Project 2 Proposal - Tomato Stress Ball

Overview

This toy was designed for users to relieve stress with, much like a regular faceless stress ball. Although most people are able to use it, its quirky looks and expression have a stronger appeal to teenagers and young adults. Its bright colour is what makes it attractive, and the angry appearance of the tomato adds to the humour.

This toy will interest young adults because oftentimes they are too busy and overworked to have the time to concentrate on learning how to play with a more complicated toy. This stress ball does not require much attentiveness or intellect to use, as it can be something a person plays with subconsciously. It is so natural to know how to use this toy because of the malleable texture. Stress balls are also useful for physical therapy.

The small and compact size of it fits well into the palm of a hand, and also allows the toy to be very easily portable. The material is soft enough so it would not hurt when squeezed or thrown, but is also hard enough to resist breaking.


Prototype


This prototype was made by filling a red balloon to a good palm size with plain white flour. It was then decorated with green felt for the tomato's leaves, and the expression was drawn on with marker.

The rubbery material of a balloon is stretchy which is ideal for physical manipulation. Flour is light fine powder, but is also able to become hard when packed together tightly.

User Testing and Feedback

• Does not retain its shape quickly, which makes it annoying to have to expend more effort into putting it back into shape after a person is done using it.
• Flour might be too soft of a powder to use because it makes the stress ball give away its shape easily.
• The leaf will fall off eventually.
  
• Because it is a tomato, having a leaf is understandable, but having a leaf made out of felt does not feel right. It gives off a really soft and fuzzy feeling, similar to that of a teddy bear. It makes the user associate it with nice, cozy things instead and does not fit the feeling of something made to have its life squeezed out of it.
• The size could be a bit larger -- a tennis ball size.
• The current expression makes the user feel angrier at it.
  
• More variety in expressions: horrified, in pain, smiling, purple and screaming.
• Could be done with other fruits as well.

Improvements for the Final Product

Instead of just a tomato, it would be good to expand on a variety of fruits with different expressions. A single one of these could be a collector's item, and altogether it could be a set. The size of each of these will be roughly the size of a tennis ball for better grip.

As for materials, the durability of a balloon's rubber is not very high, so the outer shell will have to be made thicker. The entire outer shell will be made out of rubber, including the leaves and stems of the fruits, which will allow those areas to be slightly malleable as well. Flour feels good from first use (albeit on the soft side), but after much use it tends to clump together inside the stress ball.

Many regular stress balls are made from foam rubber that is injected as a liquid into a mold. The same technique can be applied to this toy as well. With a mold, many different kinds of shells could be made possible, so that the shape is not stuck as only a sphere.

Research: stressballs.ca