Designing for human connection
As part of CMU UXA Hackathon for human connection I worked on a small team designing an app for fostering human connection through spatially tethered voice messages.
echoes
9:41
Echoes around me
+88
Leave an echo
Listening Modes
Public
Friends
9:41
Arena
pnc park
Echoes around me
Trending Echoes
Hello guys
Jiwon
Zoe
Reply
Ella
Lea
01:02
The sunset is sick f...
Hello guys
Jiwon
01:02
Hello guys
Jiwon
01:02
+88
Leave an echo
Listening Modes
Public
Friends
Through long discussions around human connection facilitated by technology in the current day, we found that the ability to connect with those in physical spaces has been replaced by connecting with people in digital ones. We wanted to design an app that helped facilitate a deeper connection to physical space and the people who occupy those spaces.
With Echoes users leave voice recordings in locations that can only be accessed by visiting those places.
Echoes
(voice recordings that capture stories and memories)
Public or Personal
connections
Listening Modes
(Spontaneous or Selective interactions)
Key features
02
02
03
Social Connection
Seekers
Memory Keepers & Storytellers
Emma (27)
Travel Blogger
"I’d love to leave hidden stories or voice notes for fellow travelers to discover."
"I want to leave voice messages in places that hold special meaning from my past."
"It’s hard to keep personal memories alive when places change, and people move away."
Sarah (40)
Teacher
Emma (21)
University student
Nostalgic Users
Target users
Echoes
Outdoor engagement
Fully Virtual
User controlled
Algorithm Driven
Market position
Echoes
- Presence vs Passive Browsing
- Proximity-Based Engagement
- Authentic interactions
- Commitment to Conversations
- Preservation as time capsules
Prototype
Creating a voice memo
Leave an echo
The clouds are so...
Public
Friends
post
9:41
Leave an echo
00:08.7
Post
Delete
The clouds are so...
resume
Public
Friends
Interacting with a voice memo
9:41
Arena
pnc park
Echoes around me
Trending Echoes
Hello guys
Jiwon
Zoe
Reply
Ella
Lea
01:02
The sunset is sick f...
Hello guys
Jiwon
01:02
Hello guys
Jiwon
01:02
+88
Leave an echo
Listening Modes
Public
Friends
Listening Modes
9:41
Echoes around me
+88
Leave an echo
Listening Modes
Public
Friends
Listening Modes
Notify: Gets notified there is an echo, then press a button to listen to it.
Playlist: As you enter geo-gates the echoes play to completion in sequential order
Proximity: Echoes fade in and out based on proximity. Only one echo plays at a time.
Proximity ensemble: Echoes fade in and out based on proximity. Multiple echoes can play at once.
Done
