Pacific
A concept wearable device for creating a personal "silence bubble" in the urban environment.
Overview
Pacific is a conceptual wearable device that lets users create a personal "silence bubble" in public spaces, and regulate the noise in their surroundings. Taking active noise cancellation (ANC) technology to the extreme, this solution envisions a world wired with speakers and microphones to allow people to use the device to personalize their auditory environment.
Pacific was designed for my B.Des final project
Personal Project
Advised by Dov Ganchrow
Timeline
Mar - Jul 2018
Skills
User Research
Ideation
3D Product Design
3D Prototyping
01 | The Challenge
We live in a noisy world. Noise pollution impacts millions of people every day and can cause serious health consequences
From traffic noise to rock concerts, loud or inescapable sounds can cause sleep disorders, anxiety, hearing loss, high blood pressure, and heart diseases. According to WHO, it is one of the most dangerous environmental threats to both physical and mental health. Noise is harmful to humans' attention and concentration abilities, and has severe effects on one's mental state, especially in unique population groups such as young children or people on the autistic spectrum.
02 | The Solution
Imagine a world where you could adjust and manipulate the ambient noises around you to suit your needs and current state of mind.
The Solution
03 | Research
Current State Analysis
The research process began with a Heuristic evaluation of the current interface, which uncovered many usability issues and pain points.
Market Study
After the initial review, we researched the market to find similar products and analyzed their usability and UX features.
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One main navigation tool at the bottom
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The app launches into a default project
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One user mode - Owner
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A limited number of optional tasks and flows
Insights
04 | Approach
User Scenario
Users of the Wix app are business owners who run their businesses themselves. On top of providing customers with the service they offer, they are also in charge of the entire business operations from start to finish - customers, marketing, payments, etc.
Their business website is the face of the company and is where existing and potential clients can find and engage with them.
Target Audience
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Small to medium business owners
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Spend a lot of time outside the office and on the go
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Intermediate Wix users (own and run a Wix website)
Journey Mapping
Experience Design Guidelines
05 | Key Features
A home screen that sets the user flow
Item groups are visually different and distant from one another, each presented on its own browsing carousel. One "Add Item" button for each item category and one clear CTA for each item.
A clear distinction between owned projects and site memberships helps users reach the desirable state of mind.
Pain Points Addressed
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"Add" (+) icon redundancy was very confusing
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Redundant CTA buttons in project item led to an incoherent workflow
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Owned sites and memberships were too similar, creating cognitive load
A global dashboard navigation system
One navigation bar for the whole project promotes an explorative yet systematic workflow. Data are displayed as floating widgets to promote customization. Business name and logo are clearly visible in the header.
Recognizing rather than recalling information makes it easier for users to stay focused and keep engaging with the interface.
Pain Points Addressed
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Multiple navigation cues made it difficult to form a systematic workflow
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Setup was only used in the initial stage and took up a lot of screen space
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Widget customization was handled externally, unaligned with the mental model
Place Editor integrated into the menu
Users can reach the editor directly from the main menu, which enables quick access to real-time information from other menu features to enhance editing resources. Access to Preview Mode in the editor aligns with Wix desktop users’ mental model.
The Editor's role is to help business owners craft the image they wish to present to their customers.
Pain Points Addressed
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Misinterpretation of the interface hierarchy led to errors and frustration
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Lack of clarity between edit mode and preview mode caused confusion
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Indirect access to the editor segregated it from the dashboard’s toolset
A UX dilemma: Designing the secondary navigation tool
As part of the development of a polyhierarchical information architecture that involves a two-level navigation system, we designed a secondary menu, 'The business toolbox’, according to the following guidelines:
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Complement the primary menu and not overshadow or conflict with it
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Promote customization and flexibility to serve a wide range of business fields
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Utilize as little screen space as possible for the user to complete extensive processes within the interface
We created and tested three alternatives to address these criteria:
