Co-creating the Internet of Things — First experiences in the participatory design of Intelligent Products with Arduino

This paper aims to contribute to the discussion about the co-creation of Intelligent Products in the emerging paradigm of the "Internet of Things". The direct involvement of human actors such as designers, manufacturers, end-users, and recycling operators into the design process of Intelligent Products is a powerful means to ensure a high degree of the fulfilment of requirements towards functionality, ergonomics, sustainability and other factors which directly affect the acceptance of Intelligent Products. This paper discusses the potential of applying the Arduino Platform as a low-cost, easy-to-use micro-controller and sensor kit to facilitate co-creation Use cases illustrating first experiences with the Arduino platform in the co-creation of Intelligent Products are presented. A critical appraisal of the approach and an outlook towards future work in the area concludes the paper.