MakerEd & Techno Creative Projects Through the development of this Case study, you will become aware of technological megatrends, as well as of some tools that support the creative process. Teamwork, creativity, critical thinking, and problem-solving are some of the competencies that are promoted in this form of activity.

1. GUADALAJARA CASE STUDY REPORT: SMART CITY VIGILANCE
A headline in the newspaper on March 31st, 2025, stated amazingly: The first man lands
on Mars!!, landing on Mars had been a huge success! The news hung from all the little
posts along the way to central park. The sense that the world revolved at that speed, so
difficult to track, made the young journalist shudder; half excitement, half uncertainty was
the common way people experienced their time. There he was; ready, leading to an
appointment to ask some questions to the designer of a very well-received wearable
device; the Smart Ixti 2023. He walked through some narrowed street until he got to the
appointed place. The small house was cozy and clear.
They shook hands and the young man was invited in by a kind lady; she had white skin,
bright curious eyes, and a bubbling personality. “Thanks for accepting this meeting,” he
said.
“No problem,” she answered, while she guided him to sit by her side. “Coffee or tea?” She
asked. “Coffee, please,” he replied.
“It has caused a great impact on the device your company recently launched. Some have
a good opinion and others are having a dim view.” He said.
“It’s quite normal,” she said, smiling diamante. “People fear change. But I prefer to see
the advantages new things have to offer.”
“I understand,” he replied. “I am interested in knowing the process you followed from the
initial idea to the final design. I am studying design and I am truly interested in this
conversation.” “Ask freely,” she said, still smiling. “Thanks,” he replied.

2. “Well, I am curious about something,” he said. “If there were already several devices like
the Smart IXTI 2023, why has this proposal captured people’s attention the way it has
done it?”
“Interesting that you begin with that question,” she replied. “Let me see, I think it is
probably because we created something that connected to what people did and
experienced in daily life. It was not a device to position a company or to compete with
others. It had a very genuine origin. Do you probably know why the Smart Ixti 2023 was
developed?” She asked.
“Honestly, not that much,” he answered. “I have inquired about it but the reason has not
been disclosed. “
“That’s fine,” she said. “Let me tell you then. There were political and economic reasons
behind this. The origin was a request from The Guadalajara Government; As underlined
by the World Economic Forum, the Internet of Things (IoT) was one of the most promising
technologies of the near future. It was believed that by increasing the number of portable
devices connected to its urban network, a Smart City could access continual bottom-up
reports that could be of great benefit in ensuring societal safety: a sort of collective
intelligence composed of vigilant citizens. The government of Jalisco hired us to develop
such a wearable device, aimed at 18 to 23 y/o citizens of Guadalajara’s future as a Smart
City, in order to foster trust and safety among the members of the community.”
“Oh, I see,” he said. “That is not a common beginning for many products.”
“No, it was not that common,” she answered. “But the city was in a very interesting
moment: Guadalajara had been included in the list of great potential places to become a
Smart City, but the social situation was difficult; The OSAC report had not been easy on
describing the level of risks people were exposed to in the city. In 2019, Guadalajara
experienced record-high numbers of homicides and missing person reports. Thieves
often operated in heavily congested areas stealing bags, electronics, and jewelry. The
spectrum was broad; from non-violent crimes such as auto-part theft, and telephonic
extortion, to crimes of opportunity to Rape and sexual assault, not to mention Drug
trafficking and Drug cartels. This required urgent measures. Enforcing law and order was
not enough- It was necessary to think outside of the box. 2019 had been the most violent
year on record in Mexico with 35,558 reported homicides. Murder increased by 2.7%
nationwide since 2018, now the second-most violent year on record.”
“That was a very complicated scenario!” He exclaimed.
“It was indeed,” she replied. “Guadalajara is the second-largest city in Mexico and had
been recognized by UNESCO in 2017 as a Digital Creative City. It was conceived as a
meeting place and center for innovation and technologies, and was attracting an
increasing number of tech-savvy developers and creators.”
“So, there was a serious matter behind the wearable,” he asked, concerned.

3. “Yes,” she answered.
“Were you the only designers?” He inquired.
“No, some other teams were summoned to this challenge,” she answered. “The director
of the operation was professor Sanabria.”
“Jorge Sanabria?” He asked, intrigued. “Wow, I have heard about him. He is a prominent
Ph.D. In Kansei Science, right?”
“Right,” she said. “He was explicit about the requirements of the design. 2023 was a year
full of transformations, the pandemic had, in many ways closed a bit the gap between
people and technology. The Megatrends were clearly defined and all the technological
possibilities were overwhelming but inspiring. At that moment we were seeing the rapid
advancement in 3D printing, the profusion of wearables and the Internet of things, the
level of connectivity and storage, platform-based social and economic models, the
blockchain, and the enhancement of the digital presence: everything was in favor for this
project.”
“That I know,” he told her. “I read “The 4th Industrial Revolution by Klaus Schwab. He
categorized those trends into physical, digital, and biological, right?”
“Right,” she answered. “He made a great analysis of what was happening.”
“Apart from the Guadalajara brief and the megatrends, what else did you take into
account?” He asked.
“It was necessary to consider another aspect,” she added. “All proposals should be tied
to at least one of the 21 tipping points as designated in the 2015 survey report, Deep
Shift, technology tipping points, and societal impact put together by the World Economic
Forum.” She said while grabbing a folder she had on a little table. She opened it, and he
saw that the folder was neat, and the content although perfectly organized contained a
combination of drawings, sketches, tables, graphs, and side notes written in illegible
handwriting.
“Are those the project notes?” He asked.
“That’s right,” she answered, looking at him for a brief moment and then back at the
contents of the folder.
“With regard to that aspect,” she added. “The Smart Ixti 2023, is connected to 4 shifts
listed in the tipping points; Our Digital Presence, Wearable Internet, The Internet of and
for Things, and Artificial Intelligence and Decision-Making. The personal profile that
rewarded or sanctioned people`s behavior with the environment and their interactions
within the community was a sensible topic. Even though this was a useful way to enhance
Digital presence and to use social media Messenger/Twitter, there was a serious
concern because the idea of people collecting points that were to be seen by others could
lead to the promotion of segregation or exclusion.”
“I see how that could be interpreted,” he said.
“It was risky to label people and expose them,” she added. “Leaving little room for
personal transformation. In that aspect, we decided, for the sake of individual rights, that
the user would decide whether his/her profile was public or not. The police and the
instance connected to the AI system would know about the scoring. The numbers about

4. this shift were compelling; 80% of people with a digital presence on the internet Expected
date: 2023 By 2025: 84% of respondents expected this tipping point will have occurred.”
“That is one of the aspects some people are concerned about, the scoring function,” he
replied with concern.
“I understand the concern,” she said. “That is why it is optional; people can decide to go
public or not.”
She continued her explanation, and showed the young man the timeline of the tipping
points published some years ago. “The World Economic Forum predicted accurately what
was ahead of us,” she said. “Look at people`s expectations and see how fast things have
developed.” The young man nodded in agreement.
“The social sense of gathering and belonging will continue nurturing people`s need for
digital interactions,” she added. “More and more the digital world and our physical life are
developing stronger, overlapping. People weighed on one hand; losing privacy, the
increase of potential identity theft, online stalking, and misinformation, and on the other
hand; the promise of faster information, social exchange, increased transparency and
efficiency of our government, and more importantly, greater security. In this case, the
device won that round. It was difficult to ignore these facts, but we believed it was possible
to keep the profile in the design once we agreed on the ethical aspects of it.”
“That was something I value about the Economic Forum tipping points,” he said. “They
did a very critical analysis of the pros and cons of the forthcoming shifts.”
“Absolutely,” she replied. “That is what I admire the most about the new perspectives in
innovation, the human – centered Approach, I could not be part of this, otherwise. Then,
we evaluated what type of wearable Internet would young people in the 18 to 23 range
age, would feel more comfortable with. After revising the different available at the
moment, we decided to design a Smart Watch. Although it was not already positioned,
10% of people wearing clothes connected to the internet expected date: 2022 to 2025:
91% of respondents expected this tipping point will have occurred. This was a promising,
fast-growing trend and that gave us enough confidence to go on.”
“So, people also saw it coming, it’s something they expected, and in a certain way,
wanted” he said.
“Yes,” she replied. “The way technology was shrinking made it possible to think of
personal sensors connected to the AI system, that would provide health support and
enough information about the feeling of the city to avoid dangerous locations or to receive
prompt protection in case of criminal activity. Again, the fact that users are constantly
monitored and connected to the community nets was a concern. People value their
privacy, and their valued data, they might be afraid of these risks but being safe and taken
care of, was a more valued need.”
“I see,” he said. “People’s lack of trust in some institutions, the corruption and the changes
at the global economic level that took place by the time you designed the wearable helped
you position it.”

5. “That is sad but true,” she replied. “People had the need to take some control over their
fate, and technology offered them options to do that. In addition to the above-mentioned
tipping points, The Smart Ixti 2023, our wearable, was connected to The Internet of and
for Things: the smart technologies enable greater communication and new data-driven
service. This is the case with our device. The connection comes from the satellite, the
global nets and the community surveillance to the personal sensor. All that pathways are
regulated by an AI system.”
“That’s incredible,” he said silently, thinking out loud.
“The need for connecting things comes from the sense of security digital systems give
people,” she continued. “Food quality, safety, rise in productivity, and efficiency will
continue promoting the interaction between humans and machines through our regular
things; cars, freezers, furniture, houses, and so on: 1 trillion sensors connected to the
internet Expected date: 2022 By 2025: 89% of respondents expected this tipping point to
have occurred. This tipping point is probably one of the scariest ones due to the possibility
of automatizing hundreds of services leading to job losses on a great scale. Besides the
risk of hacking security threats and a sense of losing control, but once again, people value
safety, more. The kind of solution we were designing required immediate action, and
pertinent information. That could be achieved through the use of Artificial Intelligence
and Decision-Making, and its capability for data-driven decisions- It could lead to
assuming the required action to save a life, to sanction negative behavior against people
and the natural environment. We needed a fast, effective, integrator of the different
functions. 45% of respondents expected this tipping point to have occurred Beyond
driving cars. It is possible the AI to increase inequality and to assume the risk of lack of
accountability and liability. A new legal frame should be needed for the broader spectrum
of Hacking/cybercrime that is conveyed, but its big Data processing capabilities are
unsurpassable with other technologies. This tipping point is the heart of Smart Ixti 2023.”
“Oh, I hadn’t thought of the accountability issue,” said the young man in surprised odd.
“People fear a lot we will fall under the total control of machine intelligence.”
“There will be changes,” she said. “Positive advancements with collateral negative
outcomes, and we must try to find the less impactful ways. Change is vital for our survival
as species, it is not optional for mankind, it has never been in the struggle for survival.”
“That is something I had not thought of either,” said he, uneasy.
There was a moment of silence, each one resuming their thoughts. Then she continued.
“Let’me show you the Ixti in detail.”
SMART IXTE 2023. Overview

6. SMART IXTI 2023 DESCRIPTION.
Group 8 proposed a sophisticated, complex Smart Watch that brings together a broad
spectrum of technological resources available at the moment. Some of the features we
wanted to implement in the design were already in use in various fields. Rethinking new
uses of existing principles was part of the process when designing the Smart IXTI 2023.
The vital signs monitor system was part of high-quality cars, for example. We wanted to
create a device that allowed us to accomplish the requirements of the Brief. This device
includes smart wearables, implants, Artificial Intelligence support, and has taken into
consideration the need for inclusion; thus, profiting from the options offered by
technology; it addressed people with sight and hearing impairments. It allows receiving
or giving full data orally so that people with disabilities or under life-threatening conditions
can use the device.
I have included a brief summary of our “Smart Ixti 2023” system below along with a
description of its features, functions, and interface.
This Smartwatch is aimed at providing Citizen and Environmental safety to people from
Guadalajara. Citizens could be able to receive, through a series of features and
interfaces, support from an Artificial Intelligence system, which connects with different
dependencies of government and health Services. Besides, as a way to support the local
authorities, a connection to a citizen’s net allows people to help one another via a
Personal profile connected to a social, communitarian network
The thread of connectivity is as follows:
• Satellite Net.
• Global Mobile Net : Local Mobile Nets.
• Artificial Intelligence System
• Community Surveillance and Connection Systems
• Personal Sensor System: Smart Watch- Wearable Technology.

7. Artificial
Intelligence: The
core of the system

8. GPS Satellite allows the implementation of a permanent tracking system. The Global and
Local Mobile tower net is the bridge between the Satellite and The Global Mobile Tower
net which in turn connects to the Local Mobile Tower Net which in turn connects to the
Artificial Intelligence System. The AI system is the core of the communication pathway
among Smart Ixti 2023 users. Guadalajara 911 is the department in charge of receiving
criminal reports or the affectation on the natural environment. We knew from the OSAC`s
report that Excellent health facilities were available in Mexico City and other major cities.
Ambulance services were widely available, so these two aspects were included for the
device's purpose. Now, we needed to connect to the user level; thus, the device added a
Personal Sensor System which connected each citizen to one another and the whole
community.
We analyzed the different risky endangering scenarios and came to the conclusion that
we needed a backup in case the Smartwatch was stolen from the owner or suffered
irreparable damage in a car sinister. For that reason, and mainly for tracking purposes an
aid alert, a subdermal implant was considered.
IXTI is the virtual assistant of the device. We named it IXTI to honor the Azteca culture
who were the people who inhabited the region where Guadalajara is now located. Ixti in
Nahuatl means “Eye”.
The virtual assistance connects to GPS, AI, and Sensor System Net. It allows voice input
and output, which is very helpful for people with certain disabilities. Users can report a
criminal situation through voice message that becomes written text. In terms of inclusion,
it was added a high relief pattern and a braille holographic keyboard help people with
sight disabilities to use the device.
The smartwatch sends information to AI system which analyzes the data and proceeds
to take needed actions; request police support or health emergency attention. When in a
life-threatening situation, an emergency protocol is activated; either by manual action on

9. the Emergency Button or by IXTI which constantly monitors the user`s vital signs and
guides requests for first aid service. To do so, Smart IXTI 2023, connects to the person`s
profile, and asks for medical help; Informs location and current health status.
Thanks to AI, the user directly receives, via messenger/Twitter, pertinent information
about areas of criminal activity, advising them to stay away from those locations.
One of the main features of IXTI is the enhancement of digital presence through the digital
personal profile network. Each person is connected to one another and this enforces a
peer support program; the idea is to invite users to gain environmental awareness while
being rated by the community on their personal actions and decisions, and the way they
interact within the community. Again, in this aspect, we were finding good responses to
the brief in terms of citizen safety and environmental awareness.
Let me describe it a little more; as a result of the personal profile function, actions against
the environment could be rewarded or sanctioned. It works as follows:
Citizen profile - Digital Presence
Each citizen can have a personal profile (align with the Tipping point - Digital Presence).
Behaviors of citizens (interactions with other people in society) can be tracked/ scored in
their personal profiles. Rate and provide scores to people/communities they interact with
(shops, schools, hospitals.)
Citizen safety:
Report criminal incidents, Receive notifications/ alerts from the government. And citizens
can also receive notice from the government/ police about potentially dangerous areas or
traffic jams. With regard to Citizens’ well-being, the device provides access to aid
services, makes emergency calls and/or messages
Environmental safety
Provide guidance to carry out good behaviors: i.e. how to recycle, put out the trash, plant
trees, and so, on. It receives alerts/ notifications about weather/ environment (i.e. air
quality/ UV...) and also Tracks users' behaviors: score + provide feedback-
1. Personal Profile: It includes; name, occupation, photos, check-in, and favorites.
Citizen scores: several aspects and actions are scored: Interaction with others,
Interaction with public entities, Interaction with the environment, users are scored by other
citizens when they interact with each other, or they are scored by public entity owners
when users come to the place, finally they can be scored by sensors from the environment
(such as recycling bins, trees in the park, roads, etc...) according to users' behaviors/
actions.
The scores can be accessed by government offices. The scores can be set as visible or
invisible to the public or not.
2. Personal Profile, Feedback Center.

10. It sends alerts to the notifications center. Makes emergency calls and /or messages and
searches trustworthy places. Besides, it receives messages from Mother Nature. The
system reads feedback or provides feedback to others: it receives and sends alerts/
notifications about traffic tram, air quality, dangerous areas, possible crime, and so on.
Makes emergency calls or messages (i.e. call 911, hospital, fire extinguishers, etc.)
Searches trustworthy places categorized in different areas (food, books, and so on) and
reads reviews/ scores. Instruct users about good behaviors so that they can get good
interaction scores with the environment.
“I liked the possibility of helping people gain awareness of the need to take care of our
Natural environment,” he said.
“Right,” she replied. “The concerns of sustainability and responsible actions must be
enforced.”
“Now, with regard to technology the process was very thorough, now could you please
tell me about the steps you followed to materialize your idea?” He asked.
“Ha, ha,” she chuckled briefly. “All the credit goes again to professor Sanabria, he
introduced us to the IDEO kit, a fantastic set of methods for inspiration, ideation, and
implementation available. I think we were a little ambitious in the selection of the method
but they somehow are interconnected in the purpose to achieve. As a design student, you
must know how difficult each phase is.”
“Totally,” he replied. “I understand what you mean.”
“For the designing process,” she said. “We used IDEO´s Design kit, we found suitable
methods for the three phases: Inspiration, Ideation, and Implementation. During the
inspiration Process, Aligning Our Impact Goals was a key factor to build a common
share of the impact and key outcomes we wanted to foster. The Five Why could be useful
to apply when trying to identify influence and change opportunities because it will allow
finding new ideas, concepts, and needs; asking many why’s about a broad question will
uncover layers till, probably getting to the core of people’s motivation for doing something.
I think that in the case of the Expert Interviews, even though we did not have a face-to-
face conversation with a representative of the sector, the material provided for the task
brought the voices of experts that gave us key insights into relevant history and context.
Analogous inspiration happened when I revised different types of technology in fields
different from the wearable internet, this change of setting truly allowed me to transfer
some potential features to our design. I explored the technologies of Mercedes Benz high-
IDEO DESIGN KIT.
METHODS.

11. quality cars. We did not implement Drawing Method from the user’s perspective, instead,
we used Drawing to share our thoughts and ideas on three aspects: connectivity features
and functions, and Interface. Along with this process, we explored the context, habits,
and likings of our audience. In the process of designing Smart Ixti 2023, we did not
Implement Extremes and Mainstreams but I think it is a very important method to keep
in mind because as the method states; without understanding what people on the far
reaches of your solution need, you’ll never arrive at solutions.”
“Wow!” He exclaimed. “That’s a lot of methods that you took into account”.
“It is,” she replied. “It’s important to consider all possible viewpoints and methodologies
for a creative process. With regard to the ideation process, I found interesting Creating
a Logic Model, because this method promotes designing a path to follow that might
ensure efficiency and good investment of resources. The questions it proposes: Does
the logic for how one thing will lead to another hold up? What leaps are we making at
each step? Do any steps need to be added? Anticipate progression in the task and you
might avoid getting stuck in the middle of the journey. Besides, I would implement a
Journey Map because it is crucial to visualize the customer’s experience from beginning
to end which will be extremely useful to see the solution from the user`s perspective and
not from the designer's perspective.”
“During this project, Download your Learning Method was important because we
shared our individual knowledge and ideas to build a collective group’s knowledge base.
With regard to the Gut Check Method, after collecting many possible features, functions,
and interfaces I had to critically analyze what to keep and what to discard. This made the
task manageable and feasible. If I were to prototype, I would choose Determine What to
Prototype for the possibility if offers of isolating what to test. Prototyping requires a great
number of resources: time, money, and human talent, so being clear about the core
aspects of the design, which should be the ones to prototype, means something worth
keeping in mind. Finally, receiving Feedback and iterating are unavoidable if we want to
succeed. Maintaining the people, we are designing for at the center of the Ideation project

12. is compulsory. Once they give us the information, we can improve our design and test
it again.”
“This is so interesting,” the young man said. “Please continue”.
“For the implementation phase,” she said. “I would select Optimize and Adapt for scale
because it emphasizes what iterations to make and test. It is a sensitive matter to
maintain the principles of the solution while amplifying the parts that are most effective
and redefining or replacing aspects that are not working as well. Compromising the
essence of the design is a high-cost risk.
To Define your Indicators method is crucial to measure progress over time. What to
track keeps our focus on the desired outcomes. Measuring quantitatively and qualitatively
how the solution is implemented and the progress made allows for making informed
decisions. The remarkable characteristic of the Pilot Method is that it is a longer-term
test where the solution is fully exposed to the market. To see if the solution works is
prudent and responsible action before considering scalability. The scalability method is a
thoughtful process before going to market. It states; Think about the market you plan to
scale into and its users, the channels or partners through which you might distribute or
implement, and the investors or funders you might need to bring on board.”
“That’s important,” he said. “Thinking of the scale of the project, determining the best way
to make it reach as many people as possible.”
“Once the path for scalability is defined,” she continued. “There comes the moment to get
funding. Being clear about the costs that the solution would incur, from staff to marketing
and production, is the main objective of this method. The decision made at this step will
determine, to some extent, the type of partnerships you need. Who are the people who
will help you get your solution to market? Finally, the Keep Iterating method should be
my option because as the description states: Iteration is the name of the game in human-
centered design, Testing, improving, and testing are key factors to outstand in the
process.”
“From your experience with this Kit,” the young man said. “What methods would you
recommend me for future tasks?” he asked.
“I would not say there are some better than others,” she answered. “I think the selection
depends on various factors; the audience you are addressing, the problem you want to
find a solution for, the way your personal creative process function, the strategies your
team feel more receptive to, and such. You see, there is not a single way to do this.”
“It makes sense,” he said. “Thank you.”
She smiled. Then she extended a note -letter type. The young man looked at her
surprised. “This is the draft I sent professor Sanabria when we finished the project,” she
said. The draft read:

14. The young man read the letter for a couple of minutes, then quietly put it down on the
table.
“I really appreciate you sharing this very personal reflection with me," he said, visibly
moved.
“Never mind,” she replied. “I hope you have found what you came looking for with this
conversation.”
“Totally!” He said excited and pleased. “Thank you so much for your time and for opening
a window to the past. “
When he was in the street again, he bought the day's edition of the newspaper. It was
worth reading about the Mars landing, after all, it was an achievement that had a
promising future.
Guadalajara, Digital Creative City.

15. References
Gobierno de Jalisco (2014). Digital Creative City,
Guadalajara. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5UDWfU_wDq0
IDEO (n. d.) Design kit. https://www.designkit.org/
Rodrigues, J., Segundo, D., Junqueira, H., Sabino, M., Prince, R.,
Muhtad, J., Albuquerque, V. (2018). Enabling Technologies for the
Internet of Health Things. IEEE Access.
Schwab, Klaus (2015). The Fourth Industrial Revolution. World
Economic Forum.
Wired (2018). What is the Internet of Things? WIRED
explains. https://www.wired.co.uk/article/internet-of-things-what-is-
explained-iot
World Economic Forum (2015). Deep Shift Technology Tipping Points
and Societal Impact. Global Agenda Council on the Future of Software
&
Society. http://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_GAC15_Technological
_Tipping_Points_report_2015.pdf