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Locker projecto

By NTarch | S Design a new school locker

Overview Instructions

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The student did not provide any content for this step.

Comments

You've done a decent job thus far of explaining the current situation with the lockers; I look forward to seeing some more information from you on what you'd like to see in the new locker design, and why.

By mthomas, Engineer at 01:29 pm, 17 September 2010

The ideas you've come up with seem pretty solid. Your student's perspective has clearly given you a leg up on standard locker design - I especially like the idea of the coat hanger. However, it's not clear from your images where exactly the hanger is. Is it on the back of the door, or is it attached to the inside of the locker itself? Also, I would've liked to see some explanation in the "Brainstorm/Analyze" section on how you worked toward the final design you came up with, what ideas you had that you discarded... that sort of thing. Overall, nice result.

By mthomas, Engineer at 12:41 pm, 04 October 2010

Thank you very much Mr. Thomas. the coat hanger is actually a slide of draw in the middle of the locker, it is pretty hard to see with the photos i have up loaded. Thank you for the advice

By NTarch, Student at 10:41 am, 07 October 2010

Ah, I think I see it now. Again, good job.

By mthomas, Engineer at 12:21 pm, 11 October 2010

Collect Instructions

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Gather more information about your existing school lockers by taking photos, sketching, conducting interviews, or doing additional research.

Think About:

  • What is the purpose of a school locker?
  • How has the way you use a locker changed since you first started school in kindergarten, for example?
  • How many times do you visit and open your locker each day?
  • Do teachers or school administrators have any safety or security concerns about lockers?  What are they?
  • What types of materials is your locker constructed from?

Try This:

  • Take photos of a row of your school's lockers.  Open your own locker and take a photo of what's stored inside.
  • Make a list of all the features your locker currently has. (Examples: hooks, air slots, etc.)
  • Make a list of all the items you currently keep in your locker on a typical day.
  • Next to each item, make notes about what 'needs' that item has.  (Examples: my sweaty gym clothes need to kept away from my other things; my iPod needs electricity to be charged; my winter boots need a place to drip dry)
  • Make a list of all the items you wish you could store in your locker, but don’t have room for.
  • Measure the length, height, and depth of your current locker.
  • Measure the length, height, and depth of your backpack, books, coat / shoes, and other large objects you typically keep inside your locker.
  • Measure the width of your school’s hallway.  How much of this width is taken up – on both sides of the hallway – when students stand in front of their open lockers?
  • Read this Washington Post article to learn more about some of the complaints students have with their lockers today.
  • Visit the websites of a few manufacturers to see various types of lockers currently made.  What do you like or dislike about these examples?

NTarch's work for the Collect Information step:

• What is the purpose of a school locker?
The purpose of a school locker is for students to have a place to put books, lunches, anything they don’t need at the moment, so they don’t have to carry everything around.
• How has the way you use a locker changed since you first started school in kindergarten, for example?
In kindergarten I used my locker in between every single period and put all my stuff in there constantly. Now I use my locker on average once a day to exchanged my morning class books for my afternoon class books.
• How many times do you visit and open your locker each day?
I usually go before lunch and put all my morning class books into my locker and grab my afternoon class books, then at the end of the day I go back and grab everything I need for homework.
• Do teachers or school administrators have any safety or security concerns about lockers? What are they?
I would have to say no not really.
• What types of materials is your locker constructed from?
Just metal.

Brainstorm Instructions

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Develop sketches or models to help you puzzle through new ideas and solutions.

Think About:

  • Make a list of all the things you like about your current locker.  Ask several friends for their opinions.
  • Make a list of all the things you dislike about your current locker.  Ask several friends for their opinions.
  • Think about your locker not just as a metal box, but as another type of container.  What other types of containers do you use each day to store stuff?  (Examples: containers for food, clothing, household items)
  • Many animals, insects, and plants use containers to store things (Example: bees use honeycombs).  Check out some of the images in the Inspiration Gallery for other ideas of strorage units.
  • Keep in mind that your newly-designed locker will be one of many along the hallway.  How will these individual units all fit together?  How will several students use their lockers at the same time without bumping into each other?

Try This:

  • Based on the information you collected above, brainstorm a list of special features you’d like your new locker to have.
  • Make lots of sketches to get your early ideas down on paper.  Learn from each different idea. 
  • Consider what materials the locker will be made from.  What materials will be durable against the wear and tear of student use over the years?

NTarch's work for the Brainstorm Ideas step:

Develop Instructions

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Now's the time to take what you've learned from the steps above and develop your own solution for a new locker.

Try This:

  • Use recycled cardboard to make a full-scale or half-scale prototype model of your locker.  You can't really understand if the locker will hold all your stuff, until you make a quick study model.  Don't worry about making a fancy finished model at this time. Instead, use cardstock, scissors, and tape to quickly create the large 3D form. See how it looks. Break off different sections, add new pieces, and try new ideas. Take photos of your model.
  • Sketch or use software such as Google SketchUp, AutoCAD, or Revit to put your ideas on paper.

NTarch's work for the Develop Solutions step:

The student did not provide any content for this step.

Final Instructions

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NTarch's work for the Final Design step:

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I believe that things such as coats and backpacks take up value-able space in lockers so i designed my locker around that idea. i put in a pull out coat hanger to completely get rid of a coat taking up space. Also i put in an adjustable shelf on the right side for a backpack, it is adjustable so students can decide if the would rather have there backpack down low or up high, this isolates the backpack, and the rest of the locker is designated for school supplies.