Project -Inpw
Type
Master Thesis /
Product Design /
UX Research
Year
2025
University
HAWK Hildesheim
Role
Research /
Concept /
Product Design /
UX Design
Focus
Grief /
Ritual /
Memory /
Interactive Design
Interactive Grief Support System
Physical Memorial Ring & Interactive App
An interactive product system that supports the grieving process through a physical ring and a guided digital experience.
Summary Box｜Key Highlights
Research-driven grief support system
Grounded in psychological grief models and cross-cultural research, INPW translates emotional theory into an interactive, human-centered design system.
Physical × digital ritual experience
By combining a personalized memorial ring with a guided app, the project creates a symbolic bridge that supports conscious farewell and emotional continuity.
Design for emotional well-being beyond function
INPW demonstrates how design can extend beyond utility—supporting reflection, memory preservation, and long-term emotional resilience.
Project Overview
INPW explores how interactive products can support people through the grieving process.
Based on psychological models such as Kübler-Ross’s five stages of grief and cross-cultural research, the project combines a physical memory ring with a guided digital experience.
By integrating personal messages, ritual elements, and emotional interaction, INPW enables users to consciously prepare for farewell and transform loss into a process of reflection, connection, and emotional continuity.
Design Thinking & Concept
Background & Motivation
Modern funeral rituals are becoming increasingly simplified due to urbanization, time pressure, and changing social structures.
While traditional mourning practices are still culturally significant, they often fail to provide emotional depth or long-term support for the grieving process.
At the same time, digital technologies have created new possibilities for remembrance, yet many solutions lack meaningful emotional engagement.
This project investigates how design can bridge cultural traditions, emotional needs, and contemporary digital practices.
Design Goals
INPW aims to:
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Support individuals through different stages of grief
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Enable conscious and gradual farewell processes
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Encourage emotional reflection and memory preservation
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Transform loss into a continuing emotional connection
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Create a shared and meaningful remembrance experience
Concept: Physical × Digital
The system consists of two connected elements:
Physical Ring
A personalized memory ring generated from emotional data, representing the intensity and tone of the user’s memories and messages.
Digital App
An interactive application structured around the five stages of grief:
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Denial
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Anger
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Bargaining
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Depression
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Acceptance
Each stage contains guided messages, tasks, and reflections prepared by the person before their passing.
Together, the ring and the app form a symbolic and emotional bridge between the living and the deceased.
App Structure
The app guides users through a narrative journey based on psychological grief models.
Instead of passively consuming content, users actively engage through:
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Reading personal messages
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Completing memory-based tasks
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Reflecting on shared experiences
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Processing emotions step by step
This structure transforms grief into a participatory and meaningful process.
Different app stages designed to support users through
different phases of grief
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A unique memorial ring generated from personal messages left behind
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Each set of messages generates a unique ring form
The app interface offers two color scheme options.
Research Mapping Diagram (excerpt)
This diagram visualizes the psychological, cultural, and ritual dimensions of grief explored in my thesis. It served as a foundation for translating abstract emotional processes into concrete design decisions.
Cultural Context
INPW was developed with a focus on both Taiwanese and German cultural perspectives.
While traditional mourning rituals differ, both cultures share a need for emotional expression, remembrance, and symbolic continuity.
By combining ritual timing (such as post-funeral gatherings) with modern interaction design, INPW translates cultural practices into a contemporary, personalized experience.
Outcome & Reflection
User feedback indicates that INPW offers a meaningful way to prepare for farewell and extend emotional bonds beyond death.
Participants valued the opportunity to leave messages in advance and to engage in a guided grieving process.
Although the concept has not yet been clinically evaluated, it demonstrates the potential of interactive design to support emotional well-being, ritual transformation, and personalized remembrance.
In the future, deeper collaboration with psychology experts, the medical field, and traditional crafts could further enrich the cultural and emotional dimensions.