42
Sept - Oct 2020
Fine-tuning FCA’s Uconnect system in crisis had upside When drivers start up the 2021 Chrysler Pacifica and Dodge Durango this fall, they’ll be introduced to the next-generaon version of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles’ heralded Uconnect infotainment system. The latest itera on, Uconnect 5, runs on an Android-based opera ng system and has processing speeds five mes faster than those of its predecessor. It enables two Bluetooth phones to connect simultaneously, aiding those who carry mulple phones and allowing passengers to interact with the system in addi on to the driver. Ge ng the system ready in me for vehicle launches became a tougher task than expected a er the coronavirus pandemic forced designers to rearrange their working condi ons on the fly. And the experience could leave a las ng imprint on how designers go about their du es in the future. The crew of about 30 employees had to finish tuning Uconnect 5, which was far along in its development, using standalone prototype units in home offices. The team usually operated with a few prototypes at FCA’s suburban Detroit headquarters but suddenly needed a few dozen with everyone separated. Vince Galante, FCA’s chief designer of user experience, said he might keep a standalone unit at home from now on — even a er he eventually goes back to working at the office. “I get so ware updates once a week, for sure, some mes twice a week,” he told Automo ve News. “We get on calls and we talk about it, we look at it. We update, we tweak, we get a new so ware download and we’ve been doing that for six, seven months now.” The design team has been making a lot “fine adjustments” such as ensuring that the selected screen colors work and that the contrast is right so everything is easy to read. Response me is another key piece in making Uconnect 5 intui ve. This was evident in the system’s “cardbased format” that allows users to personalize and simplify display screens. Users can group features into different screens to determine how and where each is displayed. By touching one of the cards and holding it for a second, a user can move it into different posi ons on the screen. Ge ng the ming right required a delicate balance. “We started off with, like, 2 seconds, and that just felt too long,” Galante recalled. “We went down to half a second; it was too quick. And so we’ve been doing li le adjustments like that. Really fine-tuning to make sure that all those things [are] put in there to make it really easy to use, to make sure they’re working right, exactly how they should be.
Mopar Masters Guild Magazine
