Dall’indagine sul campo al prototipo di una stazione multifunzionale per l’acqua. PUNTOnet H2O – From field investigation to the prototype of a multifunctional water station

Adequate availability of drinking water in cities can improve the quality of life and public spaces, while also encouraging sustainable mobility models and healthy, eco-friendly habits. However, drinking fountains are currently an ‘urban species in danger of extinction’, often dismissed or regarded with suspicion, largely ignored by both the scientific community and design experimentation. This paper presents part of a research project that led to the design, prototyping, and real-world demonstration of one possible solution to reinvent the image of the urban water point and assign it new functions that serve the neighbourhood. In particular, it illustrates the results and the role of the preliminary listening and field observation phase in defining the design brief for PUNTOnet H2O, a multifunctional, sentient piece of urban furniture that extends access to drinking water in collective open spaces.