Smart Lock
2018
Simplisafe launched the design in 2018 with higher than expected sales and good reviews, including this one from PC Magazine, “The smart lock Apple would have designed.”
My fieldwork uncovered three critical insights that shaped the product experience and design language.
01
Homeowners in the suburbs typically accessed the home via the garage, reserving the front door for guests. This meant smart-home products needed to be immediatly recognizable and intuitive, especially for grandparents and guests. This may sound silly, however at the time, the majority of smart locks on the market did not look like locks.
02
Maintaining the traditional proportions and materials (metal) of a deadbolt could help us make the object immediately recognizeable as a lock. Through an exhaustive study, I identified the common proportions associated with locks, doorknobs and deadbolts. I then leveraged these proportions to ensure my design would speak the same language.
03
The benefit of a tool-less installation was not worth the comprimise in aesthetics and security for users.
Form & Product Architecture
I explored several engineering architectures to understand how I could retain the critical proportions and materials that people relied on to communicate “lock”. I also explored power density architectures and mechanical systems to pull off the concept. This prototyping began with salvaged parts and batteries, and progressed to rough 3d printed forms. I delivered a solid engineering architecture with final industrial design surfaces that remained unchanged in mass production.