Smart Parking (Interaction Design)
My teammates and I worked on creating an interactive application for new mobile and context-aware technologies. This pervasive interaction design course was project-oriented, and we had multiple milestones throughout the semester. We conducted research and prototyping activities, and presented our final product, Smart Parking, through a live demo and a video.
Product introduction
The Smart Parking project aims to solve the challenges of finding parking spots in crowded areas by leveraging the latest IoT technology. It offers a mobile app that provides real-time parking availability information, allows users to reserve parking spots in advance, and offers turn-by-turn navigation instructions to the reserved spot. The physical prototype includes a swivel chair with a cardboard steering wheel, replicating the interface of a car dashboard for user interaction.
Value proposition
The target users of the Smart Parking system are drivers living in crowded urban cities. The motivation behind the project is to reduce traffic congestion, improve the parking experience, increase revenue for parking lot owners, and enhance overall urban transportation.
Key insights
The design of the Smart Parking system was informed by comprehensive user research and testing. Pain points and challenges faced by drivers in finding parking spots were identified through quantitative (survey design) and qualitative (contextual inquiry) methods. Some key findings include the difficulty of finding parking spots in crowded areas, challenges in understanding local parking rules, and concerns about parking distance from an entrance.
Design, prototyping, and results
The design process included idea generation, user research, and iterative refinement. User enactments and storyboards were created to visualize the user journey. A digital prototype was developed using wireframes and a final physical prototype was built with 3D printed assets and hardware components such as LED lighting and ultrasonic sensors. The results showed positive user preferences for reservation systems, real-time recommendations, and clear visual information for parking guidance.
Final system concept
The final system concept consists of three main components: the software (Smart Parking app), the hardware (parking lot detector), and the cloud-based database. The Smart Parking app allows users to reserve parking spots, navigate to their reserved spots, and receive real-time notifications. The parking lot detector uses ultrasonic sensors to monitor parking spot situations and provide data to the app. The cloud-based database stores all user data and parking lot information.
Reflections
The limitations of the design were identified, including the need for better integration with third-party navigation, addressing reservation errors, and further testing of hardware components. The next steps include conducting usability testing, refining the system based on feedback, integrating with third-party applications, and deploying in a controlled environment. The process of creating prototypes and producing a video provided new insights into usability and design improvements.
Overall, the Smart Parking project aims to improve upon the parking experience by providing real-time information, reservation options, and navigation guidance to drivers. Through continuous refinement and user feedback, the goal is to create a seamless and efficient parking solution.