I am a Junior product designer from the UK currently working for a design company in the Netherlands who specialise in baby equipment.

My project at the moment is to redesign a height adjustable cot. What I would like to do is find out the real problems you have faced when interacting with this product and some of the things which make them good to have and to use.

So please post any thoughts you have on the subject no matter how small you feel the point may be.

Throughout the project I will post updates so that you can keep track of the products progress.

I look forward to your hearing from you!

One that's height adjustable and has drop sides would be quite useful as I'm fairly short and struggle to reach baby in the bottom if baby is lying down - would have been impossible if ds1 was still in cotbed whilst I was pregnant with ds 2

Thats brillient. What do you think to the idea of having a gate as aposed to the drop down sides?

I think that gates would be fine but would take up more room (opening out) rather than lowering). Ideally something that could be opened with one hand would be good (or a foot!!!) so that you dont have to put a sleeping baby down to open the cot. Also how about some sort of padding around the bars of the cot to save whalloping heads and getting feet stuck in the night.

The gate idea would be good, especially if it could be opened with one hand, because I struggle to get my lo in now on the second setting, if he's asleep. Also would need to be designed so you could put baby at the bottom. Love the padding idea because i've had 2 wriggly babies, but have to say I left bumpers off with my eldest as he was a climber, so maybe something that they couldn't climb on to get out, quite like the bumpsters that were reviewed on here.

Lol im havin his problem atm. Im 23wks pregnant and eva is in a cot which doesnt have cotsides so i struggle wiv turning her at nightx

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Your 23 weeks already? Where has the time gone lol

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Thank you for all the great suggestions! I really like the idea of having a pedal to open the crib hatch I think that could be very interesting. As for the hatch I believe there is a couple of cribs on the market which offer this but they have received quite allot of bad press because of entrapment issues.

Back to the foot pedal... could one be used for moving the baby up and down to make it easy to turn the baby during the night and the other to open the side for easy access? And if you are turning the baby at night would it be helpful to have a light on the pedal of the crib?

First off I really liked the idea of a pedal to do the height adjusting and I might have bought it for my first, but with a toddler in the house who really is into everything and who takes great delight in proving that things which are supposed to be kidproof are not, I wouldnt buy a product where potentially he could alter the height of the cot. Even more so now that ds 2 is turning into Harry Houdini.

Thought of one more thing - would love a height adjustable cot which didn't need dismantling to drop levels and one which did actually have drawers in it - those under cot drawers are useless don't hold very much.