The present paper 1 focuses on the cultural value of making, identifying the methods for sharing the knowledge and the technical skills, particularly, in the context of digital design and fabrication. Starting from the renewed interest in manufacturing processes directly linked to creativity, sustainability, mass customization, practical innovation and experimentation, enhanced by the so called makers' revolution and by the new arts and crafts movements, the paper explores the on going transformations in the manufacturing places focusing on the Fab Lab sites as new hubs for sharing knowledge and skills. The dissertation is supported by a practical experimentation, carried out by the authors, based on a co-design workshop and a proactive interdisciplinary activity addressed to identify the processes of social innovation involving both expert and not expert designers in the context of digital design and fabrication processes. As a result Bright Light, a small lamp, has been produced in order to finalize the codesign processes with a smart artefact.

The design research and education landscapes are changing. The widespread development and use of technologies such as Mixed Reality (MR) and the diffusion of Head-Mounted Displays (HMDs) available at low cost are causing a shift in design education toward the Metaverse. In this ever-changing scenario, there is a need to rethink design and teaching methods. However, scientific literature lacks the ability to provide contributions that include MR technology education in the industrial design program. We, therefore, present an innovative laboratory with an integrated multidisciplinary approach that starts from the fundamentals of interaction design and aims to teach students how to design next-generation MR interfaces for the Metaverse. The lab combines theory and practice within three courses: Information Design, Information Systems, and Virtual Design and Simulation. Industrial design students follow a precise multidisciplinary method consisting of five steps, from state-of-the-art analysis to the presentation of a final group design of an MR user interface. Thus, we introduce a class case study by presenting the outcomes of a semester project in the field of household appliances. Evaluation of the teaching method is conducted through a semi-structured questionnaire. Preliminary results show positive outcomes from students in terms of acceptance, effectiveness, usefulness, efficiency, and satisfaction with the teaching method adopted for the laboratory.

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