|
Appalachian professor uses invention to teach students |
|
Tuesday, 30 January 2007 |
by NICK IANNIELLO
New Reporter
Appalachian State University assistant professor of industrial design Donald C. Corey uses his own personal experience to teach Appalachian students the basics of product design.
Corey is the inventor of the Hold-N-One, a product used to help store golf bags.
The Hold-N-One, which was previously only available online and through
select stores in North Carolina, Australia and New Zealand, was
released at the Professional Golfers’ Association Merchandise Show
Thursday.
“There’s no better feeling than actually having your own product,” Corey said.
Corey and his wife, Vanese, own a product design studio in Raleigh
called The Other Edge that works with designs ranging from furniture to
pet products.
The Hold-N-One however is a rare product in that Corey was involved with its production from beginning to finish.
“It’s rare that an industrial designer goes through all of the steps,” Corey said.
In the six years it took to design, patent and begin production for the Hold-N-One, Corey worked on every aspect of the device.
He said this provided him with a wealth of information to share with students.
“I’ve been down that road,” Corey said. “I can show them clear cut examples.”
Corey’s students can tell that his experience gives them an edge.
“It makes you listen to him closer since you know he’s done this
before,” senior industrial drafting and design major Michael A. Rall
said.
Industrial design students learn to design and build a variety of different products.
“A lot of people don’t realize this about the products they use
everyday, but somebody designs all of it,” assistant industrial design
professor Banks C. Talley said.
Talley explained that Appalachian industrial design graduates have jobs
in many fields including designing furniture for La-Z-Boy and building
custom motorcycles.
Two Appalachian students have started a company called Conclusions Snow
Designs that builds terrain park equipment for three ski resorts in
Tahoe, Utah.
“With industrial design, I feel like I can express my creativity,” Rall said.
Appalachian’s industrial design students learn through experience.
Their class projects include tasks such as taking apart existing projects and examining them to see how they could be improved.
Students last semester built a device that allowed a child who only had the use of one of his fingers to go fishing.
“That’s what we do as industrial designers,” Corey said. “We try to improve people’s lives.”
Trackback(0)
 |
News 
TrackBack URI for this entry
Show/Hide comments
