CLASS PROJECT
ROLLIKER
Rolliker is a concept based on the idea of ‘rollicking’ (a carefree, spirited, lively experience); words that we want drivers to resonate with to make driving an enjoyable, thriving experience like it used to be! Nikita Ajit, a close friend and classmate, and I, thoroughly enjoyed working on this concept from start to finish. It involved a host of ideas, extensive research and thorough testing before we arrived at our very first prototype.
THE PROBLEM
Hand held navigation in a four-wheel drive is difficult and dangerous. Amid the many distractions, multi-tasking while driving is a threat. The goal is to bridge that gap, and create an atmosphere conducive to a comfortable and safe driving experience.
Here’s the link to a video we shot and edited (with help from our AV friends) in order to bring out the right message and stay focused on the problem at hand, thereby leaving us with one simple question...
HOW THEN CAN WE COMMUNICATE WITH THIS DRIVER WITHOUT BECOMING A DISTRACTION OURSELVES?
RESEARCH & EXPERIMENTS
The human mind can only only perform three tasks at once and can only perform one task effectively.
Driving is one such task that needs a driver’s uninhibited attention.
We did extensive research to understand how the the human mind functions in a stressful environment, levels of human attention, and other subjects like the different senses used by a driver to accomplish the task at hand (our research on peripheral vision landed us with strong incentives to use it in our solution).
We also undertook a few experiments to understand how people react to different sensory signals (like light, sound etc). This was both to understand what is deemed a ‘distraction’ as well as understanding triggers that would get our driver's attention in a safe and un-intrusive manner.
WHO IS OUR DRIVER?
After 40 surveys and 15 personal interviews, we found common patterns and grouped similar insights to inform personas. The patterns also helped us arrive at primary, secondary and tertiary needs across personas. Unlike other solutions, where user requirements play a major role in dictating the way forward, design had a responsibility to create ethical solutions in the long run. Here's an example - while a primary need was to have communication channels open while driving, an astounding post-survey poll result showed us that users are still open to a safer solution that steers away from distractions while driving. Many questions were asked to really understand a day, week and a year in the life of our drivers.
A good mix of objective and subjective questions helped us gain more context of our end users: Do they go to the same place often? Who/what is their source of entertainment? Do they have to find new destinations everyday? What does driving mean to them? Is it a task to get some place? Or does it tie up into one of their life goals? Many users had professions that required them to reach different destinations everyday. Their mental makeup and expectations were very different. Fastest routes, minimal distractions, enjoyable journeys, exploring routes, and different combinations of such expectations formed a wide spectrum of our user-base. It was stories like these that cleared the way ahead. Many ideas later, we arrived at a concept that ticked many boxes...
SHAPING UP
TESTING
An important goal was to understand end user-responses to our first prototyped-concept. We animated another POV video of what the windshield projection and aural balance would feel like to people. To make our solution more immersive, we tested this video out using google cardboard. We gave them basic tasks to perform while watching the video. We worked on a think-aloud model where our users constantly expressed what they were thinking while watching it. We also took post-viewing interviews to get a better sense of their questions, reservations and feedback. A small success was when we noticed some users body language react to the direction of the audio and video.
Use earphones/ headphones to best experience the video. Viewing it on a VR platform would enhance your experience even further.