Student Name: Alexis Kocken
Project Name: Bear Shield
Course: Product Design Senior Capstone
Course Instructor: Carlye Lauff
ABOUT THE PROJECT
Alexis Kocken sought to identify a product to give confidence to people hiking in bear country, protect vulnerable campers when they are asleep or distracted, and discourage and condition curious bears from prodding once intrigued. Their product Bear Shield is a lightweight backpacking electric fence that creates an impenetrable barrier between humans and bears. Bear Shield is equipped with electrically charged lines to deliver a shock when a bear gets too close, LED perimeter lights at the top to let humans and bears know the location and status of the fence, tungsten carbide anchors to stabilize and ground the poles, and braided nylon to prevent damage to the electric coil and protect against a variety of weather conditions/environments.
From hunters to solo campers, to young backpackers and even camp counselors; anyone who does anything around bears can use the product. The fence can be set up around tents, around a recently dressed animal, around a bush plane, or even around a group of backpacks that users don't want to hang in a tree.
ABOUT THE COURSE
Students synthesize and apply design and research techniques to a senior capstone project. Projects can be student-directed or client-sponsored and are intended to demonstrate competency in fundamental design skills, communicating and documenting design processes, and the ability to apply design processes to develop new products and services while addressing real-world constraints. These are individual, self-directed design projects.
