Keeping the user experience front of mind

Our four-step method for user-first design.

At TG0 we know superior user experience is essential to product sales, brand loyalty and client reputation. No consumer wants a frustrating experience. And no company wants to try to sell products their customers will struggle to love.

So we’ve developed a four-step design methodology to ensure we always keep user requirements front of mind. Here it is:

Research

We start with a series of intensive stakeholder interviews, supplemented by our own research. Our aim is to build a thorough, shared understanding of what our client – typically an automotive, gaming or electronic consumer electronics company – wishes to achieve in terms of product design, cost, sales, sustainability and other issues. We also map the competitive landscape, including trialling alternate devices and checking out specifications.

Then we think about the end-users. We map when, where and how they are likely to use the product. We think about demographics, and therefore the required ergonomics of the device. We also examine product support considerations – for example ease of charging, installation, maintenance, product lifecycle, energy concerns. And we evaluate demands for aesthetics, helping us to create a product that looks attractive, intuitive to use and ‘on brand’.

The wider context is all-important. Once we have a thorough picture of the desires of both our client and the likely users, we map their needs against known project parameters – for example the usage of particular materials, project timelines and manufacturing and intellectual property concerns. With clear guidelines in place, we’re ready to begin the creative process.

Define & Design

The design stage starts with open, collaborative, ideation sessions. Brainstorming as a joint client-and-TG0 team creates a plethora of options that could solve the issue and therefore meet the market need. The first stage is all about idea generation – the more the better. As a group, we then narrow and discount ideas until we have a shorter list of genuine, viable options.

Then we define and evaluate the following:

• Form factors of the control areas
• Potential interactions (slide, press, touch, etc.)
• Feedback interactions (lights, haptics, etc.)
• Technical feasibility using TG0 technology (number of electrodes, electrode design, ergonomics).

Each of these elements is then reviewed for its impact on user experience. For example, will a larger bill of materials make the product too heavy or drain power too fast? Which feedback method is more intuitive? Will the user love it?

TG0’s proprietary technology gives us an advantage here, as our touch sensing materials can be formed into any shape and controlled by many different interaction methods including touch, pressure, and deformation sensing. This gives us wider flexibility on product options than alternate, last-gen interaction methods.

With a clear plan in place, we hit the drawing board. The end result is a beautiful, commercially-appropriate concept, ready to be realised by our team of talented engineers and product design experts.

Prototyping

We love stage 3. This where our team get their hands dirty – literally and metaphorically. We begin the build, using techniques and technology such as 3D printing, vacuum casting.

Within a matter of days, we’ll have one or two physical prototypes ready. Our prototypes aren’t just there to look pretty. We’ll take each one and examine it against a whole host of criteria, testing assumptions and ensuring the goals of both the client and the end-user are achieved. Key questions we ask include:

• Does the prototype appeal to the end-users? Do the aesthetics meet user needs and brand criteria?
• Is the product simple and intuitive to use? Is the touch, press, or gesture interaction enough for the user to feel the right level control? Will the interaction trigger more than one/right control?
• Feasibility. Is the product technically feasible from a use / cost / manufacturing / materials point of view? Is the product sufficiently robust?

Testing & Iteration

No product leaves TG0 control without thorough and intense usability testing. We get real humans to use the prototype, and observe and learn about user behaviour and preferences while they perform pre-defined tasks with the prototypes. We make a point of always witnessing human interaction — machine testing methodology alone is never enough to ensure usability.

We don’t presume we’ve made perfection. Instead, we watch how people interact with the prototype and educate ourselves. The aim is to identify potential problems and to iterate on improvements. We think about every element: size, strength of touch sense, accessibility, ease of use, feedback methods. And we ask our guinea pigs what they think of the product, including what they like and dislike, and how they feel the product could be improved.

Then we iterate. We tweak, polish, enhance or simplify the design, going through as many stages as required until it’s ready for the outside world.

++ Want to learn more about the TG0 user-experience focus? Contact our team for more information.

++ These blogs are also worth reading for a wider appreciation of UX and design.

https://www.answerlab.com/insights/essential-guide-to-hardware-ux-research

https://www.nngroup.com/articles/usability-testing-101/

https://blog.prototypr.io/what-i-learned-from-doing-a-ux-internship-at-google-hardware-8db3669e9fc9