I am looking at the picture of this mouse designed by Matt Barnum, and it makes me think of the lattice structures we usually see in adidas’s running shoes.
Barmun has used the term “Ergonomic Mouse” to describe the new object he has designed, an interesting description when we know that “Ergonomics is the scientific discipline concerned with the understanding of interactions among humans and other elements of a system.” In this specific case, the term “Ergonomic” given to the mouse comes to highlight its soft, breathable design.
This means that, this ergonomic mouse should follow the same logic of other objects with ergonomic capability. It should be curvaceous, soft and breathable. This intention makes sense if it is to conform the shape of a human hand, and to enable the same pleasant and soft experience of a stress ball.
“While it’s unclear whether the mouse intends to use the same printing techniques as seen in Adidas soles, it makes sense from a material perspective. Digital Light Synthesis (or DLS) 3D printing allows light to cure resin in complex shapes, creating designs out of flexible elastomers that are much smoother to look at too. In this case, Barnum’s use of the lattice around areas of contact allows those specific areas to remain flexible, while the edges and contours of the mouse are relatively solid, allowing the Squishy Mouse to basically be squeezed or squished without losing its shape. Notably, even the left and right-click buttons have the lattice texture, offering essentially an absolutely new way of input that’s more squishy instead of clicky (whether that’s a win or fail from a haptic point of view is yet to be determined)”, a Yanko design analysis reads.
Designing this mouse was part of a learning process for Barnum who was originally looking to improve his competences in generative design tools. If this design needed to be commercialized, we do think that the designer did not think about the fact these lattices can be a huge trap for bacteria. Not to mention that, for people who quickly get their palms sweaty, the concept of lattices structures may not probably be the best when it comes to using a mouse.
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