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This project wasn't born out of some grand design or groundbreaking problem. It all stemmed from a simple passion: I'm a car enthusiast who also happens to love product design. So, I thought, "Why not merge these two interests and see what magic we can create?"
City traffic. Rush hour. New territory. Streets blur by as you follow the in-car navigation, eyes glued to the screen searching for the next turn. Suddenly, a car cuts you off! Heart pounding, you slam on the brakes, the map forgotten as you regain control. This close call wasn't an anomaly. The complex navigation system, meant to guide you, had become a distraction.
Knowing the age-old advice to "keep your eyes on the road" rings truer than ever in today's cars. That's why rethinking car navigation systems to fit the mantra becomes crucial. They should help us keep our eyes peeled, not glued to a tiny screen.
The ultimate goal is to craft a navigation system that's not just safe and keeps drivers focused on the road, but also universally accessible for users of all ages and tech comfort levels.
I would like to acknowledge that before diving into research, I took a moment to weigh the scale of the project. Initially, I entertained the idea of tackling a full-fledged infotainment system. However, with a one-week timeframe, I wisely narrowed my focus to the navigation system specifically.
Right now, we've got a diverse array of cars, each with its own unique infotainment setup. Luckily, research and user studies have identified some common pain points that drivers face across the board.
Based on those findings, I whipped up some personas to hone in on why our customers are reaching for our product. I crafted three user archetypes and matched each of them with the specific jobs they would hire my product to get done.
"I want to navigate seamlessly while driving, using voice commands to find destinations, explore new places, and personalize my experience without ever taking my eyes off the road."
"I want to navigate seamlessly while driving, using voice commands to find destinations, explore new places, and personalize my experience without ever taking my eyes off the road."
"I want a reliable and user-friendly navigation system that gets me where I need to go safely and without any fuss. It should be clear and easy to use while driving, with minimal distractions. Remembering my regular spots and showing only the important details on the screen would be a big win."
"I want a safe and stress-free navigation experience that's easy to understand and use, even for someone not comfortable with technology. Large buttons, clear voice instructions, and the ability to find familiar places or speak addresses instead of typing would make navigating a breeze."
"I want a safe and stress-free navigation experience that's easy to understand and use, even for someone not comfortable with technology. Large buttons, clear voice instructions, and the ability to find familiar places or speak addresses instead of typing would make navigating a breeze."
After interviewing one user from each archetype, sketching out user journey maps, and crunching the data, I landed on three key goals to tackle:
To guarantee a user-friendly experience that meets various needs and keeps safety in focus at all times, the aim is to highlight voice commands to lessen the need for visual attention.
Ensuring interactions are simple, clear, and safe, while presenting information straightforwardly through UI elements and features, facilitates smooth and swift task completion with minimal cognitive strain.
Creating a feature that will let users personalize their experience based on their comfort level, would make navigation smoother and more enjoyable.
While building a sitemap and some paper prototypes, a significant challenge arose regarding the choice between using profiles for user preferences, or a simple toggle for "Easy Mode"?
While profiles offered versatility and customization, I opted for the clean and straightforward approach of a toggle button.
To get real user feedback, I conducted a series of three user testing sessions, each focusing on a major section:
If I could take this project to the next level, I'd love to explore adding unique sound effects. Think of it as haptic feedback for the ears! Not only would this enhance the user experience, but it could also help condition users to recognize different screens or actions by sound alone, minimizing the need to look away from the road.
While not part of the current project, the integration of AI and VR is a tantalizing prospect. Imagine, with that setup, our eyes could truly stay focused on the road ahead.
With a 90% satisfaction rating and 4.5/5 score, our user journey maps and personas bolstered product confidence, while integrating voice command functionality led to a 38% increase in task completion speed, ultimately enhancing efficiency and productivity significantly. This was a rewarding learning experience, allowing me to refine existing skills and gain valuable insights that will fuel even stronger design solutions in the future.
Moreover, the most significant lesson learned here was navigating the challenges of time constraints and grasping the essence of an MVP (Minimum Viable Product). For example, I was initially super interested in exploring user profiles. But after some serious thought, I decided a simple toggle switch for "Easy Mode" was the best way to test the waters. I realized profiles can definitely be a bigger feature, and honestly, deserve their own dedicated project down the line.
Thanks for taking a ride through my design journey! :)
