Smart Solar Urban Furniture: A Co-Ideation and Design Process to Help Enhance the Urban Resilience of Auckland, New Zealand

Smart urban furniture is a designed, and potentially networked type of street furniture that is equipped with either an intelligent system or is controller operated. It usually involves the integration of renewable technologies like solar panels for self-generation and can provide different functions to the city. Research has demonstrated that smart street furniture can significantly contribute to climate resiliency, sustainability, community, and the economy. Moreover, it is a relevant component of public infrastructure that can provide shelter and outdoor temporary workspaces, contribute to enhancing micro and active-mobility, and perform as a collector of big data. The goal of this research was to build a community of innovation around a project of smart solar urban furniture for Auckland and to develop a design proposal to be prototyped in the very near future. A literature review on international case studies and two workshops with stakeholders were carried out to co-ideate a preliminary design proposal. Following that, a detailed design was developed through an iterative design-based research process, including material selection and cost estimation. The paper describes the research process and methodology that was used and the outcomes achieved to date. Results show a growing interest in this topic in Oceania; moreover, they also indicate that a large majority of these objects are non-site specific, which may open the door for future research opportunities. This research was focused on the Auckland context and prioritised local needs. The final detailed design will be critically discussed and compared against the outcomes of the co-ideation process.