RainNet Project 1 — Agnes Liu

WHY I STARTED?

I began this project with a general interest in sustainability and in finding everyday friction in shared urban spaces. Instead of starting with a product solution, I started with quick field observations at everyday “threshold” sites in London such as schools, residential entrances, hotels, and other dense transition points to see where small but repeated problems occur.

Weather quickly emerged as a key issue. I noticed that rain often interrupted movement in very ordinary but frustrating ways: people paused at exits, crowded under small awnings, checked their phones...etc. This suggested that rain in London is not just a weather condition, but a recurring source of friction connected to both mobility and waste.

DELIVER

DISCOVER

SITE OBSERVATIONS

I began by observing threshold spaces in London, including campus entrances, residential gates, hotel drop-off points, and station-adjacent exits. I chose these sites because they are everyday transition points where small disruptions can quickly affect movement and comfort. Rather than starting with a product idea, I looked for repeated moments of friction in daily journeys. I focused on how people responded to rain, where they hesitated, how they used shelter, what they carried, and how the environment shaped their decisions.

AEIOU FRAMEWORK

To structure these observations, I used the AEIOU framework to analyze activities, environments, interactions, objects, and users.

Title	Site	AEIOU	Observation	Takeaway
Waiting at the Threshold	School	Activities	People wait at exits before moving	Rain delays short trips
Shelter Ends at the Door	Residential	Environments	Cover stops at the entrance	Small shelter gaps create friction
Last-Minute Weather Check	Hotel	Interactions	Guests check weather before leaving	Decisions happen too late
Broken Umbrellas Near the Exit	Mixed-use	Objects	Broken umbrellas are abandoned nearby	Protection is treated as disposable
Slower Movement with Bags	Hotel	Users	Luggage makes movement harder in rain	Loaded users face more friction
Crowding Under Small Awnings	Station-adjacent	Environments	People gather tightly under limited cover	Small shelters create bottlenecks
Rushing Between Covered Spots	School	Activities	Students run between buildings in short bursts	Rain changes movement patterns
Phone in One Hand, Bag in the Other	Residential	Interactions	People juggle phones, bags, and keys at exits	Rain adds cognitive and physical load
Shared Umbrellas Look Untrustworthy	Mixed-use	Objects	Public umbrellas appear wet, old, or damaged	Condition affects willingness to use
Visitors Are Less Prepared	Hotel	Users	Short-stay visitors often leave without umbrellas	Temporary users need access more than ownership
Crossing Becomes a Pause Point	Station-adjacent	Activities	People stop before uncovered crossings to judge the rain	Rain interrupts normal flow
Dripping Water at the Entrance	Residential	Environments	Wet floors and door areas become cluttered and slippery	Rain affects shared indoor conditions
Weather Talk Before Leaving	School	Interactions	People discuss the rain before deciding to go out	Weather becomes a social decision point
Emergency Umbrella Purchases	Station-adjacent	Objects	People buy umbrellas only after rain starts	Umbrella demand is reactive, not planned
Older Adults Wait Longer	Residential	Users	Older adults avoid rushing and stay under cover longer	Some users are more exposed to delay
Detour for Cover	Mixed-use	Activities	People choose longer routes with cover over shorter exposed paths	Rain changes route choice
Doorway Congestion	Hotel	Environments	Guests gather near the doorway instead of moving out	Thresholds become friction zones
Checking Forecast Too Late	Residential	Interactions	Users check weather after already preparing to leave	Forecast awareness does not remove friction
Disposable Umbrellas Accumulate	School	Objects	Cheap umbrellas pile up near bins and fences	Existing solutions create waste
Parents with Children Move Slower	School	Users	Adults accompanying children take longer to leave in rain	Weather friction increases with care responsibilities
Short Trip, High Friction	Mixed-use	Activities	A one-minute outdoor walk becomes a stop-start journey	Small journeys are still highly disrupted
No Shared Cover Between Buildings	School	Environments	Routes between buildings lack continuous protection	Gaps in cover shape behavior
Umbrella Sharing Between Friends	School	Interactions	Two people often squeeze under one umbrella	People improvise when access is limited
Wet Umbrellas Carried Indoors	Hotel	Objects	Guests bring dripping umbrellas into lobbies and lifts	Rain protection creates secondary inconvenience
Hands Full, No Easy Response	Station-adjacent	Users	People carrying coffee, laptops, or shopping bags struggle more	Rain impacts overloaded users first
Hesitation at the Gate	Residential	Activities	Residents pause at the gate and wait for a lighter moment	Rain causes repeated hesitation in routine movement
Shelter Feels Temporary	Station-adjacent	Environments	Covered spots are used only as waiting points, not solutions	Existing shelter is passive, not functional
Looking Out Before Committing	Hotel	Interactions	People step forward, look outside, then step back in	Users test the weather before acting
Umbrella Storage Looks Messy	Residential	Objects	Umbrellas near doors are loosely stored and poorly maintained	Poor storage lowers trust and usability
Tourists Underestimate the Rain	Hotel	Users	Visitors leave unprepared for changing conditions	Unfamiliar users are less weather-ready
Timing the Dash	School	Activities	People wait for others to move first, then follow	Rain behavior is influenced by group timing
Exposed First Ten Meters	Mixed-use	Environments	The first stretch after the exit is often fully uncovered	Small exposed distances still matter
Screen Before Street	Residential	Interactions	People rely on weather apps before looking outside	Digital checking precedes physical action
Cheap Umbrellas Fail Quickly	Station-adjacent	Objects	Low-cost umbrellas bend, flip, or tear after limited use	Low durability increases waste and frustration
Luggage Limits Shelter Use	Hotel	Users	Large suitcases make it harder to stand under small awnings	Shelter design does not support all users equally
Rain Interrupts School Routine	School	Activities	Timetabled movement between classes slows down in rain	Weather disrupts repeated daily patterns
Exit Area Becomes Shared Waiting Zone	Residential	Environments	Entrances turn into informal holding spaces during rain	Rain changes how shared spaces are used
Shared Frustration Is Visible	Station-adjacent	Interactions	People exchange looks, comments, and complaints while waiting	Friction is social as well as practical
Umbrella Ownership Is Inconsistent	Mixed-use	Objects	Some people carry umbrellas regularly, many do not	Personal ownership is unreliable as a system
People in Formal Wear Avoid Running	Hotel	Users	Users dressed for work or events avoid fast movement in rain	Clothing affects how people respond to weather
Repeated Exit Checking	Residential	Activities	Users open the door more than once before leaving	Rain creates uncertainty before action
Cover Does Not Match Footfall	Station-adjacent	Environments	High-traffic exits have very limited protected space	Shelter capacity does not meet demand
Weather Apps Give Information, Not Protection	School	Interactions	Users know it is raining but still lack a practical response	Awareness alone does not solve the problem
Wet Shared Items Are Avoided	Mixed-use	Objects	People avoid touching public items that look damp or used	Visible wetness reduces trust
Commuters Prioritize Speed Over Comfort	Station-adjacent	Users	Some users leave immediately despite getting soaked	Time pressure overrides comfort
Waiting Creates Micro-Delays	Hotel	Activities	Small pauses at exits accumulate into larger delays	Repeated friction affects overall journey quality
Indoor Comfort Makes Leaving Harder	Residential	Environments	The contrast between dry indoors and wet outdoors increases hesitation	Thresholds heighten decision friction
People Re-check the Forecast Mid-Delay	School	Interactions	Users refresh weather apps while already waiting outside	Uncertainty continues even after the first check
Umbrellas Are Used Beyond Intended Lifespan	Residential	Objects	Old umbrellas remain in use despite visible damage	People tolerate poor tools when alternatives are weak
The Most Affected Users Are in Transition	Across sites	Users	People moving between places experience the most friction	Rain is most disruptive during transitions

INTERVIEWS

Observation showed where friction happened, but interviews helped explain why. To understand users’ habits and decisions more clearly, I conducted short interviews about how people prepare for rain, what they do when caught without an umbrella, and why existing options often feel inconvenient or unreliable.

Many said they would not carry an umbrella for a short or uncertain trip, while others only bought cheap umbrellas when necessary and often did not keep them for long. These interviews helped connect observed behavior with everyday attitudes and frustrations.

SECONDARY RESEARCH

To support the field observations and interviews, I then looked at secondary research. This helped situate the observed friction within a wider context rather than treating it as an isolated inconvenience.

DEFINE

KEY FINDING (PATTERNS)

Across the spaces, the same pattern appeared repeatedly: people were not struggling because rain was unusual, but because protection was inconsistent, badly timed, and often inconvenient to carry, share, or trust at the point of need.

INSIGHTS

The research moved the project from observation to a clearer understanding of what the friction actually means. Beyond the visible inconvenience of rain, the findings showed deeper issues around timing, trust, and unequal impact across users. These insights helped translate raw research into design direction.

THE PROBLEM STATEMENT

In dense urban environments in London, rain creates repeated friction during short everyday transitions between buildings, entrances, and transport-adjacent spaces. Many people do not prepare for short or uncertain rain exposure, which leads to reactive behaviors such as waiting under shelter, rushing, buying cheap umbrellas, or simply getting wet. Existing options are often inconvenient, wasteful, or untrustworthy, especially for users carrying bags, luggage, or moving more slowly.

How might we help people in dense shared urban environments respond to rain more easily, without depending on last-minute, wasteful, or unreliable solutions?

DEVELOPE

Using the research insights as a starting point, I explored the problem space through four lenses — access, placement, trust, and reuse — to understand how a better rain-response service could work across physical, digital, and behavioral touchpoints.

BRAINSTORING

The brainstorming process showed that the problem could not be solved by form alone. The strongest ideas repeatedly combined quick access, threshold placement, visible trust, and easy reuse. These themes directly shaped the final direction: a station-based shared umbrella system designed for short urban trips in rain.

CONCEPT COMPARE AND CONTRAST

In the Develop stage, I did not move directly into the final station concept. Instead, I explored several possible ways a service could respond to rain-related friction in shared urban environments. Each direction approached the problem from a different angle — immediate access, site-based borrowing, distributed sharing, and weather-led prompting — in order to test what kind of system could best support real user behavior. This helped me compare not only how quickly each concept solved the immediate problem, but also how well it could support trust, reuse, and everyday movement across different locations.

CHOSEN DIRECTION

The networked station model emerged as the strongest direction because it addressed both short-term friction and long-term service value. Unlike purchase-based or single-site systems, it could support spontaneous access, visible maintenance, and multi-location return within one connected service.

USER FLOW AND RELATIONSHIP

After mapping the service scenarios, I translated the experience into a simplified user flow. The goal was to reduce the interaction to the shortest, clearest path possible, so that users could act quickly once rain became a problem. The flow was designed around immediate access, visible trust, and easy return.

EARLY SKETCHES AND PROTOTYPES

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