Gong-yu! - Designing shared mobility across cultures
Lead Research Organisation:
Royal College of Art
Department Name: Intelligent Mobility Design Centre
Abstract
This project will promote UK-South Korea collaboration by bringing together two leading mobility design institutes, the Royal College of Art's (RCA) Intelligent Mobility Design Centre (IMDC) and the Department of Mobility Design at Kookmin University, Seoul. Central to the collaboration is the shared belief that design goes beyond mere problem solving and forms a cultural activity aiming to improve social cohesion, valorize culture and heritage, and enhance personal fulfillment and wellbeing.
The project will adopt a cross-disciplinary and cross-cultural approach to unpack the design of sustainable mobility futures. The global mobility challenge requires local knowledge and sensitivities which are not only relevant to global businesses but also to provide mobility solutions that are relevant and understandable to people.
The collaboration aims to build research strengths and capabilities which will be achieved by sharing best practice and knowledge exchange, identification and development of themes and topics of mutual importance and the identification of funding opportunities. It will build on the expertise and experience at both institutes in the area of mobility design centred around a shared vision to advance mobility through design and research for social, environmental and economic good. Specifically, it will focus on the design challenges and opportunities of shared mobility which is widely considered to be essential for the development of sustainable mobility.
The project will adopt a cross-disciplinary and cross-cultural approach to unpack the design of sustainable mobility futures. The global mobility challenge requires local knowledge and sensitivities which are not only relevant to global businesses but also to provide mobility solutions that are relevant and understandable to people.
The collaboration aims to build research strengths and capabilities which will be achieved by sharing best practice and knowledge exchange, identification and development of themes and topics of mutual importance and the identification of funding opportunities. It will build on the expertise and experience at both institutes in the area of mobility design centred around a shared vision to advance mobility through design and research for social, environmental and economic good. Specifically, it will focus on the design challenges and opportunities of shared mobility which is widely considered to be essential for the development of sustainable mobility.
| Description | Collaboration The Gong Yu! project set out to promote UK-South Korea collaboration by bringing together two leading mobility design institutes, the Royal College of Art's (RCA) Intelligent Mobility Design Centre (IMDC) and the Department of Mobility Design at Kookmin University, Seoul. The collaboration centred around the topic of the design of future Demand Responsive Transport to facilitate the transition towards more sustainable mobility. The project achieved its aims by realising the effective exchange of knowledge, tools and skills between the two institutions. The approach developed within the project and initial findings have sparked the interest of a major South Korean based Tier 1 mobility supplier with 3-way collaborative R&D projects under discussion. In addition, the project also led to a collaboration with the RCA acting as an external advisor as part of an industry funded mobility project led by Kookmin University. The collaboration has resulted in joint publications between the two institutions. New research methods and design tools The project adopted an integrated approach to future mobility by exploring it from four distinct yet complementary perspectives (i.e. wellbeing, inclusive design, sustainability, cultural sensitivity). Each of the perspectives was supported by novel conceptual frameworks and design tools co-developed by both institutions that were adapted to suit the advanced design process sensitising designers to the particular perspectives and associated challenges and opportunities. The resulting tools and methods have been adopted and being refined by both institutions and incorporated into their respective curricula. Findings The projects explored opportunities and challenges for the design of future Demand Responsive Transport vehicles and services. For each of the work packages (i.e. wellbeing, inclusive design, sustainability, cultural sensitivity) novel directions were identified and developed at an initial conceptual level. Noteworthy findings included the beneficial social effects of shared mobility and identification of design opportunities facilitating social interaction and community building; novel navigation methods around the vehicle for visually impaired passengers; and innovations in service design. |
| Exploitation Route | The outcomes of the project will be of interest to both industry (advanced) design practice and design education in particular automotive and transport design. The project has developed and demonstrated the application of design methods and tools relevant for key cross cutting themes (i.e. wellbeing, inclusive design, sustainability, cultural sensitivity) important for the design of future mobility solutions. The project has provided a spring board to develop future research projects to further develop and evaluate the proposed methods. |
| Sectors | Transport |
| URL | https://www.rca.ac.uk/research-innovation/projects/gong-yu-designing-shared-mobility-across-cultures/ |
| Description | Kookmin University |
| Organisation | Kookmin University |
| Country | Korea, Republic of |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | The IMDC research team has contributed expert knowledge in mobility design related to design for wellbeing, design for sustainability, design for cultural sensitivity, and design for inclusivity. The knowledge was applied in the context of designing future Demand Responsive Transport (DRT) and has created novel insights, design opportunities and new design methods. |
| Collaborator Contribution | The Kookmin University team has contributed their expertise in mobility design, interior design and cultural studies in particular in support of the cross-cultural aspect of the project. In addition, a dedicated team of Kookmin mobility design students provided concept designs during 4 1-week design sprints exploring future Demand Responsive Transport design directions from the perspectives of wellbeing, inclusivity, sustainability and cultural sensitivity during. To facilitate this, Kookmin has provided access to their workshop and design facilities. |
| Impact | The collaboration is multidisciplinary in nature with the team consisting of members with backgrounds in design, engineering, social sciences, humanities, and architecture. |
| Start Year | 2022 |
| Description | Automotive supplier collaboration |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | The IMDC and Kookmin team visited Hyundai Mobis (https://www.mobis.co.kr/en/index.do), a Tier 1 supplier to the automotive and wider mobility industry following their interest in the Gong Yu! project. Discussions focussed on future collaborations to develop future mobility concepts based around the Gong Yu! themes of sustainability, inclusiveness, wellbeing, and cultural sensitivity. The Gong Yu! project outcomes are considered to be incorporated into the upcoming 2024 CES (Consumer Electronics Show) show in Las Vegas, the most important industry mobility showcase globally. At the same time, discussions are taking place to collaborate on the vision and implementation of the 2025 CES Mobis exhibit. The Gong Yu! project has paved the way for future 3-way collaborations in research and design. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
| Description | Design sprints and workshops |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Local |
| Primary Audience | Postgraduate students |
| Results and Impact | For each of the project themes, 1 week design sprints and workshops were organised with post graduate students from both institutions, as well as invited speakers including fleet operators, mobility designers, and policy makers. Each event involved between 12 and 20 students who were involved in the initial scoping and research phase and subsequent ideation and design development phases. This formed part of the research through design element of the project whereby Demand Responsive Transport was explored based on each of the project themes, wellbeing, inclusivity, sustainability and cultural sensitivity. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022,2023 |
| URL | https://www.rca.ac.uk/research-innovation/projects/gong-yu-designing-shared-mobility-across-cultures... |