Smart Tea Utensil Design for Improving Beginners’ Tea Brewing Experience

Abstract

In Taiwan, people who enjoy traditional Gongfu tea are becoming older and older, while the younger generation has many alternative beverages to select from. In order to sustainably pass down traditional tea-drinking culture, this study has incorporated concepts and methodologies of the peak-end rule, customer journey maps (CJMs), quality function deployment (QFD), fuzzy analytic hierarchy process (FAHP), and fuzzy comprehensive evaluation based on entropy, resulting in the development of a set of tea utensils tailored for a novice or beginner tea maker with the purpose of improving the tea-drinking experience of the younger generation. In this study, the ranking of the importance in regard to six design requirements turned out to be: enhancing the sniffing experience (0.240); having ergonomic designs that facilitate a smooth process of pouring hot water into the cup (0.205); increasing the ease of storing tea utensils after brewing (0.162); enabling users to more precisely determine the strength of the tea (0.144); increasing fun while pouring tea leaves into the teapot (0.143); and having clearly designated space for placing each tea utensil (0.107). Through the experts’ evaluation, 66.6% of them rated the design outcome as “good” or “very good”, indicating that the innovative tea utensils developed in this study can effectively satisfy users’ needs. This study can be the supplement to the innovation shortage of tea-culture-related studies, establish the research framework in the academic field, and bring more innovation and potential to the field of the tea culture.

1. Introduction

The development of tea culture has a long history. During the Tang dynasty in China, Lu Yu, known as the Tea Sage, wrote the world’s first book about tea, The Classic of Tea, which contains information regarding tea cultivation, production, utensils, and brewing and has had a profound influence on the subsequent development of tea culture [1,2]. Tea is not only a factor in human economic, cultural, and social development but has also affected exchanges between cultures. Many studies have confirmed that tea is a healthy beverage [3] that has positive effects on the heart, cognitive function, and teeth [4]. Drinking tea of an appropriate strength can help people regulate their emotions and increase concentration [5]. Performing traditional tea brewing can effectively reduce psychological tension and facilitate physiological relaxation [6]. Drinking tea is also an important social activity that connects family, friends, and colleagues emotionally [7] and a key cultural activity with a unique etiquette and philosophy [8]. In general, drinking tea is a beneficial form of leisure that helps modern people relax, maintain health, and socialize despite busy schedules.

The tea culture of Taiwan is known worldwide; Taiwan produces many types of tea, including oolong tea, Oriental Beauty tea, and Paochong tea [9]. The unique soil, climates, high-altitude plantation zones, plantation management, and tea production techniques of Taiwan contribute to the special tastes of Taiwanese tea leaves [10]. The Taiwanese art of tea began to develop after the 1970s; the subsequent emergence of various tea contests, exhibitions, and tea houses has contributed to increasingly refined tea-brewing practices [11,12]. By this period, drinking tea had become popular as a leisure activity. However, rapid economic development, changing lifestyles, and the proliferation of convenience stores, beverage shops, and coffee shops in Taiwan have increased the convenience of buying sugar-sweetened tea-based beverages and coffees for younger Taiwanese people [13]. Flavored tea beverages with added sugar, fruits, or milk have become phenomenally popular [14]. The market share of various bottled ready-to-drink tea products has surpassed that of traditional tea beverages; these modern products are attractive to younger individuals [15]. By contrast, the group of people who prefer hot-infused tea is gradually aging.

Preserving Taiwanese traditional tea culture is challenging for numerous reasons. The traditional Gongfu tea culture is associated with certain stereotypes by modern society; for example, it is often regarded as a leisure activity that is only enjoyed by older adults [16]. Many younger people lack experience brewing tea, and convenient tea beverages and coffees with diverse flavors are more appealing to younger people than traditional Gongfu tea. In this regard, enhancing the tea brewing experience for young people and reinterpreting this traditional culture from a modern perspective could transform young people’s perception of traditional tea brewing, making them more willing to embrace it. Hence, this study aimed to use scientific and product design methods to innovate and address the needs of drinkers during the tea-brewing process. In particular, an innovative tea utensil set is proposed to enhance the tea-drinking experience for modern people. (In Taiwan, oolong tea is widely popular; therefore, tea utensils were designed for brewing oolong tea).

2. Literature Review

2.1. The Features of Taiwan Tea Art

The term “art of tea” refers to the professional techniques and practices associated with tea drinking or tea brewing [16,17]. Chinese historical records of people drinking tea date back to before the middle Tang dynasty; however, tea culture and knowledge at that time was not standardized until Lu Yu published The Classic of Tea [18]. The Taiwanese art of tea inherits characteristics from not only the Chaoshan Gongfu tea culture in China but also the Japanese tea ceremony culture, resulting in a tea culture featuring unique and diverse elements [7,19].

The Taiwanese tea industry lacks a clear consensus and norm regarding the style and form of the art of tea, such as regarding the methods and procedures of tea brewing, the cultural implications of the actions during tea brewing, and the arrangement of spaces for brewing tea [12]. In comparison with the strict standards and ceremonial rules of Japanese tea ceremony culture, Taiwanese tea art culture is more flexible and diverse; tea-brewing methods are continually updated with various innovations [19]. Most people prefer to brew tea using a method that they are accustomed to [8]. Hence, Taiwanese people accept that, although tea brewing is a traditional cultural activity, it can also be reinterpreted to further modernize and refine it.

2.2. The Methods for Brewing Oolong Tea in Taiwan

The methods for brewing tea from different types of tea leaves differ slightly. In a study [20], the tea-brewing method recommended by the Tea Research and Extension Office of Agriculture and Food Agency of the Executive Yuan was adopted for an experiment. The method involves adding 3 g of tea leaves into a white porcelain cup, adding 150 mL of boiling water at 100 °C, and then steeping the leaves for 5 min. Another study [21] divided the tea-brewing process into three steps: (1) opening the tea packaging and removing the tea leaves, (2) placing the tea leaves into a teapot and brewing them in boiling water, and (3) tasting and smelling the tea. In [10], the tea appraisal brewing method was summarized into several steps: (1) taking 3 g of tea leaves and placing them in a tea appraisal brewing cup, (2) pouring hot water at 100 °C into the cup and steeping the leaves for 6 min before pouring out the tea, and (3) observing the color of the tea, smelling its aroma, and finally tasting the flavor. A study [8] investigated the tea-brewing habits of Taiwanese people and identified several actions involved in tea drinking: (1) preparing tea utensils, (2) boiling water, (3) controlling the water temperature, (4) preheating the teapot, (5) adding tea leaves to the teapot, (6) adding boiling water, (7) brewing tea, (8) pouring out the tea, and (9) tasting the tea.

Reviewing these studies reveals that the various tea-brewing methods differ little. Taiwanese tea-brewing methods focus on the quantity of tea leaves, tea leaf steeping time, and water temperature control. These factors affect the aroma and mouthfeel of the resulting tea. Moreover, Taiwanese tea-brewing methods involve few ceremonial actions. The overall procedure is simple and intuitive.

2.3. Features of Taiwanese Tea Utensils Set

Tea utensils have been developed in China over hundreds of years. The Classic of Tea, published in the middle of the Tang dynasty, recorded detailed information regarding this process [18]. However, modern Chinese tea-brewing methods differ from those of the Tang dynasty. In addition, exchanges between Chinese and Western cultures and the emergence of consumerism contributed to the development of modern tea utensil crafts. The Taiwanese tea culture originates from Chinese tea culture, but it has been influenced by both Japanese and East Asian tea cultures [16]; thus, the development of tea utensils in Taiwan is innovative with diverse origins.

In Taiwan, people prefer convenient-to-use, useful, and durable tea utensils [8] and emphasize the texture, aesthetics, usability, and stability of teapots [22]. Teacups and teapots are the essential tea utensils used for tea brewing. Teacups possess aesthetic and artistic value, and the cup shape affects the mouthfeel while drinking tea [20]. Modern teacups have diverse shapes and styles, and people may use ornamental or functional tea utensils while brewing tea; such utensils include serving pitchers, tea chopsticks, tea scoops, and tea sticks [17]. Many new tea utensils have been invented in Taiwan; the most well-known are serving pitchers (a container used for blending and serving teas) and sniffing cups (a container used for smelling the tea aroma) [16]. The traditional brewing method of Chaoshan Gongfu tea often results in varying strengths of tea in one brew between cups; experience and skill are required for the tea brewer to avoid this inconsistency. The serving pitcher enables tea brewers to easily blend the tea, ensuring a consistent strength of tea served to each guest [17]. The invention of sniffing cups and dry tea trays has been widely appreciated by the public. These inventions have changed the traditional tea-brewing methods [19]. In summary, Taiwan’s tea culture has substantial creativity and inclusiveness despite its short history of development. Innovations in Taiwanese tea utensils have not only redefined the form and appearance of tea art but have also resulted in a unique tea-brewing culture that refines the traditional art of tea.

3. Methodology

3.1. Research Framework

This study combined peak-end rule, customer journey mapping (CJM), quality functional deployment (QFD), the fuzzy analytical hierarchy process (FAHP), and fuzzy comprehensive evaluation (FCE) based on entropy to investigate and design tea utensils. The study comprised three phases (Figure 1). In the first phase, positive and negative factors that attract and dissuade people from brewing tea were explored. Subsequently, concrete design needs were compiled. In the second phase, a team comprising tea experts and design experts developed a set of innovative tea utensils in accordance with the design needs identified in the first stage. In the third phase, design and tea experts were invited to evaluate the feasibility and quality of the developed tea utensil set.

3.2. Research Methodology for the Tea Brewing Experiments

Brewing tea is a continuous and delicate cultural experience; appropriate methods must be used to explore the needs of users. This study used the peak-end rule and CJM to design an experiment of tea brewing to explore user needs. According to the peak-end rule, customers do not evaluate an overall experience in terms of a comprehensive perception of the experience [23]; instead, their overall satisfaction depends on positive peak experiences [24]. The immediate feeling of customers at the end of the service greatly affects their evaluation of the overall experience [25]. According to the theory, the tea-brewing experience can be improved by further enhancing the most positive experience, addressing the worst experience during the tea-brewing process, and improving the immediate feelings of customers at the end of the service. CJM is a commonly used user-centric industry method [26] for visualizing customer service experiences [27,28,29,30]. In CJM, customer activities are divided into steps, stages, touchpoints, customer emotions, and pain-points [31]. CJM is a mature tool for exploring the customer service experience and enables the production of graphs to clearly reveal the complete customer experience. These two theoretical tools, the peak-end rule and CJM, were combined to express the emotional states and behavioral patterns of customers during tea brewing. They can identify the factors that have the greatest effect on people’s experience and locate the problems that must be improved.

After the experiment, we asked the participants to complete an online questionnaire to investigate their experiences during the tea-brewing tasks. The participants were asked to rate their experience during each tea-brewing step on a 7-point Likert scale and to write down the elements that they felt positively or negatively about in each step. The usage and definitions in CJM are not standardized; hence, the CJM must be adjusted in accordance with the research requirements [26,27,28,31]. In this study, the CJM time-line plots were produced by presenting the experimental results as “steps, stages, customer emotions, and pleasant and negative perceptions”.

Perform Tea Brewing Experiments

The participants in the tea-brewing experiment were people who never or seldom (no more than twice per month) used Taiwanese tea utensils to brew tea. Before the experiment, the researchers orally informed the participants regarding the experimental procedure and introduced the names and functions of tea utensils (Figure 2). After the experiment began, the participants were asked to brew tea in accordance with the instructions in

Table 1. Steps for Taiwanese tea brewing.

Activity	Steps
P1. Arranging Tea Sets	S1. Arrange the utensils required for brewing tea [tea towel, tea strainer, teapot, tea tray (dry), serving pitcher, teacup, tea chopsticks, and tea scoops]. S2. Boil the water. S3. Use hot water to heat the teapot, the serving pitcher, and the teacups. S4. Pour out the hot water in the teapot and the serving pitcher. S5. Use the tea chopsticks to grip the teacup and pour out the hot water.
P2. Adding tea leaves	S6. Use the tea scoops to scoop an adequate quantity (approximately 3 g) of tea leaves and appraise the appearance of the leaves. S7. Add the tea leaves into the teapot.
P3. Infusing tea leaves	S8. Pour approximately 150 mL of hot water into the teapot and gently shake the teapot for approximately 3 s before pouring the tea into the teacups. S9. Use the tea chopsticks to hold the teacup and pour the tea into the tea tray. S10. Pour hot water (approximately 150 mL) into the teapot and let it sit for approximately 1 min. S11. Place the tea strainer on the serving pitcher and then pour the tea into the serving pitcher.
P4. Pouring tea	S12. Pour the tea from the serving pitcher into the teacups and ensure the quantity of tea in each teacup is adequate.
P5. Tasting	S13. Appreciate the color of the tea. S14. Smell the aroma of the tea. S15. Drink the tea. (In the experiment, participants only simulated the action of drinking tea without actually consuming the tea).
P6. Cleaning	S16. Use the tea chopsticks to remove the wet tea leaves from the teapot. S17. Pour the tea out onto the tea tray and clean the tea utensils by washing and then air drying them.
P7. Storage	S18. Return the tea utensils to their original positions.

. The experiment time was approximately 15 min. The tea-brewing method was based on a set of standard Taiwanese tea-brewing steps developed in accordance with the literature and a discussion with two tea experts with 31 and 48 years of experience (

Table 2. The experts’ background.

No.	Years of Experience in Professional Field	Professional Field
1	31	Tea Sales and Management, Tea Art
2	48	Tea Sales and Management, Tea Art
3	16	Tea Sales and Management, Tea Art,
4	9	Industrial Design, Brand Visual Identity Design, Cultural and Creative Design
5	11	Industrial Design, Service Design, Quantitative Analysis and Decision Making
6	13	Product Design, Design Aesthetics, Branding Design, Cultural and Creative Design, User Experience Design
7	8	Service Design, Cultural and Creative Industries

). The purpose and benefits of the tea brewing method devised for the experiments are explained as follows:

In “P1. Arranging Tea Sets”, the use of hot water to scald tea sets serves a dual purpose. Firstly, it is employed to ensure the cleanliness of the tea utensils, thereby creating a hygienic environment for the tea brewing process. Simultaneously, it aids in elevating the temperature of the teapot, which is typically at room temperature. This pre-warming step facilitates the rapid unfurling of tea leaves during the subsequent brewing process, enhancing the release of both aroma and flavor from the tea leaves. Additionally, the use of tea chopsticks to hold teacups while pouring out the hot water from them serves a safety function. This practice helps prevent users from accidentally scalding themselves with the hot water, ensuring a safe and enjoyable tea-drinking experience.

In “P2. Adding tea leaves”, the use of tea scoops in this step serves the purpose of assisting users in accurately measuring an appropriate quantity of tea leaves. This practice helps avoid the issue of the tea infusion being either too strong or too weak. In the context of this research, tea experts consider visually appreciating the appearance of the tea leaves before brewing as a customary practice. It not only ensures precision in tea leaf measurement but also enhances the overall enjoyment of the tea brewing process by allowing users to savor the visual aspects of the tea leaves, adding to the pleasure of the experience.

In “P3. Infusing tea leaves”, during the initial steeping of tea leaves, gently tilting the teapot after pouring in hot water and quickly pouring out the tea can help the tea leaves unfurl, allowing for the full release of flavors during the second steeping. Furthermore, pouring the first infusion of tea into teacups and then discarding it serves the purpose of retaining the tea’s aroma and flavor within the cups. The tea experts involved in this research emphasize that the art of brewing tea requires mastery of several key factors: the quantity of tea leaves, the temperature and volume of hot water, and the duration of tea leaf steeping. This is considered one of the most challenging aspects of the tea brewing process. Due to variations in tea leaves produced in different altitudes and regions, each possessing unique flavors, aromas, and characteristics, combined with the diverse preferences of tea drinkers, adjustments are often made based on experience and brewing techniques to craft a pot of delicious tea. After the tea is properly steeped, a filter is used to strain out any tea leaf fragments, ensuring a smoother texture for the tea infusion. Finally, the multiple infusions of tea are poured into a serving pitcher, where they are blended to adjust the concentration of the tea infusion to suit the preferences of the users. This step allows for the creation of a tea flavor that is most pleasing to the individual palate.

In “P4. Pouring tea”, when brewing tea for a group of people, the use of a serving pitcher is particularly convenient for distributing tea individually into each person’s teacup. This facilitates better control over the amount of tea poured into each cup, preventing overfilling or underpouring and ensuring that the concentration of tea infusion is consistent in every person’s cup.

In “P5. Tasting”, when people engage in the act of tasting a cup of tea, they typically follow a sequence. Initially, they appreciate the golden hue of the tea infusion, then inhale the aroma emanating from the tea, and finally savor the tea infusion slowly, relishing its sweet and flavorful essence.

In “P6. Cleaning”, due to the typically narrow opening of teapots, it can be challenging to manually extract the tea leaves from the pot. Therefore, tea chopsticks are used to delicately retrieve the tea leaves from inside the teapot. After the tea session is complete, pouring out and cleaning the tea utensils and allowing them to air dry serve the purpose of maintaining their hygiene. This practice prevents the tea utensils from becoming stained or discolored due to any residual tea, ensuring their cleanliness for future use.

In “P7. Storage”, after cleaning the tea utensils, it is essential to store them properly. This practice ensures the hygiene of and helps prevent any damage to the tea utensils.

3.3. Planning for Designing Tea Utensil Set

The design team for this study comprised four industrial design experts each with at least 8 years of experience and three tea experts each with at least 16 years of experience. Information regarding the experts’ backgrounds is presented in Table 2. The design and development process involved the QFD and FAHP methods. The QFD method is a well-established systematic development tool that has been widely used in various fields. The QFD method helps developers clarify and define user needs and establish the relationship between user needs and product characteristics [32]. QFD quantitatively transforms the “voice of the customer” into specific product design or engineering characteristics, ensuring that each stage of the development process produces high-quality results [33]. Additionally, QFD facilitates effective communication among team members from different fields and ensures that all development processes focus on user needs [34].

FAHP is an analysis method that combines the analysis hierarchy process (AHP) and fuzzy theory to handle multicriteria decision-making problems that feature fuzziness or uncertainty [35]. In FAHP, the relative importance of various indicators is calculated as weights. FAHP has been widely applied in different research areas, including industry, manufacturing, government decision management, engineering, public issues, and education [36]. The literature shows that QFD and FAHP are often used in combination, such as for product design selection in manufacturing, sustainable product design selection [37], service quality enhancement and evaluation [37,38], and innovative product design [39]. Hence, the two methods are also applicable in this research. Calculation of the weights of the design requirements is shown in Appendix A. Calculation method for ranking the importance of technical measures is shown in Appendix B.

3.4. Approach to Expert Evaluation

To validate the feasibility and design quality of the designed tea utensil set, experts with backgrounds in industrial design and relevant tea expertise were invited to participate in an evaluation of the tea utensil set. The six design requirements were used as factors for evaluating the tea utensils’ design. The design was first presented to the experts visually and with descriptions. Subsequently, the experts completed an online questionnaire in which they rated the design on a 5-point scale ranging from 1 (very bad) to 5 (very good). The questionnaire results were then analyzed.

Because of the inherent fuzziness in the evaluation process and because the relationships among multiple evaluation factors must be considered, the FCE method was employed. FCE is a comprehensive assessment method based on fuzzy theory that can effectively evaluate objectives with fuzzy qualities [39,40] by considering the multiple fuzzy attributes of the evaluated items [41]. This well-developed method has been widely applied in diverse research areas, such as urban development, planning and decision making [42,43,44], cultural and creative industry policies [45], safety assessments of food waste feed [46], environmental water safety evaluations [40], evaluating service systems in elderly care stations [47], and assessing the quality of innovative face mask designs [39]. The results of these studies suggest that FCE is also suitable for evaluating the tea utensil set designed in this study.

The determination of weights is a crucial step in the evaluation process. Related studies using FCE for assessment have calculated weights with either the FAHP [39] or the entropy weight method (EWM) [40,44,48]. The AHP method produces subjective weights that reflect the decision makers’ judgments, whereas the EWM is an objective weighting approach that determines weights based on the degree of dispersion among evaluation indicators. Each method has its advantages and limitations [49]. Therefore, some researchers have combined EWM and the AHP method to calculate comprehensive weights, which improved predictive accuracy compared with using AHP alone and achieving a balance between subjective and objective weights [49,50,51,52]. Accordingly, this study employed a comprehensive weight calculation formula. The details of the calculation are shown in Appendix C.

4. Research Execution and Analysis

4.1. Integrating Design Requirements

A total of 32 individuals participated in the experiment to explore the design requirements. The participants comprised 11 men and 21 women with an average age of 28.56 years (standard deviation = 7.89); 23, 7, and 2 participants were in the age ranges of 21–30, 31–40, and 41 or greater, respectively. The educational background of the participants was as follows: 2 had a bachelor’s degree or a degree from a junior college, 20 had a master’s degree, and 10 had a doctoral degree. On average, the participants consumed tea-based beverages approximately 3.14 times per week (standard deviation = 2.53). The most commonly consumed type of tea beverage was drinks from beverage shops (71.9% of the respondents; 23 participants); 15.6% (5 participants) preferred tea brewed from tea bags, 6.3% (2 participants) consumed bottled ready-to-drink tea products, 3.1% (1 participant) brewed tea leaves in a mug, and 3.1% (1 participant) did not drink tea.

Data from the participants’ experience scale and their feedback after the experiment (

Table 3. Experience scale, positive, and negative experiences of the participants during the experiment.

Activity	Steps	Average	Standard Deviation	Positive Experience	Negative Experience
P1	S1	5.500	1.047	1. I felt intrigued and pleased by the clean and neatly displayed tea utensils. 2. I liked the finish of the tea utensils and how they felt in the hand. 3. Arranging the tea utensils in their designated positions before brewing tea made me feel a sense of ritual. 4. I could choose how to place the tea utensils.	1. I was not sure how to correctly place the tea utensils or about their purposes and usage. 2. I worried about breaking the tea utensils.
	S2	4.969	1.204	1. The waiting calmed me down. 2. I was able to chat with others and appreciate the tea utensils in the waiting process.	1. The process of waiting for the water to be boiled was long. I wish that the process could be fun and fast.
	S3	5.031	1.402	1. The process of washing tea utensils with boiled water made me feel pleasure and a sense of ritual. 2. I could clean the tea utensils and learn more about them.	1. I was uncertain about the correct sequence and steps of cleaning tea utensils using boiled water. 2. I worried about being burned while cleaning the tea utensils.
	S4	4.406	1.292	1. The process gave a sense of ritual.	1. The steam could easily burn my hands. The tea utensils were too hot to hold. 2. I wish that the process of pouring the hot water could be more fun. 3. I worry that the teapot lid might fall off. 4. I was uncertain if there was hot water left in the teapot.
	S5	3.844	1.609	1. I liked the finish of the wooden tea chopsticks. 2. It is interesting and fun to use the tea chopsticks, but I also must avoid burning my hands. 3. The use of tea chopsticks was hygienic. 4. I felt a sense of ritual when using the tea chopsticks.	1. The tea chopsticks did not hold the teacup well. Pouring the hot water was difficult and counterintuitive. 2. Some placements of the tea utensils made it harder to pour the tea. 3. I was worried about breaking the teacup.
P2	S6	5.688	1.091	1. The process of taking out the tea leaves was pleasing, and I felt a sense of ritual. 2. Appreciating the tea leaves was fun. During the process, I smelled the aroma of the leaves and was keen to taste the tea.	1. I could not be sure how much tea I had taken out. 2. The color of the tea scoops hindered my appreciation of the tea leaves.
	S7	5.781	1.039	1. I enjoyed the crisp sound when the leaves fell into the teapot. 2. It was satisfying to see the tea leaves going smoothly into the teapot. 3. Using the tea scoops was intuitive and simple. 4. The process gave a sense of ritual.	1. Tea leaves could fall out when I took the leaves out of the container. 2. The tea scoops could touch the teapot spout and get wet.
P3	S8	5.000	1.437	1. The process of shaking the teapot and pouring the tea into the teacups was pleasing. 2. I had tactile (temperature) and olfactory (aroma) experiences.	1. I was unfamiliar with how to use the teapot (e.g., forgetting to put the lid back on, pressing on the air hole of the teapot lid, worrying about the lid falling). 2. The teapot was too heavy and hard to use. 3. The steam and the teapot were hot, and I was afraid of being burned.
	S9	4.000	1.646	1. The process gave a sense of ritual. 2. I enjoyed the faint aroma left in the teacup. 3. By using the tea chopsticks, I could avoid being burned.	1. The tea chopsticks did not hold the teacup well, and I worried about breaking the teacup. 2. Pouring out the tea was difficult and counterintuitive. 3. I was worried about being burned by the hot tea and the steam when pouring the tea.
	S10	6.000	1.016	1. The waiting calmed me down and I felt a sense of ritual. 2. I was able to chat with my friends while waiting. 3. I smelled the tea while I was waiting and was keen to taste the tea.	1. I could not see how the tea leaves unfold in the teapot. 2. I did not know how long it took to steep the tea. 3. I was uncertain how strong the tea would be.
	S11	5.563	1.413	1. I was keen to taste the tea. 2. The process made me feel a sense of ritual, pleasure, and achievement as well as a sense of sharing. 3. I liked the finish of the tea strainer and the serving pitcher. 4. The tea was filtered and was a golden color without impurities.	1. The process was complicated. 2. The teapot was hard to use (e.g., the lid could fall off, the handle was hard to grip, and the tea could not be poured out completely). 3. I was worried that I might burn my hands. 4. I was worried that the brewed tea will not be tasty and that I could not control the strength of the tea.
P4	S12	5.750	1.586	1. The tea-making process might improve my concentration. 2. The serving pitcher was easy to use. 3. The process was satisfying 4. I enjoyed appreciating the tea in the teacups. 5. I felt like I was treating guests and friends with the tea. 6. Using the serving pitcher was convenient. 7. The process was exciting.	1. I was worried about spilling the tea while I was pouring it. 2. The serving pitcher was heavy when it was full of tea.
P5	S13	6.125	1.408	1. I felt a sense of achievement when I brewed a pot of good tea. 2. I smelled the aroma of the tea leaves while appreciating the color of the tea. 3. I felt interested and happy while I watched the colors of the tea change. 4. I liked the golden color of the tea.	1. The tea had fragments of tea leaves. 2. While I was watching the colors, I worried whether the tea would be tasty. 3. The cup felt like it was burning my hands when I held it.
	S14	6.438	1.014	1. Smelling the tea aroma gave me a great sense of ritual. 2. The aroma of the tea calmed me down and made me feel relaxed. 3. After smelling the aroma, I was keen to taste the tea. 4. I enjoyed the flavor of the tea.	1. The teacups were too hot.
	S15	6.406	1.103	-	-
P6	S16	3.906	1.855	1. Using the tea chopsticks felt elegant. 2. I felt happy while appreciating the tea leaves after taking them out. 3. Using the tea chopsticks kept me from burning my hands.	1. Removing all of the tea leaves from the teapot with the tea chopsticks was hard. Some tea leaf fragments were stuck in hidden corners of the pot. 2. When I took out the tea leaves, I worried that they would fall off or that the tea would drip. 3. Use of the tea chopsticks was counterintuitive, and the leaves easily stuck to the chopsticks. 4. I wish that there were separate chopsticks for taking tea leaves and gripping teacups.
	S17	4.438	1.645	1. Cleaning the utensils made me feel excited for the next time I brew tea. 2. I enjoyed cleaning the tea utensils and felt a sense of ritual.	1. I needed to be careful to avoid breaking the tea utensils while cleaning them. 2. Cleaning the tea utensils was complicated; additional tools needed to be used to clean the utensils and avoid staining.
P7	S18	5.375	1.431	1. The neat placement of the tea utensils was pleasing. 2. The process of returning tea utensils to their designated positions made me feel a sense of ritual.	1. I wish that the tea utensils were designed as a whole set. 2. I wish that the tea utensil storage was easier. 3. I wish that the cleaned tea utensils were dried faster and that they did not get dusty.

) were compiled to plot a customer journey map (Figure 3). The map reveals that the peaks of pleasure occurred at S1, S7, S10, and S14, whereas valleys occurred at S5, S9, and S16. For the final stage, S18, the level of pleasure was between very pleasant and neutral. Finally, the design team thoroughly discussed the feedback corresponding to the peaks, valleys, and final stage and consolidated them into six design requirements as follows: A1, having clearly designated space for placing each tea utensil; A2, having ergonomic designs that facilitate a smooth process of pouring hot water into the cup; A3, increasing fun while pouring tea leaves into the teapot; A4, enabling users to more precisely determine the strength of the tea; A5, enhancing the sniffing experience; and A6, increasing the ease of storing tea utensils after brewing.

4.2. Calculate Design Requirement Weights

The questionnaire results from the design expert group and the tea expert group were transformed into a fuzzy positive reciprocal matrix (

Table 4. The fuzzy positive reciprocal matrix of experts’ questionnaires.

Experts		A1	A2	A3	A4	A5	A6
Tea	A1	(1, 1, 1)	(2, 3, 4)	(1, 2, 3)	(1, 1, 1)	(1/3, 1/2, 1)	(1/4, 1/3, 1/2)
	A2	(1/4, 1/3, 1/2)	(1, 1, 1)	(2, 3, 4)	(1/3, 1/2, 1)	(1/3, 1/2, 1)	(1/3, 1/2, 1)
	A3	(1/3, 1/2, 1)	(1/4, 1/3, 1/2)	(1, 1, 1)	(1/3, 1/2, 1)	(1/3, 1/2, 1)	(1/3, 1/2, 1)
	A4	(1, 1, 1)	(1, 2, 3)	(1, 2, 3)	(1, 1, 1)	(1, 2, 3)	(1, 2, 3)
	A5	(1, 2, 3)	(1, 2, 3)	(1, 2, 3)	(1/3, 1/2, 1)	(1, 1, 1)	(1/3, 1/2, 1)
	A6	(2, 3, 4)	(1, 2, 3)	(1, 2, 3)	(1/3, 1/2, 1)	(1, 2, 3)	(1, 1, 1)
Design	A1	(1, 1, 1)	(1/4, 1/3, 1/2)	(1/6, 1/5, 1/4)	(1, 1, 1)	(1/5, 1/4, 1/3)	(1/4, 1/3, 1/2)
	A2	(2, 3, 4)	(1, 1, 1)	(1, 2, 3)	(4, 5, 6)	(1, 2, 3)	(2, 3, 4)
	A3	(4, 5, 6)	(1/3, 1/2, 1)	(1, 1, 1)	(4, 5, 6)	(1/4, 1/3, 1/2)	(2, 3, 4)
	A4	(1, 1, 1)	(1/6, 1/5, 1/4)	(1/6, 1/5, 1/4)	(1, 1, 1)	(1/7, 1/6, 1/5)	(1/3, 1/2, 1)
	A5	(3, 4, 5)	(1/3, 1/2, 1)	(2, 3, 4)	(5, 6, 7)	(1, 1, 1)	(4, 5, 6)
	A6	(2, 3, 4)	(1/4, 1/3, 1/2)	(1/4, 1/3, 1/2)	(1, 2, 3)	(1/6, 1/5, 1/4)	(1, 1, 1)

). Equation (A2) was used to calculate A_m, A_l, and A_u to obtain the weight values (

Table 5. Fuzzy weight vector (rounded to the third decimal place).

Experts	${\mathit{W}}_{\mathit{l}}$	${\mathit{W}}_{\mathit{m}}$	${\mathit{W}}_{\mathit{u}}$
Tea	(0.174, 0.121, 0.089, 0.234, 0.163, 0.219)	(0.155, 0.110, 0.081, 0.246, 0.174, 0.234)	(0.144, 0.120, 0.095, 0.222, 0.185, 0.233)
Design	(0.061, 0.272, 0.202, 0.057, 0.317, 0.090)	(0.054, 0.305, 0.195, 0.050, 0.305, 0.092)	(0.052, 0.304, 0.201, 0.047, 0.302, 0.094)

). Additionally, Equations (A6) and (A7) were used to determine the adjustment coefficients ($G_l$ and $G_u$), and Equation (A8) was used to calculate $W_l^{*}$ and $W_u^{*}$. The results are shown in

Table 6. Adjustment of the triangular fuzzy weight vector (rounded to the third decimal place).

Experts	${\mathit{G}}_{\mathit{l}}$	${\mathit{W}}_{\mathit{l}}^{\mathit{*}}$	${\mathit{G}}_{\mathit{u}}$	${\mathit{W}}_{\mathit{u}}^{\mathit{*}}$
Tea	0.891	(0.155, 0.107, 0.080, 0.209, 0.145, 0.195)	1.106	(0.159, 0.133, 0.105, 0.246, 0.205, 0.258)
Design	0.872	(0.053, 0.237, 0.176, 0.050, 0.277, 0.078)	1.045	(0.054, 0.318, 0.210, 0.050, 0.316, 0.098)

. Subsequently, consistency tests were conducted using Equations (A9)–(A11), and the results are presented in

Table 7. The consistency test of questionnaires completed by tea experts and design experts (rounded to the third decimal place).

Experts	λmax	C.I.	C.R.
Tea	6.569	0.114	0.092
Design	6.398	0.080	0.064

. The questionnaires of both the design expert group and the tea expert group passed the consistency test (C.R. < 1), which validated the questionnaires.

Finally, Equation (A12) was used to integrate the fuzzy weights from both expert groups, and Equation (A13) was applied to defuzzify the triangular fuzzy weight values. The results are shown in

Table 8. Weights of the design requirements (rounded to the third decimal place).

Design Requirements	$\mathbf{Triangular} \mathbf{Fuzzy} \mathbf{Weight} \mathbf{Value}\widetilde{{\mathit{W}}_{\mathit{i}}}$	Defuzzification Weight Value	Normalized Fuzzy Weight Value	Weight Ranking
A1	(0.104, 0.104, 0.107)	0.105	0.107	6
A2	(0.172, 0.207, 0.225)	0.202	0.205	2
A3	(0.128, 0.138, 0.158)	0.141	0.143	5
A4	(0.129, 0.148, 0.148)	0.142	0.144	4
A5	(0.211, 0.239, 0.260)	0.237	0.240	1
A6	(0.137, 0.163, 0.178)	0.159	0.162	3

and reveal that the ranking of the importance of the six design requirements is as follows: A5, enhancing the sniffing experience (0.240); A2, having ergonomic designs that facilitate a smooth process of pouring hot water into the cup (0.205); A6, increasing the ease of storing tea utensils after brewing (0.162); A4, enabling users to more precisely determine the strength of the tea (0.144); A3, increasing fun while pouring tea leaves into the teapot (0.143); and A1, having clearly designated space for placing each tea utensil (0.107).

4.3. Ranking the Priority of Technical Measures for Producing Innovative Tea Utensils

Through a literature review, participant feedback, and joint discussion of the expert team, the present study proposed 37 feasible techniques for designing and developing innovative tea utensils as a basis for technical measures in the subsequent QFD (

Table 9. Technical measures.

No.
B1	The tea tray has grooves to remind users of the correct positions for placing the tea utensils.
B2	The smart tea tray has colored blocks to remind users of the correct positions for placing the tea utensils.
B3	Incorporating magnetic attachments to provide feedback while placing the tea utensils.
B4	The tea tray provides audio feedback when the tea utensils are correctly placed.
B5	The tea chopsticks are made of silicone to prevent slipping.
B6	The tips of the tea chopsticks have antislip dents.
B7	The tea chopsticks and cups have magnetic mechanisms.
B8	The outer wall of the cups has an antislip texture.
B9	The outer wall of the cups has antislip silicone.
B10	The curve of the front ends of the tea chopsticks matches the inner wall of the teacups.
B11	The tea funnel has an inclined plate structure inside that makes a sound when tea leaves fall.
B12	The tea funnel has lines indicating the quantity of the tea leaves.
B13	The tea funnel r is a cylinder to prolong the time that the tea leaves fall.
B14	The tea funnel is transparent.
B15	The tea scoops have measurement lines.
B16	The smart tea tray can weigh the tea.
B17	When the tea leaves are poured into the teapot, the smart tea tray provides visual feedback.
B18	The tea scoops and the tea funnel are integrated.
B19	The teapot uses glass materials.
B20	The teapot surface has a panel of colors corresponding to the tea strength.
B21	The tea tray has optical sensing components to monitor the tea color.
B22	The smart tea tray can provide audio reminders.
B23	The smart tea tray produces visual effects when brewing tea.
B24	The tea funnel can be used as a sniffing cup.
B25	The tea tray has a mechanism to atomize and eject tea.
B26	The inner part of the teapot lid is designed with a composite material and textures.
B27	The teapot knob has an antislip texture.
B28	The inner part of the teapot lid has a honeycomb structure.
B29	The teacup pad is made from an aroma stone.
B30	The teacup pad has a honeycomb structure.
B31	The teapot can be dissembled.
B32	The inner part of the teapot has a strainer.
B33	The tea chopsticks can light up.
B34	The tea utensils have no sharp angles and are easy to clean.
B35	The entire set of tea utensils can be steamed or boiled for cleaning.
B36	The tea utensils have slotted parts that facilitate neat storage.
B37	Soft materials are used to secure the stored tea utensils.

).

The design team discussed the relationships between design requirements and technical measures and developed a relationship matrix. Equation (A15) was then used to determine the weighted scores of the technical measures and thus their priority. The design requirements, technical measures, relationship matrix, weight, and ranking were compiled to obtain a house of quality (Figure 4).

4.4. Design

After discussions within the design team, 12 highly important technical measures were selected from the initial 37 measures (B1, B5, B8, B16, B17, B19, B21, B22, B23, B25, B34, B36) for the development of a smart tea utensil set specifically designed for young beginners (Figure 5). This new tea set was developed based on the principles of cultural continuity and user orientation: many traditional tea set usages were retained, while smart features were introduced to meet the needs of novice users. As a result, apart from steps S1, S7, S9, and S10 in Table 1, people use this new tea set to brew tea in a way similar to traditional methods. In S1, users need to set the weight of the tea leaves and the target value for tea concentration on the smart tea tray. In S7, when the weight of the tea leaves poured into the teapot reaches the set value, the tea tray displays the weight numerically and provides an auditory alert. This assists novice users in accurately measuring the quantity of tea leaves to avoid brewing tea that is too strong or too weak. In S9, users pour the tea from their teacups into the atomizing device on the tray. This device releases the aroma of freshly brewed tea and produces a visual mist effect, enhancing the brewing experience for novice users. In S10, the brewing process remains largely similar to the traditional method, but novice users can use optical sensors on the tea tray to detect the tea color in the pot, ensuring that the tea reaches the desired concentration. This design allows novice users to brew a satisfying pot of tea even without much experience, boosting their sense of achievement.

The new tea utensil design incorporates sensor components and an intelligent control system, providing users with enhanced features for convenience. The smart tea tray is equipped with various electronic components, including a digital display device, an electronic scale, optical sensors, an atomizing device, a lighting device, and a buzzer. The power supply is connected to the main body of the tea tray via a power cord with a transformer. In terms of waterproof design, high-quality rubber seals will be used to separate the outer casing of the electronic components from the rest of the tea tray. This kind of seal can effectively prevent moisture from entering the interior of the device and is common to consumer electronic products, ensuring the protection of electronic components. Additionally, precision thread designs are employed at the connection points between tea utensil components to ensure a tight seal and reduce the risk of water ingress. The features of the tea utensil set design are detailed as follows:

• Clearly designated space for the placement of tea utensils: The tea tray incorporates grooves that enables users to know immediately where to place the teapot and the serving pitcher.
• Safer pouring of hot water: The tea chopsticks are made from silicone, and the outer surfaces of the teacups have an antislip texture, preventing the chopsticks from slipping off of the cup and ensuring a safer pouring experience for users.
• Increasing the fun of adding tea leaves: The smart tea tray was equipped with a digital display and an electronic weighing function. When users add tea leaves, they receive visual feedback through light and the numerical displays on the tray to better determine the weight of the added tea leaves. This method not only increases fun but also helps the user ensure that the correct amount of tea leaves was added.
• Brewing tea in accordance with personal taste: The teapot is made of glass, allowing users to observe the color changes of the tea. The smart tea tray is equipped with optical sensors that can detect when the tea reaches the desired color, upon which the tray emits light and sound prompts, helping users brew tea that suits their taste preferences.
• Enhanced aroma perception: The tea tray incorporates an atomizing device that agitates the tea, allowing the aroma to permeate the air and providing a new tea-brewing experience.
• Convenience in cleaning and storage: The tea utensils feature rounded edges for easier cleaning. The slot design of the tea tray facilitates convenient and organized storage of the tea utensils.

4.5. Results of Experts’ Evaluation

A total of 60 experts were invited to complete the evaluation questionnaire in this study; of these, 30 were industrial design experts and 30 were tea experts (the qualifications of a tea expert include the expertise in making a tea, cultivation and marketing of tea leaf, tea art, and the craftsmanship of the tea utensil among the tea culture.). The demographic information of the experts is shown in

Table 10. The demographic information of the experts.

Gender	Male	44 (73.3%)
	Female	16 (26.7%)
Age	21–30 years old	4 (6.7%)
	31–40 years old	9 (15%)
	41–50 years old	8 (13.3%)
	51–60 years old	23 (38.3%)
	61–70 years old	12 (20%)
	$\ge$71 years old	4 (6.7%)
Level of education	University or college education	22 (36.7%)
	Master’s degree	18 (30%)
	Doctorate	6 (10%)
	Others	14 (23.3%)
Expertise	Industrial Design or Product Design	30 (50%)
	Tea	30 (50%)
Work experience	$\le$5 years	15 (25%)
	6–10 years	14 (23.3%)
	11–15 years	8 (13.3%)
	16–20 years	6 (10%)
	$\ge$21 years	17 (28.3%)

. Using Equation (A16), the questionnaire results were transformed into a matrix, as shown in

Table 11. Evaluation metrics $\tilde{R}$ (rounded to the third decimal place).

$$\tilde{\mathit{R}}$$	V1	V2	V3	V4	V5
A1	0.000	0.050	0.083	0.467	0.400
A2	0.000	0.017	0.167	0.383	0.433
A3	0.000	0.033	0.117	0.300	0.550
A4	0.000	0.033	0.100	0.317	0.550
A5	0.000	0.067	0.083	0.250	0.600
A6	0.000	0.000	0.083	0.283	0.633

. The result in the dimension of “A1, having clearly designated space for placing each tea utensil” shows that 40% of experts rated the tea utensil set design as “very good”, 46.7% as “good”, 8.3% as “average”, 5% as “bad”, and none as “very bad”. The result in the dimension of “A2, having ergonomic designs that facilitate a smooth process of pouring hot water into the cup” shows that 43.3% of experts rated the tea utensil set design as “very good”, 38.3% as “good”, 16.7% as “average”, 1.7% as “bad”, and none as “very bad”. The result in the dimension of “A3, increasing fun while pouring tea leaves into the teapot” shows that 55% of experts rated the tea utensil set design as “very good”, 30% as “good”, 11.7% as “average”, 3.3% as “bad”, and none as “very bad”. The result in the dimension of “A4, enabling users to more precisely determine the strength of the tea” shows that 55% of experts rated the tea utensil set design as “very good”, 31.7% as “good”, 10% as “average”, 3.3% as “bad”, and none as “very bad”. The result in the dimension of “A5, enhancing the sniffing experience” shows that 60% of experts rated the tea utensil set design as “very good”, 25% as “good”, 8.3% as “average”, 6.7% as “bad”, and none as “very bad”. The result in the dimension of “A6, in-creasing the ease of storing tea utensils after brewing” shows that 63.3% of experts rated the tea utensil set design as “very good”, 28.3% as “good”, 8.3% as “average”, and none as “bad” or “very bad”. The data show that the design is highly rated on A5 and A6 dimension, suggesting that it performs well on enhancing the sniffing experience, ease of cleaning, and ease of storage. In general, the design outcome obtained high scores across the six design requirements.

Equations (A17)–(A19) were used to determine the weights (

Table 12. The combined weight.

	$\mathit{i}=1$	$\mathit{i}=2$	$\mathit{i}=3$	$\mathit{i}=4$	$\mathit{i}=5$	$\mathit{i}=6$
$H_i$	0.670	0.682	0.655	0.644	0.647	0.530
$w_i^{\left(e\right)}$	0.152	0.146	0.159	0.164	0.163	0.216
$w_i$	0.095	0.182	0.132	0.146	0.234	0.212

), and Equations (A20) and (A21) were then applied to perform fuzzy calculations to determine the comprehensive evaluation of the experts regarding innovative tea utensils (

Table 13. FCE vector and standardized FCE vector (rounded to the third decimal place).

FCE Vector	0.000	0.067	0.167	0.234	0.234
Standardization	0.000	0.096	0.238	0.333	0.333

). The percentages of experts who rated the innovative tea utensils at each level were 33.3% for very good, 33.3% for good, 23.8% for average, 9.6% for bad, and 0% for very bad. According to the maximum degree of membership interpretation, the experts’ rating of this design proposal was “good” or “very good”.

4.6. Discussion

Although smart tea appliances are gradually becoming more visible in the market, relevant research in this area is still limited. At the same time, there is also a scarcity of research on tea brewing user requirements. Therefore, this study has established a design framework through tea brewing experiments with novice users and discussions with an expert team, resulting in the compilation of six important user design requirements.

Among these requirements, experts argued that enhancing the pleasure of smelling tea aroma and experiencing a sense of pleasure, ritual, and achievement during the process of tasting tea fragrance were the most critical requirement. As a result of the research, novice users exhibited a significantly high level of positive experiential feedback during the step of smelling the tea aroma, which was the highest peak (6.438) throughout the experiment. In the related literature, it has been found that smelling tea aroma can have a positive impact on a person’s emotions and mental state. When the hot steam from tea enters the olfactory system, it carries components of the tea to the nose and brain, triggering chemical reactions in the body that can lead to changes in mood [53,54]. Additionally, aroma has a positive influence on people’s mood [55], and the interaction between olfaction and vision can enhance the overall sensory experience [56]. On the other hand, it is found in this study that tea brewing techniques are of particular interest to novice users while also is the main threshold that they have to overcome. Brewing tea is a skill that relies on a user’s technique and experience. As different brewing methods can significantly impact the quality of tea [57], while factors such as the ratio of water to tea leaves, temperature, and steeping time [58] are also crucial for the flavor profile of the tea, reducing the barrier for novice users is essential in this context. These relevant studies provide support for this research. The smart tea utensil incorporates an atomizing device to enhance the sensory experience, both in terms of olfaction and vision. It is also equipped with various sensors and an intelligent control system to mitigate the challenges often faced by novice users when brewing tea. Overall, experts believed that the design proposal met user needs, showing that the proposed design approach was a feasible method for tea utensil innovation.

There were some limitations to this study.

(1)

This study is only a preliminary exploration of tea utensil design and its feasibility. As the outcomes are design concepts and the study serves as a proof of concept, a future study could prototype the tea utensils, test and assemble the functional components, and explore real-life user experiences through the actual use of the proposed tea set.

(2)

In the tea brewing experiment conducted, a total of 32 participants were invited. Analysis using the customer journey map (CJM) revealed fluctuations in participants’ experiences during the tea brewing process and helped uncover their specific requirements. However, it is important to note that the needs of novice tea brewers may vary due to factors such as gender, age, occupation, income, education level, and geographical location. It is nonetheless suggested that future research in this area addresses the potential impact of these variables on user requirements. Additionally, it would be beneficial to include a larger and more diverse pool of participants to facilitate a more in-depth discussion of user requirements.

(3)

Since the experiment primarily aimed to measure the experience and sensations of novice tea brewers when using tea utensils for brewing, it was essential to prevent variables such as the quality of tea leaves or personal preferences for tea taste from affecting the observed data. Thus, during the experiment, participants were asked to not consume the tea infusion; instead, they simulated the act of drinking tea. However, it is worth noting that actually drinking the tea infusion is crucial for experiencing the complete tea brewing process, and this could potentially impact the results of the experiment. It is recommended that future research in this domain explores this aspect further.

5. Conclusions

With rapid social and economic development and changes in lifestyle as well as the availability of a wide variety of beverages on the market, people have more choices than ever. To sustain tea-drinking culture and ensure its relevance in modern times, understanding the reasons why people enjoy or dislike drinking tea is crucial. A review of the literature revealed a lack of research on the experiential aspects of the tea-drinking process and on innovation in tea cultures. Understanding people’s experiences when brewing tea and the factors that drive their willingness to engage in tea brewing can greatly contribute to innovation in and the further development of tea cultures.

On the basis of the peak-end rule and CJM methods, this study designed a tea-brewing experiment to identify the peak moments of enjoyment, the low points of dissatisfaction (confusion and complaints), and the end experiences of novice tea brewers. By employing the FAHP and QFD methods in the design phase, the designers proposed a tea utensil set specifically designed for young novice tea brewers. The goal and design features were focused on helping users easily brew a delicious pot of tea, preventing injuries, facilitating cleaning, and enabling them to immerse themselves in the joyful atmosphere of tea brewing. Through entropy-based FCE, this study evaluated the design and confirmed that the innovative tea utensil set can satisfy user needs.

The highlight of this design approach is its ability to assist design teams in comprehensively exploring user needs, integrating internal design strategies, and inspiring design ideas to create proposals that best meet user needs and enable exciting innovation and development in tea culture. Simultaneously, this study has revealed that as costs decrease rapidly, Information and Communication Technology (ICT) has progressively emerged as an indispensable and viable technology for tangible products. Consequently, contemporary products have become smarter to varying degrees and are able to adapt to user behavior and even proactively fulfill user needs. This development may lead to their classification as Product-Service Systems (PSSs), thereby elevating the significance of PSS development methodologies. In the context of PSS development, its methodology can be broadly referred to as Design for X or PSS (DfX or DfPSS), encompassing aspects such as Usability (DfUsability), Quality (DfQuality), Reliability (DfReliability), and Maintainability (DfMaintainability). These elements can correspond to different stages within the PSS lifecycle [59,60]. In this study, it can be seen that this research maps consumer experiential elements to viable technologies and filters and develops them into the functional quality of new products; such approach can be regarded as a form of “Design for Quality,” which is suitable for developing solutions that are more customer-driven [61]. In general, tangible products that are not necessarily smart are targeted initially in this study. However, the fact that ICT technology is being incorporated in the application and making the outcome smart and can be considered as smart devices is a demonstration that the DfPSS methodology has the capability to guide the design of smart devices. Especially when combined with the idea of concurrent engineering, it could allow for a more comprehensive and holistic perspective on PSS development [62]. While this research has contributed a fraction of it, it is worthy of further investigation and application in future research.