Prototype: Interface Design

Here is a picture I took in today's meeting where we discussed the interface layout on the word scanning device.



We discussed that the interface should have 3 lines of text, this way the first line can be used for the word that was scanned by the device and the other 2 lines can be used for further menu functions such as a dictionary definition, thesaurus entries and the ability to turn the sound on the device on or off.

The interface could be controlled by the scroll button beside the screen. The scroll button would allow a user to go through the options and pushing the scroll button in, could be used to select a highlighted option.

Questionnaire: Word Scanner Testing

1. Did you find the device comfortable to use?
   
   
2. If you didn't, why?
   
   
3. Would you make the device bigger/smaller or leave it the same size?
   
   
4. Is the scan button big enough?
   
   
5. Is the scroll bar easy to use?
   
   
6. Did you find scanning a word easy to do?
   
   
7. If you didn't, what did you find hard?
   
   
8. Was the speech helpful in understanding the word you scanned?
   
   
9. Did you find the screen easy to read and understand?
   
   
10. If you didn't, what didn't you like?
    
    
11. Did you find the Dictionary definition and the Thesaurus entries easy to understand?
    

12. Did you find them helpful in understanding the word you scanned?



13. Did you find it easy to connect the device to the PC?
    

NB: The questionnaire has been engineered with the concept of having an adult talking through the questionnaire with the child, not for the questionnaire to be distributed amongst lots of children. The answers would also be filled in by the adult, and questions that have multiple possibilities or questions with a 'ranged' answer would all be dealt with by the adult, not the child.

Admin: Meeting 9

The ninth meeting is currently schedule for 12-1pm on Tuesday 6th March. The meeting was moved from the Monday to accommodate Adele's other commitments.

In this meeting we need to discuss the results of the questionnaires and intensify the testing of the word scanner device.

We will also need to decide the time of the next meeting.

Admin: Meeting 8 Summary

Attendants:

Ashley Harris
Elliot Hyde
Mark Mitchell
John Saunt

Apologies:
Adele Tyler - Those pesky foot problems again.

We have decided that the next meeting will be held on Tuesday, at a time suitable for Adele and the rest of the team.

The rest of the main design issues were figured out in the meeting. The main issue was how we were going to have the screen divided up to allow for text, we decided that the device would display a maximum of 3 lines of text at any one time. We also discussed the menu system. Our results will be posted as a photo by John later.

Finally we drafted a comprehensive questionnaire to use on the personas to get an idea of the success of this initial design, allowing us to then consider issues that may lead to a re-prototype.

For Monday, the group will draft out their answers to the questionnaire, which will be posted in the near future.

Case: Laser Projection

One of the problems with our current design is the size of the screen. This is limited by the fact that the device has to be small enough to be portable. I began to think of ways of keeping the device small while enabling us to have a larger display for information such as dictionary definitions which may be quite long.

One possibility would be to have the device project the information. Examples of micro laser projectors include laser keyboards and laser pens.


Obviously there would need ot be considerations about safety as with any laser product. Non-laser alternatives could be considered.

Use Scenario: Difficult Words

The team pulled our personas together and went through a book aimed at children over the age of 8 and found words that they struggled with. They are listed below with the team's attempt at making the words easier to understand.

Candyfloss by Jacqueline Wilson
Corgi Children's. Fiction dealing with divorce, separation, family break-up. 9 - 11 year olds. ISBN: 0440866456. Publication date: 01/03/2007. 368 pages.

Chorused: kawr-rus - to sing a chorus.
Cooed: koo-d - a small sound.
Croissant: qwa-son-t - a rich buttery pastery. It was created in France.
Duvet: doo-vey - a type of blanket usually with a cover that can be removed.
Fastened: fass-end - to attach to something, to fix things together.
Koala: ko-a-la - a gray, furry animal, like a bear. It has no tail. They are found in Australia.
Motif: mo-tif - a design or shape on a T-Shirt.
Savouring: sa-vor-ing - taking a small bite of food and taking your time eating it.
Shiny: sh-i-ny - bright and glossy.
Significance: sig-nif-i-cance - important.

This has shown some issues that our device would have to handle. The word Croissant is French, and therefore should be pronounced in a French accent, these sorts of words need to have a special phonetics attribute. Words like Motif, have several meanings, in this case the group agreed that giving the most common definition will usually be sufficient (or perhaps giving more than one) and then the child can either determine the correct one or ask an adult.

Prototype: Error Messages

Something we missed out of our prototype drawings that is part of the system will be an error message on the LCD screen.

If the user attempts to scan a word the device could not read, or they accidentally press the scan button initiating a new scan when not placed on a word. Then on completion of the scan an error message should be displayed on the LCD screen explaining that the word scanned could not be identified. This way the user can see if the scanner does not know a word.

Prototype: Interface Model

I have knocked together a quick software prototype in java. It lets you 'scan' words, then displays various information about it.

I can't upload the program, so here's a screen shot.


We can try it out with the personas later, but it probably needs a bit of adjustment first.