The team
Client
Interface of an onboard computer Heather
Deadlines
Nov 21 2022 – May 14 2025
Merkator Holding
Analytics: Polina;
Graphic design: Tanya;
UX/UI design: Kostya;
Design management: Gosha;
Mobile development: Ilya, Artem, Pasha.
Graphic design: Tanya;
UX/UI design: Kostya;
Design management: Gosha;
Mobile development: Ilya, Artem, Pasha.
Subdivision of Merkator Company, which is responsible for innovative and technological decisions, asked us to solve the task of creating user’s interface of controlling the onboard computer for road and utility equipment: KamAZ, MAZ, sweeping-vacuuming machines and others.
Initially the management system was foreign, and any improvement required a large amount of money, but in conditions of sanctions, this became completely impossible. In order not to depend on foreign manufacturers Merkator decided to create its own software that meets the needs of users — drivers and service center employees.
We were one of the teams that were attracted and responsible for developing a user interface that was convenient for different target audiences. In a working process, it was important to take into account the diverse machine park, scalability of the project and adaptability to different technical requirements.
The task
The work was carried out in stages. Having completed one, we contacted the customer, presented the result and moved on. Since the task was not typical, it was important to conduct a study to understand the needs of different user groups. To do this we went to the factory, service center and repair shop of special equipment, where we collected a lot of useful information.
We interviewed employees of the plant — engineers, service center specialists and drivers, who worked with technical documentation, studied the existing version of the control system Buzina.
First, we analyzed the current management system. Although drivers were used to working with it, we saw that it was difficult to work with - even simple commands required many actions. In modern machines, the control is different. We decided to update the interface, make it more modern.
The solution
After data collection and analysis, we came to the following conclusions:
- The existing control system can be supplemented by touch-screen: it will be easier to interact with the device. Drivers do not have to remember what each button is for, but just choose the right command on the screen. It will also be an additional control tool if the joystick fails;
- The interface needs to be run systematically. It should be adaptive and suitable for machines with different equipment. In addition, it should be easily transferred to other company products;
- It was important to allow drivers to operate equipment in their own language. In this case, any employee, including those who speak poorly Russian, can manage the control. All of this should be taken into account in the interface: designations, words length and so on.
The next step was to break down scenarios and build logical flowcharts to make sure that the user will always reach the goal. We have presented all the necessary scenarios and followed the user path step-by-step. We identified places where the script could be simplified and the number of steps was reduced to meet the required result.
Before we started prototyping, we tested the standard head equipment of ordinary cars: we went to saloons and studied the materials available on the manufacturers' websites.
All the data obtained allowed us to design an interactive prototype of the user’s interface for a future control system. Only then, we were able to move directly to design. In addition, we developed UI-kit: its elements can be used in other digital projects of the company.
As a result, more than 500 screens with different display options and under all scenarios were assembled. Being based on the grid display of interactive widgets — this allowed to scale the project to different devices, so that with the control system it is convenient to work on machines with different versions of the hardware.
Once the development team got involved, we followed up on the implementation of the interface and worked out individual elements according to the requests. For example, we were asked to test the 3D interface.
An important advantage of the interface developed by us — its adaptability when changing the configuration of the machine, device models, screen orientation. So the design of the control elements takes into account the type of machinery where the computer is installed, as well as the conditions under which the driver works: time of day, weather, level of computer literacy of the user.
The first version of the product was developed by a design analyst, two UX/UI designers and a project manager. In two and a half years, we’ve collected hundreds of screens that cover all the scenarios and created five interactive prototypes.
We tested all our solutions with the help of company employees — people who will work on the machinery.
The work on the project continues: the team of developers is finishing work on the demonstration version of Heather, and we stay in touch and solve new design challenges.
The result
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