BoolaBins

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  BoolaBins Front View

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  Assembly Drawing

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  BoolaBins Top View

Inspiration

I often walk into Bingham to see a pile of freshly clean clothes resting on top of a laundry machine. Most Yalies have been on either side of this situation. On one hand, students feel the frustration of having to wait for "done" machines still filled with clothes. At the same time, there's also the fear of running late, having your clothes taken out by the next laundry-doer, and having to rewash an entire load.

What it does

BoolaBins is a communal bin system designed specifically for Yale's shared laundry rooms. Each bin has an attached small whiteboard, allowing students to write their name when they start a laundry cycle or line up for a machine. The intuitive, 2-compartment design protects everyone: students running late still gets their laundry moved somewhere clean and clearly marked with their name, while the person who needs the machine can get in and start their own cycle.

How we built it

The idea for the shared compartment system came from a survey sent to Yalies via google forms. 50% of responders claimed that knowing the name of the individual doing laundry before them would moderately or highly increase feelings of accountability when treating the owner's clothes. After initial sketches created in Autodesk Sketchbook, I created the first CAD prototype of BoolaBins on the platform Onshape. Shaped like an abstract bulldog and decorated with the Yale logo, the BoolaBins model achieves its goals of approachability and playfulness.

Challenges we ran into

One challenge was ensuring that the compartment sharing goal of BoolaBins would feel intuitive to users. My initial idea featured a separate area for Yalies to place finished laundry, but that extra step may motivate students to still place deposit clothes on top of the machine. The BoolaBin is functional because it's the obvious choice: placed in a convenient location (on top of the machine), and adding that extra layer of protection for your own laundry.

Accomplishments that we're proud

I'm proud of the visual design of the BoolaBin - I had a great time coming up with the Bulldog shape and editing the appearance in Onshape.

What we learned

For more user engagement, design choices should offer the least resistance. I wanted to design BoolaBins to fit easily into the routine of Yale laundry while adding a charming, decorative element to the laundry rooms.

What's next for BoolaBins

3D print first BoolaBins prototype, gather more student survey responses to improve design, and run first product engagement tests in Bingham Hall :)

Built With

• figma
• onshape