Design Research on Sound and Animal Perception
Research Project + Bird Product Design
Exploring Sound as an Environmental and Interactive Medium in Animal Experience
Qiushi Xu’s Team
2024-2026
#Animal Perception
#Sound And Behavior
#More Than Human Design
This research project investigates the role of sound in the perception and behavior of non-human animals within a design research framework, with particular attention to cognitively advanced species such as birds. Sound is approached not merely as an external stimulus, but as an environmental and interactive element that shapes animals’ everyday activities, interactions, and engagement with their surroundings.
Grounded in animals’ perceptual characteristics and behavioral patterns, the research analyzes sound phenomena accompanying actions such as tapping, exploration, and interaction. Insights from these observations inform a series of bird-oriented product design explorations, in which sound functions as a key design parameter. Through iterative prototyping and reflective design practice, the project examines how sound-aware products can mediate animal–environment interactions while remaining attentive to animals’ sensory worlds and well-being.