Orpheus

Enhancing Hands-free Shower Singing with AI Voice Assistant

Orpheus

Enhancing Hands-free Shower Singing with AI Voice Assistant

Orpheus

Enhancing Hands-free Shower Singing with AI Voice Assistant

Orpheus

Enhancing Hands-free Shower Singing with AI Voice Assistant

Skills

UX Research

UX Testing

UX/UI Design

Prototyping

Illustration

Research Methods

User Testing

UEQ

Questionnaires

Interview

Tools

ProtoPie

Figma

Adobe Illustrator

CapCut

Time

April - July 2025

Skills

UX Research

UX Testing

UX/UI Design

Prototyping

Illustration

Research Methods

User Testing

UEQ

Questionnaires

Interview

Tools

ProtoPie

Figma

Adobe Illustrator

CapCut

Time

April - July 2025

Overview & Challenge

Like many others, I love singing in the shower, it’s relaxing and refreshing. However, adjusting songs or volume with wet hands can be inconvenient. This inspired me to explore hands-free interaction and design a reliable AI voice assistant that works smoothly in a constrained shower environment.

Overview & Challenge

Like many others, I love singing in the shower, it’s relaxing and refreshing. However, adjusting songs or volume with wet hands can be inconvenient. This inspired me to explore hands-free interaction and design a reliable AI voice assistant that works smoothly in a constrained shower environment.

Overview & Challenge

Like many others, I love singing in the shower, it’s relaxing and refreshing. However, adjusting songs or volume with wet hands can be inconvenient. This inspired me to explore hands-free interaction and design a reliable AI voice assistant that works smoothly in a constrained shower environment.

Process

Process

Research

Research

Explored users’ shower singing habits and identified key pain points

Design

Design

Created user flows and designed key features for hands-free interaction

Prototyping

Prototyping

Built a KTV shower system with key functions

Testing

Testing

Conducted one pre-test and two rounds of formal user testing

Iteration

Iteration

Refined prototype and testing strategies based on findings

Research

Research

56%

56%

56%

of people sing in the shower

of people sing in the shower

100%

100%

100%

of users avoided touching the panel with wet hands

of users avoided touching the panel with wet hands

52%

52%

52%

of people use voice assistant while driving, reflecting the demand for hands-free control

of people use voice assistant while driving, reflecting the demand for hands-free control

4.2 Billion

4.2 Billion

4.2 Billion

digital voice assistants in use worldwide

digital voice assistants in use worldwide

Pain Points & Insight

Pain Points & Insight

I first interviewed users to understand their frustrations, then analyzed the causes and designed features to address each pain point.

It’s annoying to step out of the shower to change a song with wet hands.

Manual Control

Stopping to change songs, search, or adjust the volume disrupted the showering flow.

AI Assistant

Enabled hands-free control to keep showering flow.

I want to sing along so badly, but sometimes I don’t know the lyrics.

No Lyrics Support

Not knowing the lyrics made it hard to sing along.

Karaoke-Style Lyrics

Displayed real-time lyrics to support smooth sing-along.

Sometimes I don’t know what to sing and need some inspiration.

Manual Search

Users had to manually browse songs, breaking the showering flow.

AI Recommendation

Delivered personalized, mood-based song suggestions to spark inspiration.

Design

Design

Persona

Persona

Design Elements

Design Elements

AI assistant : Echo

vocal & instrumental mode

Wake-up hint

BUTTON

BUTTON

AI assistant : Echo

vocal & instrumental mode

Wake-up hint

Prototype

Prototype

AI Mood Recommendation

"Hey Echo,
I feel chill today"

"Hey Echo, I feel chill today"

"Hey Echo,
I feel chill today"

Simply speak to request a mood, review AI-recommended options, and start singing. It minimizes interruption in the shower experience.

Simply speak to request a mood, review AI-recommended options, and start singing. It minimizes interruption in the shower experience.

Vocal & Instrumental Mode

"Echo music" &
"Echo voice"

"Echo music" & "Echo voice"

"Echo music" &
"Echo voice"

Switching between vocal and instrumental modes simply by speaking to the assistant. User can keep their hands free and maintaining the flow while showering.

Switching between vocal and instrumental modes simply by speaking to the assistant. User can keep their hands free and maintaining the flow while showering.

Manual Control

Manual Song Search

Manual Song Search

Type to search and select songs manually, allowing comparison between traditional touch interaction and voice-assisted control during testing.

Type to search and select songs manually, allowing comparison between traditional touch interaction and voice-assisted control during testing.

User Test

User Test

Testing Setup

Testing Setup

" Do you like to sing in the shower? "

" Do you like to sing in the shower? "

12

people

people

22-35

years old

years old

2

rounds of testing

rounds of testing

Answer Yes

Criteria

In Real Bathroom

The user testing was conducted in a dry bathroom setup, simulating a real shower environment.

The user testing was conducted in a dry bathroom setup, simulating a real shower environment.

Testing Interaction Flow

Testing Interaction Flow

Test Result

Test Result

UEQ Results: Overall Rated Between “Excellent” and “Good”

UEQ Results: Overall Rated Between “Excellent” and “Good”

User Test

User Test

Participants expressed enjoyment and showed acceptance of the AI-based features.

Participants expressed enjoyment and showed acceptance of the AI-based features.

Bryan | 26

“I won’t leave the bathroom, because I will keep singing.”

“I won’t leave the bathroom, because I will keep singing.”

“Really want one in my bathroom!”

“Really want one in my bathroom!”

Philipp | 25

Laura | 24

(still singing after the test and way back home… )

(still singing after the test and way back home… )

song selection

100%

AI

100% prefer AI for song selection

(over manual control)

switch modes

100%

AI

100% prefer AI to switch modes
(instead of touch)

Reflection

Reflection

This project extends my earlier bathroom product design about singing in the shower. I led the end-to-end process, from prototyping and testing to analysis, especially gaining insights into UX for AI assistants in confined spaces and learning how to prototype AI-driven interactions.

Future improvements will focus on enhancing system functionality, expanding user testing, and validating performance in real wet bathroom conditions.

This experience strengthened my passion for creating intuitive, engaging AI interactions for everyday life.

Rachel Tu

racheltudesign@gmail.com

© 2025 Rachel Tu

Rachel Tu

racheltudesign@gmail.com

© 2025 Rachel Tu

Rachel Tu

racheltudesign@gmail.com

© 2025 Rachel Tu