UID in interaction at the Mensch & Computer 2017
At the "Mensch und Computer" conference taking place in Regensburg, Germany, from September 10 to 13, we showed how to put the convention's motto "Playful interaction" into practice. From autonomous parking to design thinking, service design, dynamic data visualization and digital media for nursing care – as speakers, exhibitors and sponsors, we informed the visitors on current trends and methods. But fascinating presentations and interesting discussions weren't the only rewarding moments: According to the industry report published by the German UPA, we once more defended our "title" as the most well-known German usability company in 2017 with a clear lead.
Campus safari
The participants of our service design workshop tried to track down the customers' perspective. They spread all over the university's campus to gather impressions of typical campus services. These were recorded as texts, drafts and photos to be used as a basis for the participants' service ideas. Philip Marzoch and Jan Köppen, the hosts of the workshop, explain the reason for this service safari: "Only if you put yourself in the position of the user and experience service from a customer's point of view will you be able to develop attractive service offerings."
Trial lesson in design thinking
"Just do it!" was the motto of an afternoon in which two teams passed through all the phases of the design thinking process. Always by their side: UID coaches Jan Köppen and Philip Marzoch. The participants' job was to design the ultimate carrying solution that allows you to take everything with you that you need to enjoy a summer day. They came up with extremely creative solutions, e. g. trousers with air cushions that can be inflated to turn into a chair. Or a set of modular pannier bags that can be assembled with magnets to form a backpack.
Dynamic data
Can we visualize
project information or corporate data in a way that keeps everyone's attention?
Yes, we can! And Florian Schröder even proved this in the "Young
Professionals" session by presenting his shape-changing interface that
changes shapes and colors to render a dynamic visualization of how many staff
members are present in the office. This gives the staff an impression of the
current "attendance situation".
Automated parking
Cars that learn to find the way home and independently park in the garage? This was a home-zone functionality created in a joint project with Robert Bosch GmbH. At the 6th "Automotive HMI" workshop, Franz Koller explained how we developed this semi-automatic parking and maneuvering system and what makes it so special. Click here to learn more.
Memory maintenance
Memories are of utmost importance, especially for people with dementia. Therefore, the InterMem research project deals with the question of how digital media can stimulate memories. It has produced several interactive prototypes that combine visual and acoustic stimuli from past decades. In her workshop on palpable interaction and a poster session, Martina Uhlig presented the interim results and answered the participants' questions. Click here to learn more.
User research in practice
What challenges do user researchers have to face in practice? Where and how can the Trade Association of Usability Professionals, the German UPA, support them? These were the key questions that were discussed at the "User Research" workshop of the German UPA working group hosted by Dr. Jan Seifert.