The brief set by the university was to design products, services or systems that would contribute to a mission’s success on a dwarf planet called Harmonia, which is capable of supporting human life. The year is 2025, the atmosphere is breathable. However, living conditions and the environment are more extreme than Earth.
Even though what we could design was open, the focus was to collect a range of data (Botanic, Climate & Geological). Therefore, my process involved analysing the known facts about Harmonia and identifying the best design solution that wouldn’t put astronauts at risk. As the task was design fiction set in the future, I based my designs on some existing solutions of drones and current sampling techniques such as herbariums, as well as self-sustaining ecosystems such as the ‘Biosphere 2’ in order to create a design that would allow for the collection of needed data.
My Final interpretation to the brief resulted in a set of drones that would collect all the necessary data through a range of technologies, such as having a 3D plant scanner. It also had a built-in biosphere ecosystem that would allow for the collection of necessary plants without killing them. The overall product was designed with the extreme climate in mind, making the drones self-sustainable when out patrolling the planet.