Conclusions
Good points
The remote control in general seemed to have received mostly positive feedback from out target audience. The remote control was fairly small and light which made it suitable for hanging around the neck of the user without being uncomfortable. The design of the navigation system made it easy for the user to understand and learn very quickly. In particular the alarm button was designed in a way to prevent it being pressed accidentally and the remote provided some confirmation to the user with a use of a speaker system integrated to the remote control this was good as it reduces the number of false alarms.
The TV interface was generally easily understood by our target audience. With the use of a sidebar menu design, the user can use most of these features while still to be able to watch a TV program at the same time which proved to be popular. The main menu was very simple and clear which provided a good starting point for the users to begin to interact with the system. The users generally found it easy to navigate through the "Manage my Home" system as it was broken down and modulated at the right level and with the use of appropriate colours, fonts, sizes and images, made it clear and concise. The online shopping facility gave the users the ability to order shopping online and pay without the use of a bank account.
Existing Problems
There were a few problems and concerns with the remote control while it was being tested that were never addressed. One of the problems was that arthritic people found it difficult to operate the remote control with one hand, in particular, in situations where if the user was to have an accident and could only use one hand. The emergency contact system was never really defined or implemented into as much detail as we could have done as there were still questions asked about that particular part of the system. As the remote control was battery powered, there were concerns that users would forget or have the hassle of having to replace the batteries. There were concerns that if the batteries failed during an accident, the user would be unable to get help.
The TV interface also had a few problems. While the "Manage my home" menu was generally well received there were still some problems that never resolved and some issues that occurred during testing. The lighting system is able to switch lights on and off in individual rooms but the system was unable to control the lighting in rooms that had multiple lights. While the online shopping system's structure was simplified on the redesign it was still a little difficult for some of the users to follow. Some users were not very keen with the system as they enjoy the current way they shop. With the system itself, the confirmation process was not quite robust enough was there was no way of canceling an order once it was confirmed. In the end the TV interface was narrowed down to two main features. Many of the targeted audience mentioned that they would like to have more functionality in the system such as news, sport and whether.
Suggested Improvements
Several of the users asked whether it was possible to have multiple emergency contacts in the system. One of the possible ways to improve/fix this problem is that when the system is initially set up, the engineer could program a number of emergency contacts into the system for the user - up to 5. These would be ranked in order of who should be called first. Should the system be unable to contact any of these, it would default to calling the emergency services.
It has been noted that the users would like a feature for central heating and the oven which involves a time setting, so that they can control it all from their chairs without having to move into the kitchen to check the thermostat. This could be an added improvement for a further design iteration.
The most common worry about the system is the response time from the sensors when the user falls. None of our personas liked the idea of potentially lying unfound all day. We would need to look into this carefully and make proper estimates of the time for the sensors. If we were to produce a set of motion sensors which essentially 'switched off' during certain hours when the user would be asleep or resting, along with a disable switch for when they leave the house, we could use a relatively short time before the motion sensors activate. Reassurance on this point to the users of the system is also important.
The remote control in general seemed to have received mostly positive feedback from out target audience. The remote control was fairly small and light which made it suitable for hanging around the neck of the user without being uncomfortable. The design of the navigation system made it easy for the user to understand and learn very quickly. In particular the alarm button was designed in a way to prevent it being pressed accidentally and the remote provided some confirmation to the user with a use of a speaker system integrated to the remote control this was good as it reduces the number of false alarms.
The TV interface was generally easily understood by our target audience. With the use of a sidebar menu design, the user can use most of these features while still to be able to watch a TV program at the same time which proved to be popular. The main menu was very simple and clear which provided a good starting point for the users to begin to interact with the system. The users generally found it easy to navigate through the "Manage my Home" system as it was broken down and modulated at the right level and with the use of appropriate colours, fonts, sizes and images, made it clear and concise. The online shopping facility gave the users the ability to order shopping online and pay without the use of a bank account.
Existing Problems
There were a few problems and concerns with the remote control while it was being tested that were never addressed. One of the problems was that arthritic people found it difficult to operate the remote control with one hand, in particular, in situations where if the user was to have an accident and could only use one hand. The emergency contact system was never really defined or implemented into as much detail as we could have done as there were still questions asked about that particular part of the system. As the remote control was battery powered, there were concerns that users would forget or have the hassle of having to replace the batteries. There were concerns that if the batteries failed during an accident, the user would be unable to get help.
The TV interface also had a few problems. While the "Manage my home" menu was generally well received there were still some problems that never resolved and some issues that occurred during testing. The lighting system is able to switch lights on and off in individual rooms but the system was unable to control the lighting in rooms that had multiple lights. While the online shopping system's structure was simplified on the redesign it was still a little difficult for some of the users to follow. Some users were not very keen with the system as they enjoy the current way they shop. With the system itself, the confirmation process was not quite robust enough was there was no way of canceling an order once it was confirmed. In the end the TV interface was narrowed down to two main features. Many of the targeted audience mentioned that they would like to have more functionality in the system such as news, sport and whether.
Suggested Improvements
Several of the users asked whether it was possible to have multiple emergency contacts in the system. One of the possible ways to improve/fix this problem is that when the system is initially set up, the engineer could program a number of emergency contacts into the system for the user - up to 5. These would be ranked in order of who should be called first. Should the system be unable to contact any of these, it would default to calling the emergency services.
It has been noted that the users would like a feature for central heating and the oven which involves a time setting, so that they can control it all from their chairs without having to move into the kitchen to check the thermostat. This could be an added improvement for a further design iteration.
The most common worry about the system is the response time from the sensors when the user falls. None of our personas liked the idea of potentially lying unfound all day. We would need to look into this carefully and make proper estimates of the time for the sensors. If we were to produce a set of motion sensors which essentially 'switched off' during certain hours when the user would be asleep or resting, along with a disable switch for when they leave the house, we could use a relatively short time before the motion sensors activate. Reassurance on this point to the users of the system is also important.
Labels: conclusions
posted by Koulle at 2:12:00 pm
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