Re: DIY Drills for the young at heart
Firstly thank you for your thoughts bob!
I appreciate your input, i realised i have worded it in a slightly confusing way, the drill with be corded, and used in this setting most of the time. However if a quick job needs doing, the cable can be removed via a release button and a small 18V Li ion battery in the handle can power the drill for up to 20 minutes. I chose Lithium ion batteries as they have characteristics which are much more suited to this application, they hold charge for a much long time period, so the drill would be usable via the battery power even after a year or more being stored not in use. Also Li-Ion batteries have a constant discharge rate, so the power doesn't decrease as the battery is decharged like normal batteries, it keeps the same power and torque levels right up until the point where there is no charge left. Also Li-Ion batteries are more light weight and can be made smaller without losing any of the benefits of the battery technology.
I realise the chucks are already in production, i am not completely redeveloping "The Drill" as a product, i am not designing the future drill, i am simply applying features that i believe will make the product easier to use for the audience i am aiming it at. I have carried out testing with existing drills, with voluteers whom had never used a drill before and i noted the areas in the use of the product where they were having most trouble and i am trying to over come these issues.
As for construction, after having spoken to customers in B&Q, several people raised concerns about more plastic being used in areas where traditionally the componants would be made of metal. However the increase in plastic componants is all to do with cutting costs, (which is a large portion of all design areas these days) These are preliminary ideas i had for the drill and nothing is yet set in stone, i am looking to make the use of materials a way if instilling confidence in the product.
As for uni sex handles, you are right, majority of drills are not for a specific sex, however the dimensions of the handles of existing drills can pose problems for women users as they have smaller hands, this is something which i have seen and discussed first hand with volunteers in user testing exercises and is backed up with anthropometric data.
By NO means will this drill be pink, i have looked at one other company which does this to "Genderise" products and i personally couldn't think of anything worse, i think it is very patronising and very tacky.
I am looking to use a colour scheme which could be used by B&Q as a brand scheme for other tools they produce, however i have not developed this any further yet, i will be doing this in the coming weeks.
I am still concept sketching for the time being, so i will post sketch work up once i have finalised a few more details.
Thanks again for your inputs, hope this clears up your concerns !
Will