Global Vehicle Device Integration
Physical & Virtual Interaction Concept
6 minute read
The Basics
Team
- Nathan Borror, Student, MA Interaction Design
- Jake McCullah, Student, BFA Industrial Design
- Peter Ciurej, Student, BFA Industrial Design
- Conor Sixta, Student, BFA Industrial Design
My Role
- User research, design management, final presentation assembly
Platform
- Phone, tablet, vehicle
User & Audience
- Daily drivers
Tools
- Design management, user research methodology, persona creation, storyboarding, rapid prototyping, user testing, high fidelity mockups, industrial design
- Adobe Creative Suite, SmartDraw
Constraints
- Time frame: 12 weeks
- Budget: $0.00
The Problem
Small academic teams were tasked with designing a dashboard that would represent something on a horizon 3-7 years in the future. Focus was on research, ideation, and pushing limits of creativity.
Our final product was a system that connected you with your car via your phone and computer, making the transition from virtual to physical as seamless as possible.
Central Question
How might we… design an interactive dash platform that represents a system for 3-7 years in the future?
Solution
Applying design research and development methodologies created an innovative but realistic system prototype.
Research
Objective
Identify user pain points and opportunities to improve the feature set of the existing driving experience.
Parameters
- What: vehicle dash interaction design
- Who: 12 drivers, male and female, age ranges from 19 – 52
- Where: Lawrence, KS; online surveys
Tasks
- Safely make a call while driving
- Safely make a navigation system decision while driving
- Identify your user hierarchy of needs
Methodology
- Experience audit
- Form factor research
- User interiews & surveys
- Usability field studies & shadowing
Experience Audit
An experience audit of a “class leading” infotainment system was conducted at the beginning of the project. While it was an expensive vehicle, we concluded that the system left much to be desired in terms of human factors, intuitiveness, and ease of use.
Decision: Project Direction
Based on the initial experience audits we did, the group decided to focus on simplifying the dash experience while improving the global integration of various tech systems, i.e. smartphone + table + car + home computer. We chose this route because we felt the direction existing “smart” dash systems were headed was too overwhelming and visually confusing for the typical user. Our goal became to develop a simple interface that could be used by drivers with a wide range of abilitites.
Form Factor Research
Dash research began by analyzing historical gauges to see establish what trends have passed and what have endured over time. We also looked at existing technology and others’ ideas of what a “future dash” meant. This helped eliminate the typical problem of “designing something that already exists” and helped to spark conversations during brainstorming sessions to generate new ideas.
User Interviews & Surveys
Surveys were conducted to obtain basic demographic knowledge and to determine a users’ hierarchy of needs.
Usability Field Studies & Shadowing
Doing usability studies and shadowing allowed for deeper personal insights from users and a higher amount of information to be gathered through use observations.
Sample Shadowing Tasks:
- Drive from point A to point B
- Make a gas station stop
- Change the radio station
- Safely make a call while driving
- Safely make a navigation decision on the fly
- Identify your car’s informational hierarchy
Insights
User Hierarchy of Needs
The metrics collected from the surveys allowed us develop a user hierarchy of needs. The nine main information systems filted into three main groups:
- Safety
- Intelligence
- Connectivity
Pain Points
Nine informational pain points were discovered in the research phase:
- Speed
- Fuel level
- Check engine notifications
- GPS / navigation
- “Service due” timing
- Miles per gallon (MPG)
- Destinations and points of interest
- Messages, internal and external
- Traffic and weather alerts
User Barriers
Two main user barriers were discovered:
- Needs Prioritization: Modern cars appear to have fallen behind other technological and social trends in terms of readily adapting their tech and connectivity abilities.
- Knowledge Obtained: Users had a tough time focusing on their individual needs vs. what the car had to offer in terms of information display and adaptability.
Ideation
Brainstorming
A mess of sketches and ideas to help get the creative juices flowing.
Decision: System Size
While the original goal was to develop an all-encompassing system that integrates phone to cloud to car, etc., we changed directions slightly to accommodate our student limitations and short timeframe. We still wanted to keep the idea of global intergration, but kept it as an umbrella theme under which our new main focus, the in-car experience, would reside. Doing this allowed us to generate much more dynamic prototypes that could be easily tested and revised.
Sketching The UX
Sketches showing how we worked through ideas to help us develop the system. Sketches are quick, with emphasis on visual hierarchies and possible movements.
Planning
What Information To Show?
Keeping with our main overall theme, we worked hard to limit the amount of information a user was able to access at one time. Safety concerns played a large part in this, as giving a person too much information at once while driving causes a cognitive overload, leading to a potentially hazardous driving situation. So, even though the system would be able handle large loads of data, we focused on keeping it purposely limited. The interface also had different modes for when the car was in driving operation and when it is stopped, contributing to the safety of the system.
Information Architecture
Planning the information architecture allowed the team to stay organized for the remainder of the project. A mind map created using SmartDraw showing the broader aspects of our system’s navigation.
Prototyping & Testing
Paper Prototyping & User Testing
Once we had a basic program direction, we began focusing on doing user testing with paper prototypes to evaluate and validate or disprove our hypothesis.
Proof of Concept
A video documenting the testing we did. The conversation was important because talking through problems helped define high and low points of the system for the user.
System Refinement
After initial testing, we began to refine our initial concepts through sketching, Photoshop, and Illustrator work.
Final Concept
An Encompassing System
Our final product allows the user to stay connected with his car, home, office, etc. through a smartphone and web app. Continuing on the “safety & simplicity” theme of the earlier work, the final product was designed to do just that: be safe and simple for people to use no matter where they are.
- Dashboard dock
- Active application
- Fuel gauge
- Engine temperature
- Speedometer
- Steering wheel with control buttons
- Dashboard screen
- Console multi-touch screen
Always Connected
The system allows you to connect to your car’s informational systems via smartphone, tablet, and web app. This allows the user to always be connected to the information of their choosing while still allowing them to be completely mobile.
From Car to Console
An example of connectivity: pausing a song on your phone, then pushing play on the console inside the car.
Example: Route Mapping
Information on the console can be flipped onto the driver’s dash. An example of this in practice: the passenger locates a route then flicks it over to the driver’s dash, allowing for easier visibility and safety for the driver.
Covering It All
The simple and flexible system allows the user to pick and choose the apps that accompany the basic needs. The software platform would be one that allows developers to write their own applications using data from the vehicle.
