The product I chose to redesign is the toothbrush. I chose this product because I wanted it to be more interesting and more efficient for people. For me, it was essential to create a product that was interesting rather than having one simple function. I, also wanted it to be able to have more than one use for people. Additionally, I wanted it would be more efficient meaning it would be easier to use. I will change this product by taking the simple aspects of the toothbrush and make them more complex yet still easy to use.
This product is part of the dental system. It will impact people who use the toothbrush. With the toothbrush, I have designed it is aimed to benefit people’s hygiene. For my product, the toothpaste will be infused in the bristles of the toothbrush. Over time, the toothpaste will wear out and that’s when consumers will know that they have to change their toothbrush. People are supposed to change their toothbrushes every three months. Therefore, the bristles would contain enough toothpaste to last three months. Additionally, there will be a button for consumers to press which will give them the amount needed to brush their teeth. This will help people to remember to change them. Instead of changing the entire toothbrush, it would be much easier to just change the head of the toothbrush. It would be designed to be detachable, that way people would only have to buy the head with the bristles. This also creates less waste, instead of people throwing away the entire toothbrush and buying a new one; they would just buy the attachable piece. Furthermore, on the reverse side of the bristles, there will be a small casing that contains floss. It will be covered so the floss would not affect the brushing of one’s teeth. This will make it easier for people. so they won’t need to purchase toothpaste or floss. It will all be in one toothbrush.
For designing this product, I would keep it simple concerning the materials. The new toothbrush would be made of something that would still be able to suffice the concept of the design, yet something sustainable. It is estimated that over 850 million toothbrushes in the United States end up in landfill every year. The common toothbrush isn’t just made out of one type of plastic, it is made out of a combination of plastics. Polypropylene and polyethylene are used to make just the handles, Nylon is then used to make the bristles. I believe that using bamboo could help with this. Bamboo is natural and other companies have tested it. This could be one way to help with the waste situation.
My hopes for this product is that the consumers will feel better about using this product. They’ll feel better about themselves because it promotes better hygiene. In addition to that, it will also be better for the environment.
