E - rest | NoamHirschportfolio

E-rest

Role: Research, User Flow, Personas, Wireframes, UX

Year: 2021

10 days of a UX task

This unique project was given to me as part of a UX assignment. All the research & design was 10 days.

I embraced the challenge and here are the results!

Problem identification

The assignment guidelines were to create the main dashboard for an autonomic restaurant. T

2 operators whose role is to observe and monitor the activity.
The concept of robots should be determined by me: what they will be and how they would move .

I identified the problem in today's restaurant to be The human variable mistakes. That would be the main pain point of the new restaurant.

Brainstorm & ideis for new consept

To start this unique project, I first went to look at how restaurants are run today. I did a brainstorming session in which I raised preliminary questions for testing:

How to make this new restaurant appealing for customers, and avoid the uncanny valley of robotic technology.
What hybrid models of automatization process there are in today's restaurant?
What should the work arrangement between robots look like? how it will affect the physical sitting process.
What will be the innovation part and what will be the "Familiar experience"?

User-Centric Intelligent Environments

Since it's a new field for a UX designer and for environment design, I wanted to read more about intelligent environments and autonomic systems.

I found this one in google scholar & dive into it.

Kaasinen, Eija, et al. "A user-centric view of intelligent environments: User expectations, user experience and user role in building intelligent environments." Computers 2.1 (2013): 1-33.‏

The user’s willingness to adopt a new technical system is based on their expectations of what the system would be like in use. These expectations arise from experiences and information the user acquires from the world around him

By reading those articles I learned about the importance of the user's expectations. Our experience depends on what we know. It is important to create an environment that has familiar objects, to create a pleasing feel for the new experience. The most important theory presented is the holistic theory: people do not use the environment, they are in the environment and live with the smart systems. This theory drives me to design from the top down - to create the environment and from there dive into the individual robots.

User Research: 01 semi-automat resturant

I explored what sort of automatic process is in use today. I viewed fast-food restaurants because of the work nature: minimize human contact with the customer and maximize profits. I listed the familiar experience in order to remember my limits and how can I use what my potential users already know.

We all know those prosses:

Touch screen or tablet as menus.
A screen that shows your order when in the making.
Payment in the touch screen or with a QR code.
The Japanese sushi conveyor belt.

Photos were taken from google

User Research: 02 interviews

I interviewed 2 shift managers. I decided to interview shift managers because of their responsibility for customer scenarios, thus the "old" pain points were well known.

shift manager insights:

They are responsible for the all the departments and cant be in two places at the same time.

Both emphasized the hardships of being responsible for many different processes simultaneously.

Both said that errors were mostly human-based, specifically by the waiters.

Other problems they experienced were customer complaints about seating conditions & atmosphere.

Personas

Gill Cohen: shift manager

Age: 27

Occupation: Shift manager in the restaurant.

Residence: Lives with partners in Tel Aviv.

NEW pain points

There is no direct human contact with a customer.
Information is obtained based on systems calculations.
Distribution of attention.

Characteristic: multi-screen user with many types of devices.

wants the anomalies to be presented quickly and efficiently.

By a quick glance can understand the condition of the restaurant.

Needs: Distribution of contact between customers and operating systems Responsibility (alerts and operation).

High attention distribution and scenario of multiple alerts simultaneously, have to trust the technology.

Nina D. : the costumer

Age: 32

Occupation: Recruiter in a high-tech company.

Residence: Lives in Ramat Gan with her partner.

New pain points:

High expectations for fast and efficient service.
Need a human response to an emergency.
Rely on a robotic process.
Technologically alienated.

Characteristic: loves new experiences. Service is very important to her. Does not like to wait, and wants to get updates.

Needs: High expectations for fast, efficient, and transparent service. Afraid to rely 100% on a robot and does not want to feel technologically alienated.

User flow

Shift manager

An updated snapshot is divided into panels for quick scanning.
The Possibility to work and watch by more than one person.
3 levels for image examination: general, array, specific robot.
Quick emergency alerts on the top right.

An example of a manager's flow when he sees that there is a fault in the table

Costumer

A "waiter" position is always available at the top of the table with a screen.
Update of orders/requirements/points in the process on the screen.
Use of familiar touch screens.
A human appeal in case of extreme emergency.
The customer does small actions (takes the plate from the belt, etc') in order not to feel technologically alienated.

An example of a costumer's flow from ariving antill payment

New concept floor plan:

The shape of the new restaurant will be based on table units, To provide a constant response and availability. At the top of each screen is a "waiter" screen/robot. Responsible for the operation of the table and the conveyor sensors. Each table (marked with a numbered circle) represents a mini-system consisting of several sensors and cameras. Each table arrangement manages the occupants and updates the kitchen and transport systems (conveyors).

Inspirations and strengths: Japanese restaurants Usage conventions from known systems Reducing the movement of bodies in the restaurant.
Dividing the robot systems into recognized departments: kitchen, bar, service, cleaning, etc.
Each robot system maintains communication towards other systems that receive information from it.
Maintaining a familiar physical and mental model of sitting in a restaurant.

A customer's journey begins with a hospitality station touch/talk screen. From there he is guided with the help of light arrows to the table.

Solution - control dashboard

The dashboard solution is for the shift manager - the system operator.

I decided to build only the front page - which will be devoted to monitoring and alerting the general operations.

Three levels to display, clicking on a subsystem will display the relevant information in detail.
The screen is divided into a general image of the active tables, and the management of the entire restaurant.
Possibility for interaction between different operators in the system.
A fast bounce alert system with the option of manual bypass.
The main division for the side navigation is sub-topics: maintenance, management, finance, etc.

Distribution of information on a widescreen. Reading direction according to the language from right to left

Dashboard after the opperator choos table 4

Design Guidelines

The design is in the making! stay tuned.

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