Modelling and evaluating drivers’ interactions with in-vehicle information systems (IVIS)

Evaluating the usability of In-Vehicle Information Systems (IVIS) guides engineers in understanding the interaction design limitations of current systems and assessing the potential of concept technologies. The complexity and diversity of the driving task presents a unique challenge in defining usability: user-IVIS interactions create a dual-task scenario, in which conflicts can arise between the primary driving tasks and secondary IVIS tasks. This, and the safety-critical nature of driving, must be specified in defining and evaluating IVIS usability.Work was carried out in the initial phases of this project to define usability for IVIS and to develop a framework for evaluation. One of the key findings of this work was the importance of context-of-use in defining usability, so that specific usability criteria and appropriate evaluation methods can be identified. The evaluation methods in the framework were categorised as either analytic, i.e. applicable at the earliest stages of product development to predict performance and usability; or empirical, i.e. to measure user performance under simulated or real-world conditions. Two case studies have shown that the evaluation framework is sensitive to differences between IVIS and can identify important usability issues, which can be used to inform design improvements.The later stages of the project have focussed on Multimodal Critical Path Analysis (CPA). Initially, CPA was used to predict IVIS task interaction times for a stationary vehicle. The CPA model was extended to produce fastperson and slowperson task time estimates, as well as average predictions. In order for the CPA to be of real use to designers of IVIS, it also needed to predict dual-task IVIS interaction times, i.e. time taken to perform IVIS tasks whilst driving. A hypothesis of shared glances was developed, proposing that drivers are able to monitor two visual information sources simultaneously. The CPA technique was extended for prediction of dual-task interaction times by modelling this shared glance pattern. The hypothesis has important implications for theories of visual behaviour and for the design of future IVIS

A practical review of energy saving technology for ageing populations

Fuel poverty is a critical issue for a globally ageing population. Longer heating/cooling requirements combine with declining incomes to create a problem in need of urgent attention. One solution is to deploy technology to help elderly users feel informed about their energy use, and empowered to take steps to make it more cost effective and efficient. This study subjects a broad cross section of energy monitoring and home automation products to a formal ergonomic analysis. A high level task analysis was used to guide a product walk through, and a toolkit approach was used thereafter to drive out further insights. The findings reveal a number of serious usability issues which prevent these products from successfully accessing an important target demographic and associated energy saving and fuel poverty outcomes. Design principles and examples are distilled from the research to enable practitioners to translate the underlying research into high quality design-engineering solutions

Ambient hues and audible cues: An approach to automotive user interface design using multi-modal feedback

The use of touchscreen interfaces for in-vehicle information, entertainment, and for the control of comfort settings is proliferating. Moreover, using these interfaces requires the same visual and manual resources needed for safe driving. Guided by much of the prevalent research in the areas of the human visual system, attention, and multimodal redundancy the Hues and Cues design paradigm was developed to make touchscreen automotive user interfaces more suitable to use while driving. This paradigm was applied to a prototype of an automotive user interface and evaluated with respects to driver performance using the dual-task, Lane Change Test (LCT). Each level of the design paradigm was evaluated in light of possible gender differences. The results of the repeated measures experiment suggests that when compared to interfaces without both the Hues and the Cues paradigm applied, the Hues and Cues interface requires less mental effort to operate, is more usable, and is more preferred. However, the results differ in the degradation in driver performance with interfaces that only have visual feedback resulting in better task times and significant gender differences in the driving task with interfaces that only have auditory feedback. Overall, the results reported show that the presentation of multimodal feedback can be useful in design automotive interfaces, but must be flexible enough to account for individual differences

Mobile information access in the real world: A story of three wireless devices

This is the post-print version of the Article. The official published version can be accessed from the link below - Copyright @ 2008 ElsevierThe importance of the user perspective to the wireless information access experience cannot be understated: simply put, users will not indulge in devices that are perceived to be difficult to use and in technologies that do not offer quality infotainment – combined information and entertainment – content. In this paper, we investigate the impact that mobile devices have on the user wireless infotainment access experience in practice. To this end, we have undertaken an empirical study placed in a ‘real-world’ setting, in which participants undertook typical infotainment access tasks on three different wireless-enabled mobile devices: a laptop, a personal digital assistant and a head mounted display device. Results show that, with the exception of participants’ level of self-consciousness when using such devices in public environments, the user wireless information access experience is generally unaffected by device type. Location was shown, though, to be a significant factor when users engage in tasks such as listening to online music or navigation. Whilst the interaction between device and environment was found to influence entertainment-related tasks in our experiments, the informational ones were not affected. However, the interaction effects between device and user type was found to affect both types of tasks. Lastly, a user’s particular computing experience was shown to influence the perceived ease of wireless information access only in the case of online searching, irrespective of whether this is done for primarily informational purposes or entertainment ones

UsaGame – A new methodology to support user- centered design of touchscreen game applications

Dissertação para Obtenção do Grau de Mestre em Engenharia e Gestão IndustrialTouchscreen mobile devices growth resulted in an explosion of the mobile applications. Focusing on touch mobile game applications this study aims to fulfill a research gap, creating appropriate usability guidelines for these applications. Concerns about usability, touch technologies, mobile devices and game testing, provided the background needs for this study. Initial game application tests allowed for the creation and implementation of such proposed usability guidelines into a support checklist (UsaGame), designed to help applications developers. An evaluation test was performed with 20 users in order to assess the validity of the proposed guidelines. Results from the test of the two builds from the same game application allowed comparisons that led to the assessment of the importance of some of the guidelines implemented into the application. Results suggested a usability improvement on the game application implemented with the guidelines. Furthermore results allowed commenting on all proposed usability guidelines

The Exploration Of Interactive Interfaces And Products In edutainment: The Istanbul Aquarium

Tez (Yüksek Lisans) -- İstanbul Teknik Üniversitesi, Fen Bilimleri Enstitüsü, 2015Thesis (M.Sc.) -- İstanbul Technical University, Instıtute of Science and Technology, 2015Bilgi günümüz elektronik çağının en önemli değerlerinden biri olmakla beraber, yaşadığımız çevrenin ayrılmaz bir bütünüdür. Çağın gereksinimlerine ayak uydurmak, teknoloji ve bilgi açısından cevap verebilmek ve akılcı bir biçimde ürünlerin performanslarını arttırmak adına, ürünler dijital teknolojiye uygun bir biçimde şekillendirilmektedirler. Dijital teknoloji birçok ürüne entegre edilmektedir ve bu durum sonuç olarak bahsi geçen ürünlerin fiziksel hesap yapma yani yapay zeka yetisine sahip varlıklar olmasına sebep olmuştur. Ürünlerin değişmekte olan doğası, endüstri ürünleri tasarımı disiplininin rotasını etkileşim tasarımına doğru kırmasına sebep olmuştur. Bu; tasarımda yeni bir dönemin başlangıcı olmuştur. İlaveten bu gelişmeler, tasarım gelişim sürecinin ve takım çalışmasına yönelik koordinasyonun yeniden şekillenmesine neden olmaktadır. Dijital devrim halen gelişmekte iken bu çalışma, pc sonrası dönem için, daha yenilikçi öğrenme odaklı ürün geliştirme sürecine uygun düşecek şekilde önerilerde bulunmayı hedeflemektedir. Topluma açık alanlarda mekanların konseptlerine uygun düşecek şekilde yaratılan içeriklerin daha etkili bir şekilde iletilebilmesi için ve geleneksel bilgi oluşturma şekillerini teknolojinin desteği ile iletmek adına tasarımda bazı adımlar atılmıştır. Eski metodlarla harmanlanan yeni teknolojilerin oluşturduğu modern metodlar kullanıcıların, bu mekanlarda daha çok eğlenirken daha çok öğrenmesini hedeflemektedir. Dolaylı olarak etkin öğrenme süreci, farkında olmadan kullanıcıları etki altına alarak öğrenmenin daha efektif olmasını sağlamaktadır. Bu amaca uzanan yolda, geliştirilen ürünler vasıtasıyla hem mekanlar daha kompleks bir atmosfere bürünmüş olup hem de hedeflenen amaca ulaşmak adına daha emin bir adım atmaktadır. Bu tez, İstanbul Akvaryumu'nda eğitim ve eğlence sağlayan eğitlence odaklı uygulama ürünlerine odaklanmaktadır. Eğitlence uygulamaları, misafirlerin bu mecralardaki yolculuklarının başından sonuna kadar bilgilendirici ve eğitici bir içerik sağlamaktadır. Ürünlerin kendi içindeki uyum sayesinde bilgi, misafirlere farklı porsiyonlarda ve mekanın eğitlence düzenine uygun olarak sunulmaktadır. Böylelikle misafirler günümüzde çok sık rastlandığı üzere fazla bilgi yüklemesine maruz kalmazlar. Bu çalışma, eğitlence ürünlerinin tasarım alanındaki gelişim niteliklerinden bahsetmektedir. Tasarım araçlarını incelemekte ve analiz etmektedir. Projenin iletişimini arttıran özel üretilmiş bir sistem yazılımı üzerinden, iletişim ve eğitimi destekleyen ürünleri incelemeye alan tasarım geliştirme niteliklerini konu edinir. İstanbul Akvaryumu, bugün mevcut olan bütün mümkün tasarım tekniklerini ve interaktif ürünleri içinde barındırmaktadır. Gün geçtikçe her ne kadar yeni teknolojiler xxii geliştirilmekte ve eğitlence tasarımına uygulanmakta olsa da bu akvaryumun, barındırdığı teknolojilerle halen güncel olduğu rahatlıkla söylenebilir. Ürün tasarımı, grafik, interaksiyon ve video tasarımı gibi alanlara ait barındırdığı birçok uygulama üzerinden akvaryum, tümüyle eğitlence projesine özgü niteliklere sahip donanımdadır. Misafirler eğitime ve eğlenceye doğru yaptıkları bu yolculuklarında, dünya denizlerini temsil eden farklı bölgelerin değişik sualtı konseptlerine, özgün ve gözalıcı özelliklerine tanıklık etmektedirler. Bu araştırma, projenin barındırdığı interaktif ürünlerin, toplanan litearatüre göre öğrenme ve bilgi oluşturma prensiplerine uygunluklarını, eğitlence konusuna bağlı olarak incelemektedir. Aynı zamanda, benzer projelerin evrensel örneklerini sunmakta ve pazarın önde gelen firmalarıyla ilgili bilgi sağlamaktadır. Çalışmaya dahil edilen benzer projeleri ve firmaları belirleme aşamasında en önemli kriter, geliştirilen projelerin eğitlence prensiplerine uygunluğu ve İstanbul Akvaryumu'ndaki tasarım süreçlerine benzer süreçlere uygunluğudur. Çalışma, bilgiyi adım adım sunacak şekilde bölümlere ayrılmıştır. İçeriğin organize edilme sırası, okuyucuyu terimler ve çalışmanın genel hatlarıyla ilişkilendirmek için, terminoloji sunumlarıyla başlamaktadır. Projenin hayata geçirildiği mekan, uluslararası standartlara uygun projelerden biri olmakla beraber mimari, tasarımsal ve sosyal anlamlarda çok önemli bir yer işgal etmektedir. Havaalanına 10 km. uzaklıkta son derece stratejik bir lokasyonda bulunmaktadır. Barındırdığı bir alışveriş merkezi ve restoranlarıyla halkın eğlenme ve boş vakit değerlendirmesine olanak sağlamaktadır. Seyir ve alışveriş amaçlı günübirlik turlarla birçok yerli ve yabancı turistin akın ettiği akvaryum turistik bir değere sahiptir. Hatta bazı misafirler bu turlarını, dünyanın birçok ayrı köşesine yapacakları uçuşlarının aktarmalarını beklerken yapmaktadırlar. Tez, tasarım gelişim sürecini ve eğitlencedeki öğrenme nitelikleriyle alakalı sosyal faktörleri merkezine taşımaktadır. İlgili akademik ve sosyal çalışmalardan bahsedip öğrenmeye dair tasarım metodlarını odağına almaktadır. Literatüre bakıldığında eğitlence tasarımının temel taşlarından olan Piaget ve Papert'in öğrenme ile ilgili kaynakları referans alınmıştır. Çalışma eğitlence, interaksiyon ve öğrenmeyi hedefleyen literatürle ilişkili araştırmanın sunumuyla başlar. Literatür, tezin farklı bölümlerinde olan birbiriyle olan bağlantıları açığa çıkarmak için daha önceki yayınları inceleyip analiz etmeye çalışmaktadır. Bilgi birikimini arttırmak için tasarlanmış, iletişimsel hedefleri olan interaktif ürünleri, literatür vasıtasıyla harmanlanması; çalışmanın asıl amacıdır. Bu çalışmada bahsedilen interaktif ürünlerin tanım ve açıklamalarının, eğitlence literatürüyle örtüşmesine gereksinim duyulmasından dolayı tez, buna göre kurgulanmıştır. Bu araştırma, sosyal alanlarda tasarım literatürünün endüstri dahilinde üretilecek olan uygulamalarına bu yeni yaklaşımı entegre ederek, tasarımcılara yeni bir projeye doğru yol alırlarken perspektiflerini daha geniş tutmaları konusunda ilham vermeyi ummaktadır. Buna ek olarak tasarım eğitimi, eğitlence tasarım süreci ve metodolojisinde yeni düşünce sistemlerine yönelik tasarımcıları motive etmeyi xxiii arzulamaktadır. Akvaryumdaki ürünlerle ilişki üzerinden toparlanan literatüre göre bu araştırma; eğitlence teknolojisi, bilgi gelişimi ve eğlendirici-bilgilendirici sistemlerle alakalı belirgin ve geçerli çözümler sunmaya çalışmaktadır. Çalışmanın ilerleyen kısımları, benzer değer taşıyan evrensel proje örnekleri sunarken aynı zamanda tasarım ve yaratma sürecine dahil olan firmalarla ilgili bilgiler de vermektedir. Gün geçtikçe eğitlence, uluslararası alanda bulunan toplumsal merkezlerde daha da yaygınlaşmasına rağmen bir çok ülkeye göre ülkemizde daha başlangıç noktasındadır. Ülkemizde benzer nitelikler taşıyan konularda çalışmalar yapılmış olsa da toplumsal bir alanda eğitlence ürünlerinin varlığı üzerine çok fazla kaynak bulunmamaktadır. Bu çalışma eğitlence odaklı interaktif yerel ürün literatüre etki etmeyi hedeflemesinin yanı sıra tasarım, interaksiyon, eğlence ve bilgiyle alakalı literatür ve metotlar sayesinde öğrenme ve ilişki kurma konusunda eğitlence sergi tasarımı teorisine katkı sağlamayı amaçlamaktadır.Information is one of the most important values of the digital world of today and technology is an indispensable part of the infrastructure of the living environment. Electronic technology is being smartly integrated in various products to enhance their performance, resulting that these products possess the properties of both physical and computing entities. The changing nature of products has expanded the realm of industrial design to direct its course toward the design of interaction design. Furthermore, it has reshaped the product development process and coordination of teamwork. While the digital revolution is still progressing, this study aims to propose an innovative learning oriented product-development process suitable for the post-pc era. The study focuses on the edutainment implementations in Istanbul Aquarium concentrating on the education and entertainment providing products. Similar projects have been mentioned through a design perspective which creates product interaction in public spaces such as museums and aquariums. The edutainment implementations are a journey for the guests carrying them from the entrance to the exit with sparks of informative and educative content. The study mentions the design development assets of Istanbul Aquarium edutainment products observing and analyzing the tools and the products used in the project augmenting communication as well as education through a tailor made framework. The aquarium consists of all possible design techniques and interactive products of today. One can find samples of product, graphic, interaction and motion design in the aquarium distributed according to the edutainment project. The guests venture towards education and entertainment visiting different areas with spectacular separate concepts representing the seas of the world. The study observes the relevance of the interactive products in the aquarium in relation to the literature compiled in accordance with the principles of learning and knowledge creation. The document also provides global examples of similar projects and leading companies in the market. The thesis is devised in such a way that it presents the information step by step. The sequence in which the content is organized begins with the presentation of the terms in order to associate the reader with the terms and and overview of the structure. The venue in which the project has been carried out is one of the leading projects worldwide with various design implementations from an architectural, design and social point of view. As it is situated in a strategic location 10 km from the airport, it has a touristic attraction value housing a mall, restaurants and other structures for public entertainment and leisure purposes. Many visitor flood to the aquarium on a daily tour basis for sightseeing and shopping, some even while waiting for their flights to different corners of the world. The study explores the potential of using touch-screen interfaces and interactive products to open new opportunities for interactive experiences in the aquarium. xx The study pinpoints the approach in design by mentioning relevant academic and social studies made in the field centralizing of the factors which affect the design development process and the social factors related to the learning assets in edutainment. It continues off with the presentation of the research that has been made on terms such as edutainment, interaction and learning, aiming to create a direct contact with the literature. The literature observes and analysis previous studies as well as publications suggested by the study clarifying the connection among different portions of the thesis. Blending the information about the interactive implementations that enhance the knowledge creation and the communication goal of interactive products with the literature is the real challenge the study proposes. The description and the explanation of the design products mentioned in the study all have a precise essentiality in the context of edutainment as the thesis pinpoints. It is hoped that, through integrating the new approach of learning into public spaces design curricula in order to increase its application within the industries, this research may inspire the designers to keep comprehensive perspectives as they embark on a new project. In addition, this research intends to encourage a new thinking in edutainment design process and methodology, as well as in product development. The latter part of the study provides examples of global projects which hold a similar value in the context of edutainment presenting products in the projects and the companies involved in the creation process. The literature review in relation to the interactive products in the aquarium suggests that edutainment related technologies can provide a prominent and viable solution to the need for knowledge enhancing and entertaining informative systems. Through design, interaction, entertainment and knowledge related literature and methods, this study contributes to theory of exhibit design for visitor engagement and learning.Yüksek LisansM.Sc

Writing for mobile media: The influences of text, digital design and psychological characteristics on the cognitive load of the mobile user

Text elements on the mobile smartphone interface make a significant contribution to the user’s interaction experience. In combination with other visual design features, these words curate the path of the mobile user on a journey through the information to satisfy a specific task. This study analyses the elements that influence the interpretation process and optimum presentation of information on mobile media. I argue that effective digital writing contributes to reducing the cognitive load experienced by the mobile user. The central discussion focuses on the writing of text for this medium, which I suggest forges an entirely unique narrative. The optimum writing approach is based on the multi-dimensional characteristics of hypertext, which allow the writer to facilitate the journey without the user losing control of the interpretation process. This study examines the relationship between the writer, the reader and the text, with a unique perspective on the mobile media writer, who is tasked with achieving balance between the functionality and humanity of digital interaction. To explore influences on the development of the relevant writing techniques, I present insights into the distinctive characteristics of the mobile smartphone device, with specific focus on the screen and keyboard. I also discuss the unique characteristics of the mobile user and show how the visual design of the interface is integral to the writing of text for this medium. Furthermore, this study explores the role, skills, and processes of the current and future digital writer, within the backdrop of incessant technological advancement and revolutionary changes in human-computer behaviour

Multimodal interaction: developing an interaction concept for a touchscreen incorporating tactile feedback

The touchscreen, as an alternative user interface for applications that normally require mice and keyboards, has become more and more commonplace, showing up on mobile devices, on vending machines, on ATMs and in the control panels of machines in industry, where conventional input devices cannot provide intuitive, rapid and accurate user interaction with the content of the display. The exponential growth in processing power on the PC, together with advances in understanding human communication channels, has had a significant effect on the design of usable, human-factored interfaces on touchscreens, and on the number and complexity of applications available on touchscreens. Although computer-driven touchscreen interfaces provide programmable and dynamic displays, the absence of the expected tactile cues on the hard and static surfaces of conventional touchscreens is challenging interface design and touchscreen usability, in particular for distracting, low-visibility environments. Current technology allows the human tactile modality to be used in touchscreens. While the visual channel converts graphics and text unidirectionally from the computer to the end user, tactile communication features a bidirectional information flow to and from the user as the user perceives and acts on the environment and the system responds to changing contextual information. Tactile sensations such as detents and pulses provide users with cues that make selecting and controlling a more intuitive process. Tactile features can compensate for deficiencies in some of the human senses, especially in tasks which carry a heavy visual or auditory burden. In this study, an interaction concept for tactile touchscreens is developed with a view to employing the key characteristics of the human sense of touch effectively and efficiently, especially in distracting environments where vision is impaired and hearing is overloaded. As a first step toward improving the usability of touchscreens through the integration of tactile effects, different mechanical solutions for producing motion in tactile touchscreens are investigated, to provide a basis for selecting suitable vibration directions when designing tactile displays. Building on these results, design know-how regarding tactile feedback patterns is further developed to enable dynamic simulation of UI controls, in order to give users a sense of perceiving real controls on a highly natural touch interface. To study the value of adding tactile properties to touchscreens, haptically enhanced UI controls are then further investigated with the aim of mapping haptic signals to different usage scenarios to perform primary and secondary tasks with touchscreens. The findings of the study are intended for consideration and discussion as a guide to further development of tactile stimuli, haptically enhanced user interfaces and touchscreen applications

Enhancing information-based spaces using IoT and multimedia visualization - a case study

O principal objetivo desta pesquisa é fazer uma exploração em torno das estruturas conceituais, estado da arte e aplicações plausíveis da Internet de Coisas Multimédia em serviços distribuídos com para a criação de ambientes aumentados que contribuam a melhorar a experiência coletiva e participação das pessoas assistentes a conferências profissionais, reuniões grupais e espaços públicos em geral. Assim, a metodologia será baseada em uma revisão do estado da arte das tecnologias de IoT aplicáveis a coisas de multimédia e visualização de informação, especialmente no contexto de espaços públicos aumentados, onde o acesso a informação de alta qualidade possa ser possível sem influenciar negativamente a interação no mundo real entre os participantes, assim como melhorar a experiência global dos mesmos, considerando também soluções tecnológicas projetadas para os eventos de prazos limitados.The main objective of this research is to make an exploration around conceptual frameworks, state of the art and plausible applications of the Internet of Multimedia Things in distributed services for creating augmented environments that contribute to enhance the collective experience and participation of people attending professional conferences, group meetings and public spaces in general. Thus, the methodology will be based on a review of the state of the art of IoT technologies applicable for multimedia things and information visualization, specially in the context of augmented public spaces, where the access of high-quality data can be possible without preventing real-world interaction among attendants, as well as improving the overall experience of participants, considering also technological solutions designed for the events of limited time-frames