Intuitive balance-based mobility interfaces - A framework for understanding balance as input in personal mobility devices
Aleksander Rem · NORA - Norwegian Open Research Archives · 2015
This thesis examines how balance as input is used as a modality when controlling a personal mobility device. Through a user-centered design approach, we designed and built a fully functional mobility device prototype that uses balance as its only form of user input. We used an online survey for gathering needs and requirements, and created several design concepts and paper sketches through a focus group and design workshop. A balance controlled electric skateboard was chosen for further development, and iterated through paper prototyping. Two functional high-fidelity prototypes were constructed and tested in a formative and summative usability test with potential users. The prototypes were evaluated through a theoretical framework based on six aspects related to balance as input, which are: intuition, learnability, feedback, reusability, affordance and user experience (UX). The results showed that most of the participants found the final prototype intuitive. They showed progress during the test which indicates that a learning process occurred. The prototype gave the participants enough postural feedback, and those with a previous skateboard experience were able to use it when testing the electric skateboard, which indicates reusability. Even those that did not have previous experience were able to control the prototype after simple instructions, and every participant expressed how much fun they had using balance to control the prototype. To conclude, we have showed through our study that it is possible to use balance to control a personal mobility device in an intuitive way, and that the framework we proposed is a useful tool when evaluating balance as input.