Paper Prototype Project: Designing Apps for People in Movement
Introduction
In my Human-Computer Interaction class, as we studied the iterative design process, one of our projects was to design a paper prototype of an app meant to address the problems people face while using mobile devices while in movement (ex: walking, biking, driving). This project's goal was to get us to think about the design process and introduce us into research, ideation, and prototyping methods.
The Process
Research
We needed to interview at least two individuals about their experiences and difficulties trying to use mobile phones in motion as part of their job, hobby, etc. I interviewed two individuals who jog or walk for exercise regularly while using their mobile device. I noticed issues that they said they had as well as any similarities shared between the two individuals in order to formulate my design.
Ideation
Both users said that they used the music app Spotify while exercising. They found it difficult to perform functions beyond volume control, pause/play, or skipping when in motion. To do other functions, they would have to pause their activity in order to focus on their devices more fully. I wanted to come up with ideas to address this issue to allow more possible functions to be performed while in motion without loss of focus. I brainstormed many ideas through sketching and then chose the ones that I felt best addressed the issue.
Prototype
From these ideas, I created a low-fidelity paper prototype to demonstrate the new functionality of the app.
Testing
I then had users interact with this paper prototype in order to assess the usability of its features. I was able to observe and get important feedback on what did or did not work for the user. There were certain features that made sense to them while other features that would need clarification or tweaking.
Next Step
If I were to develop this project further, continuing the iterative design process, I would use this feedback to make improvements on the design and maybe do more research to solidify my solution. Eventually, I would also develop higher fidelity prototypes and then create a final product.
