Portable Heat Kit : Explorative research on application of heat as a comfort material in day

Abstract: Heat is an essential aspect of personal comfort. However, designing for heat as a comfort material is difficult due to the subjective nature of materials in combination with differing human perceptions and preferences. This paper presents the results of an explorative design project, where a heat kit consisting of three design probes was developed through self-exploration and participatory design with five participants. Field studies with this heat kit enabled the participants to interact with heat as a comfort material in their day-to-day lives. This allowed exploration of the contexts where heat is considered a comfort material, use cases stemming from these contexts, and usability considerations in designing with heat as a comfort material. As a result, two significant paradigms of using heat for comfort emerged: discomfort-avoidance behavior and comfort-seeking behavior. In addition, the degree of flexibility for users, importance of material with differing use cases, controllability of heat, and comfort in social interactions emerged as key design considerations when developing artifacts with heat as a comfort material.