to specific worthwhile outcomes. Reflect and critique. Innovate with the purpose of enhancing the quality of the people’s lives

DDTUDIO and ORISON rethink technology solutions into a beautiful seamless customer experience.  We reveal insights and opportunities to uncover key moments, then design and build great products.

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