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Experiment 1

The document outlines an experiment aimed at understanding and redesigning the interfaces of home appliances to improve human-machine interaction. It emphasizes the importance of human psychology in design, key principles like affordances, signifiers, feedback, constraints, and mapping, and the need for products to align with users' mental models. The procedure involves analyzing existing appliances, evaluating their designs, and proposing improvements based on interaction principles.

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Aditya Anand
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26 views3 pages

Experiment 1

The document outlines an experiment aimed at understanding and redesigning the interfaces of home appliances to improve human-machine interaction. It emphasizes the importance of human psychology in design, key principles like affordances, signifiers, feedback, constraints, and mapping, and the need for products to align with users' mental models. The procedure involves analyzing existing appliances, evaluating their designs, and proposing improvements based on interaction principles.

Uploaded by

Aditya Anand
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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EXPERIMENT 1

TO UNDERSTAND THE TROUBLE OF INTERACTING WITH MACHINES -


REDESIGN INTERFACES OF HOME APPLIANCES.

Aim: To understand the trouble of interacting with machines - Redesign interfaces of home
appliances like microwave oven, land-line phone, fully automatic washing machine.

Objectives: From this experiment, the student will be able to


 To understand the importance of human psychology in designing good interfaces.
 To encourage students to indulge into research in Machine Interface Design

Outcomes: The learner will be able to


 Apply HMI in their day – to – day activities.
 To analyze the local and global impact of computing on individuals, organizations,
and society.
 An ability to recognize the need for, and an ability to engage in life-long learning.

Hardware / Software Required: Any tool or technology can be used for


implementation e.g., VB, DOTNET, JAVA, PHP, etc.

Theory:
Human-machine interface (HMI) is a component of certain devices that are capable of handling
human-machine interactions. The interface consists of hardware and software that allow user
inputs to be translated as signals for machines that, in turn, provide the required result to the
user. Design is concerned with how things work, how they are controlled, and the nature of the
interaction between people and technology. When done well, the results are brilliant, pleasurable
products. When done badly, the products are unusable, leading to great frustration and irritation.
or they might be usable, but force us to behave the way the product wishes rather than as we
wish.
Two of the most important characteristics of good design are discoverability and understanding.
- Discoverability: Is it possible to even figure out what actions are possible and where and
how to perform them?
- Understanding: What does it all mean? How is the product supposed to be used? What do
all the different controls and settings mean?
With complex devices, discoverability and understanding require the aid of manuals or
personal instruction. We accept this if the device is indeed complex, but it should be
unnecessary for simple things.
Fundamental Principles of Interaction

Submit

1. Affordances: Convey the rules by leaving visual clues. To make sure that the appropriate
actions are perceivable, and non-accessible ones are not invisible. By just the appearance of
any object, its functionality must be clear to the user.
Example: by looking at the handles, we should know how the door opens.
2. Signifiers: This is a physical form of showing the functionality to the user, such as a
sound, printed word or image.
Example: writing word “PUSH” on a door is a clear way to tell the user that door will open
when pushed.
3. Feedback: The effect of every action. Feedback in any form is very critical to the user.
Example: washing machine example, the user did not get any kind of feedback from the
system. That made the user assume the system is faulty. Every single user action has to be
acknowledged immediately.
4. Constraints: Prevent the user from making mistakes. Instead of having an option for the
user to make a mistake and then forgiving them, make sure your user can never make a
mistake.
Example, you want your user to enter a date. Show a pick-n-click calendar instead of a
textbox. This will eliminate all possibilities of syntax mismatches
5. Mapping: Mapping gives the set of possible relations between objects. There should be
Control-display compatibility between the objects visible. Mapping gives the natural
relationship between controls and displays. Example: mapping of stove controls to elements.

Conceptual Model
Conceptual models define a good design as the communication between the designer and the
user. The designer must be able to explain the entire product to the user by just appearance of
it. These models are very critical for a good user experience. If the end product does not map
to the mental images of the user, the product is not a success.

Procedure:
Select any home appliances like microwave oven, land-line phone, fully automatic washing
machine and understand the trouble of interacting with that machine.
Comment on design of that machine as good or bad design based on whether interaction
principles are matching with users’ mental model or not. Redesign the interface for mention
the change in design and reason.

Conclusion:
People have “mental models” of how things work, built from different interaction principles.
It is responsibility of the designers to first understand the mental model and then try to make
a product that will agree to it.

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