Anning Li
I am a designer full of imagination, turning bold and limitless ideas into tangible products and experiences. For me, design is not only a way to solve problems but also a language to explore future possibilities.
I am a designer full of imagination, turning bold and limitless ideas into tangible products and experiences. For me, design is not only a way to solve problems but also a language to explore future possibilities.
CoreSync Vest is an intelligent wearable vest designed for first-person shooter gamers, integrating vibration units, LED light strips and miniature speakers to enhance tactical communication and immersion through tactile, visual and auditory feedback.
Currently targeting the entire Overwatch community, the vest’s aesthetic and colour scheme draw inspiration from the game’s iconic logos and character gear, blending esports flair with everyday streetwear appeal.
Constructed from a hybrid structure of elastic fabric and rigid support, the vest features adjustable straps to ensure comfortable wear for players of all builds. Its internal modular compartmentalisation features rational layout, with batteries, sensors, and driver boards housed separately for ease of maintenance and expansion.
Compared to existing offerings, the CoreSync Vest boasts advantages in lightweight construction, affordability, and strong cultural resonance. It serves not only as competitive gaming support equipment but also as a cultural symbol for identity expression at conventions, cosplay events, or street settings.
Background & Context
Modern FPS games rely heavily on visual cues, often leading to information overload. Players need faster, more intuitive feedback channels. Research shows tactile and visual cues can significantly enhance decision speed and presence in virtual spaces. CoreSync Vest answers this need by integrating tactile, visual, and auditory responses into one body-worn system.
CoreSync Vest Application Scenarios and User Targeting
In preliminary research, I analysed diverse application scenarios and user requirements. In esports competitions, the core requirements are rapid feedback and tactical awareness; in live streaming and video creation, the emphasis lies on lighting and visual interaction; while at comic conventions and in everyday wear, styling and cultural identity are equally significant. Through detailed segmentation of user personas, I established that the product must satisfy the efficiency demands of competitive gamers while also accommodating the aesthetic and social expression needs of immersive players, exhibition attendees, and trend-conscious users. This approach laid the groundwork for subsequent design iterations.
The design process began with simple sketches based on functional ideas, then evolved into detailed structural drafts, refined orthographic views, and finally high-fidelity 3D models.
Each iteration improved the form, comfort, and wearability, while embedding the visual language of Overwatch.
The three-view drawings present the CoreSync Vest’s overall structural form from front, side and rear perspectives, clearly illustrating its proportions and details.
Elastic technical fabrics and breathable mesh keep the vest lightweight and comfortable for long gaming sessions. Soft internal padding reduces pressure on key body areas. Modular clips and stretch panels allow easy adjustment for sitting or standing positions.
The colour scheme of the CoreSync Vest draws inspiration from the deep grey, white and orange hues featured in the Overwatch logo, accentuating the brand’s iconic identity and competitive ethos.
The overall silhouette similarly references the linearity and compartmentalised structure of gaming gear, resulting in a lightweight vest-style design that balances technological sophistication with wearable comfort.
This diagram illustrates the core structure of the CoreSync Vest:
Eight vibration units are evenly distributed around the torso for directional perception.
Three surround sound speakers encircle the neck region, providing immersive audio positional feedback when not wearing headphones, and may also be used for enjoying surround music in daily life.
Several LED lights on the device can produce different lighting effects based on the in-game character’s status, enhancing the gaming experience visually.
Multiple adjustable buckles ensure a comfortable fit for users of varying body types.
To ensure that feedback elements such as lights and vibrations respond in real time to game data, multiple rounds of functional testing were conducted. Throughout the trials, the programme logic and hardware connections were continually fine-tuned to enhance the precision and stability of the feedback, thereby progressively refining the entire system.
This demonstrates the CoreSync Vest’s lighting system. It features three primary light effects: dynamic pulsing lights in combat mode simulate energy flow, blue ambient lighting in boosted states enhances immersion, while low health alerts employ red flashing for immediate player notification.
For everyday wear, lighting effects are fully customisable. Users may select colours and flashing rhythms via a mobile application, expressing their current mood or personality through light patterns.
FUTURE OUTLOOK
The CoreSync Vest will further expand its modular capabilities in future iterations, enabling users to replace or upgrade feedback modules such as vibration, lighting, and acoustic effects according to varying requirements, thereby delivering a more personalised experience.
Concurrently, I plan to incorporate temperature and posture monitoring units to record the player’s physical state, enabling real-time interaction between the game and the device via a wireless data synchronisation system.
These enhancements will evolve the CoreSync Vest from a mere gaming peripheral into an intelligent wearable platform integrating perception, feedback, and personal expression.