A user's perspective on valued mobile information services

A user's perspective on valued mobile information service

Using a 'value-added' approach for contextual design of geographic information

The aim of this article is to demonstrate how a 'value-added' approach can be used for user-centred design of geographic information. An information science perspective was used, with value being the difference in outcomes arising from alternative information sets. Sixteen drivers navigated a complex, unfamiliar urban route, using visual and verbal instructions representing the distance-to-turn and junction layout information presented by typical satellite navigation systems. Data measuring driving errors, navigation errors and driver confidence were collected throughout the trial. The results show how driver performance varied considerably according to the geographic context at specific locations, and that there are specific opportunities to add value with enhanced geographical information. The conclusions are that a value-added approach facilitates a more explicit focus on 'desired' (and feasible) levels of end user performance with different information sets, and is a potentially effective approach to user-centred design of geographic information. © 2012 Elsevier Ltd and The Ergonomics Society

User-centred evaluation of complex IT&T within an operational environment

The aim of this paper is to provide guidance for the user-centred evaluation of new and complex Information Technology and Telecommunication systems within an industrial operational environment. This paper draws upon practical and methodological experience gained over a period of nearly a decade in order to: • Discuss the efficacy or otherwise of some typical Human Factors evaluation techniques • Describe the common constraints that are likely to arise during an industriallybased evaluation process • Provide guidance for overcoming these barriers to a successful and informative evaluation process Specifically, this paper aims to identify some of the key requirements for undertaking a successful evaluation process within a challenging environment and presents recommendations to maximise the efficacy of the evaluation effort

Mobile personalization in the context of large sports events

The paper reports a study of mobile personalization in the context of large sport events, specifically with Chinese users. The study compared the user experience obtained by Chinese spectators at a large sports event when using a prototype mobile application that either did, or did not, allow personalization. The study found that mobile personalization could play an important role in enriching the user experience at large sport events, but also had some potential drawbacks. In addition, limitations were identified with existing user centred design methods with Chinese users and suggestions for appropriate evaluation methods for these users are made

The role of spatial contextual factors in mobile personalization at large sports events

This paper presents three field studies undertaken at large sports events in the UK and China, with aim of improving the user experience at these types of events through the design of personally-relevant mobile services. These field studies investigated: which aspects of spatial context were relevant within the confines of a large sporting event, how their relevance differed according to sports event and language/culture, and how they could be used to prescribe the behaviour of a personalizable/adaptive mobile device. Spatial aspects of context were found to be highly significant within the large sports arena. They can be used to maximize the relevance of information and communication services delivered to a spectator over a mobile device. A range of design implications are discussed

Presence and quality of navigational landmarks: effect on driver performance and implications for design

Current vehicle navigation systems still predominantly use distance-to-turn information to enable a driver to locate a forthcoming manoeuvre. It has been proposed that the design of driver navigation aids can be improved through the incorporation of landmarks as key navigation cues. However, little research has investigated how the quality of the landmark affects driver behaviour. An empirical field trial in a real traffic environment was undertaken with 48 participants (minimum age 21, mean 44; minimum driving experience three years; mean km driven in the last year 19,000) in order to assess the effect that the quality of a landmark had on driver behaviour when navigating an unfamiliar, complex, urban route. The use of good landmarks (as opposed to poor landmarks or distance information) as key verbal navigation cues resulted in significant improvements in navigation performance, driving performance, and driver confidence immediately preceding a turn. The use of distance information to locate a turn resulted in significantly more glances to the in-vehicle display. Actual or potential applications of this research include guiding the design of effective and safe future vehicle navigation systems

HMI integration for driver systems: INTEGRATE and VIVID

HMI integration for driver systems: INTEGRATE and VIVI

Design advice for the inclusion of landmarks in vehicle navigation systems

The following advice has been developed from results of research studies carried out over the course of the REGIONAL project (1999-2002). These results, and the studies that produced them, are described in more detail in section 2 of this document. It also takes into account limited findings in the existing literature relating to the use of landmarks within navigation systems. The aim of REGIONAL was to support the inclusion of landmarks within navigation instructions by generating advice on: • What landmarks to choose and incorporate in databases • How to use them appropriately during the navigation task • The factors to take into account when presenting landmarks within system

Mobile personalization at large sports events : user experience and mobile device personalization

Mobile personalization is frequently discussed, and has been shown in relation to a number of usage scenarios. However, this research has focused mainly on technology development. There have been few studies of mobile user experience, and personalization in sports. This paper is devoted to the new field of studying the user experience related to mobile personalization at large sports events (LSE). In order to support and enrich the user experience at LSE with mobile personalization, this study investigates the current audience experience at stadiums and derives the usage patterns that device personalization could usefully support in this context

The design of civic technology: factors that influence public participation and impact

Civic technology needs to be better understood in terms of the factors that promote representative public participation and impact. This paper reports on a mixed-methods study of a civic tech platform that enabled the public to provide feedback on public transport to the service providers. The overall aim of this research was to investigate the public's use of a leading civic tech platform, FixMyTransport. The key findings were that: an effective and easy-to-use civic technology platform enables broad participation; data and process complexity need to be removed; factual information can be captured in situ with impacts, consequences and opinions added later; emotions (if important) need to be explicitly elicited; feedback to, and a 'conversation' with, the users is important for engagement, as is a feeling of being part of a community. These findings can contribute to the future design of civic technology platforms. Practitioner Summary: There is a lack of understanding of how 'civic tech' platforms are used and how they may be designed for maximum effectiveness. Multiple data collection methods were used to investigate a well-developed example of civic tech. Effective civic tech can enable broad democratic participation to improve public services