AR BUS STOP

Redesign bus experience to turn bus stops into several information station.Using the app with augmented reality technology, citizens can conveniently obtain useful information of buses, stops and their communities.

Duration: March ~ May, 2020

Team: Individual work

Location: Wuhan, China

Tools: Sketch, Figma, Procreate, AI, Photoshop, Imovie

The problem

Wuhan, as a megacity in central China, owns a complicated bus system with over 587 bus lines and over 8800 bus stops, which carries a large commuting people. However, people find it's difficult to get real-time bus information and often miss buses when playing phones to kill waiting time.

The outcome

In order to address the problem, I designed a mobile app called IBUS to help passengers easily obtain useful information

straightforwardly within short waiting time , gather neighboring sharing information when waiting and get alerted to avoid missing the coming bus.

So how does IBUS app work?

Find nearby stops, buses & posts

Scroll the home page to check buses and arriving time in nearby stops. New posts are easy to obtain community news.

Locate stop & Guide

Search for the best route to the destination and follows the map to the stop.

Arrive &

AR-scan bus stop board for buses and stops

While arriving, the user clicks on AR-Scan icon on the homepage and interacts with the information straightforwardly in reality.

AR-scan board for

more neighboring sharing

During boring waiting time, the user can see a multi-colored grid in green, red, blue and yellow through AR-scan, showing different posts.

Just click one to know more about what is happening nearby and make comments.

Create new post

Click a blank one to create a new post and write something about feelings, news or anything that want to share.

Set the alarm &

Get alerted

Set the alarm to avoid missing the coming bus.

Open QR-code for payment

While getting on the bus, the user can click QR-code on the home page for easy payment.

The process

How it all came together and what I've deliberated to make this experience convenient & enjoyable.

Research

I used two ways(Observation & Interviews) to do research on two specific stops.

Stop 1

Survey Site : South East Lake Road Bus Stop

Survey Time : 16:00-17:00(weekday and weekend)

Survey Numbers : 38

Why Choose Here :

Stop 2

Survey Site : Cha Gang Road Bus Stop

Survey Time : 9:00-10:00(weekday and weekend)

Survey Numbers : 55

Why Choose Here :

(1) Observation

- Form sample

Timeline

Write specific time of each action of target person and what does he/she do at that moment

Walking routes

Draw a map first and draw down walking routes of each person that has been observed

Basic information

Location, Date and Number of Report

User information

Divide people in to five types: Child, Teenager, Adult Female, Adult Male and The Aged; Classified Group: Alone or with Member

- Form taken

(2) Interviews

Through observation, i got data of passengers’ action and the specific time period of every action they took. Then, interviews were taken to gather information of how people think about bus stop and why they take each action.

- Questions to ask

Frequency of Taking Bus:

1.How do you think of equipment of bus stop?

2.How you come to bus stop usually?

3.How often will you take the bus?

The Feeling Through Process:

1.What you usually do when waiting for the bus?

2.What is the longest time that you can tolerate to wait?

3.How you find bus information? Can you give some examples?

4.Why you choose to change transportation instead of waiting for the bus?

Results & Analysis

(1) Groups

Age 18-29:

This group of people is mainly students from campus. They have limited budget and are willing to spend longer time.

Age 30-49:

This group of people is residents nearby. They often go outside with family members, usually with kids. and they love playing phones while waiting.

Age 50-79:

This group of people is the aged nearby, they get up early everyday and are familiar with route to the traditional market. They like to talk and share.

(2) Current scenario

(3) Journey map

Problems & Ideation

1. Unclear route

Passengers find it difficult to understand, therefore always take the wrong bus or go to the opposite side

2. Chaos

Once bus arrives, everyone rushes to the front door, making a chaos which is quite dangerous

3. No seat

Passengers have to wait for some time but there are not enough seats for them

4. Missing Bus

Passengers like using their mobile phones when waiting, but no alarm for coming bus so they may easily miss

Design

Design objects

- Clear process?

- How to find information easily?

- Reduce waiting time?

- Could waiting be an entertainment?

Aim

- Easy

- Interesting

Information

Communication

Methods

AR bus stop

Passengers could use their phone to easily find what they want through augmented reality technology.Scan and get information right away.

Wireframe

Final Whole Picture

What I learned

Independent thinking ability

In this particular period, I thought about how I can make the situation better through my own design and how I can help people and the community.

Design skills

I practiced design thinking and the whole design process including research, framework and prototype.

Where to improve

Better user experience

I wish to dive deeper into how to scale the design to more branches and create a more smooth user experience.

Less & better

Sometimes less is much better. I need to think about how to optimize my design instead of adding all the things up.

Thank you!

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