Pop & Pour is a new and improved ice tray designed to take the hassle out of getting ice. By simply popping the ice cubes from the silicone tray and pouring directly into your cup, you’ll have a cleaner, quicker ice delivery.
Project Description
The Pop & Pour was designed as part of a quick 3 week project in which I was tasked with re-designing a simple product I had familiarity with. As a student without a nice enough fridge to make ice for me, a daily struggle of mine included getting ice from my ice tray, so this is where I decided to put my focus
Skills Used
Low-fi Prototyping
Usability Testing
3D Modeling (Fusion 360)
Rendering (Keyshot)
Common Problems
Filling the ice tray evenly
Spilling water as you transport the tray
Difficulties getting the ice from the tray
Needing to touch each cube with your hand
Letting freezer smells into the ice
I started my design process as I usually do, with a series of thumbnail sketches in order to explore as many solutions as I could. The three that stood out to me are shown below and serve as the basis for my final design.
OXO
Icebreaker
Omorc
While ideating, I also researched and purchased some existing products in order to see what solutions were currently available. I found that the silicone base on the Omorc ice tray on the far right proved to be the most effective in releasing ice. However, this ice tray did not solve the issue of having to remove each cube one by one with your hand, creating an inefficient and unsanitary process.
Low-Fi Prototypes
Usability Testing
Usability testing showed that users cared most about the control, efficiency, and comfort with which they could operate the ice trays. Features such as an angled chute and a flat top for easy stacking were incorporated into the final design…
