5203 PROJECT B:
MICRO-KITCHEN
Final Project Design Document
Lindsey Wilson College Professor, Chris Quinn December 9, 2014 by Venus M. Popplewell
5203 PROJECT B:
MICRO-KITCHEN
Final Project Design Document
Index Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2 Concept and Visualization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3 Interface Solution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4 - 5 User Testing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6 Modifications and Refinement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7 - 13 Conclusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .14 1
Introduction 5203 PROJECT B: MICRO-KITCHEN
Problem New York City—it offers everything at your fingertips. But like many
metropolitan areas across the globe, those opportunities are also
making our world smaller. Increasing urbanization and population
growth are bringing us closer together—literally. The home size is
decreasing while rent and mortgages are increasing. Even so, that
modest space shouldn’t equate to a reduction in functionality, living
standards or a reflection of personal style.
Solution My solution begins with the a design of a 7 ft x 25 inch space. The
traditional kitchen layout has been condensed but still uses familiar usability so the experience is intuitive. All appliances connect to a
main “counter screen” and provides convenient function and moni-
toring without a lot of foot traffic.
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Concept and Visualization 5203 PROJECT B: MICRO-KITCHEN
Sketch: Top View
Micro-Kitchen Layout The specifications required for the micro-kitchen layout
are no more than 7 feet wide x 24 inches deep. The
kitchen needs to be fully functional with the standard appliances such as an oven, stove top, sink, microwave, re-
frigerator and dishwasher. Although there is a need for
newly designed appliances, I wanted my small appliances
Sketch: Front View
to look and feel familiar so the usability remains intuitive. However, there is a fun departure from the ordinary re-
frigeration and freezer system. The unit is installed in
four pieces with the an overhead swinging door and
three drawers that provide chill or freeze temperatures.
Mind Map I began the visualization of the main “counter screen�
with a mind map. The main screen embeds behind the
stove top. It serves as a control panel for operating the
appliances in the kitchen. The mind map represents the
flow from home screen to appliance.
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Sketch: Control Panel Mind Map
Interface Solution 5203 PROJECT B: MICRO-KITCHEN
Appliance Control Panel My first sketch for the appliance control panel at-
tempted to use the interface layout from the mind
map sketch. I found usability problems with this
sketch design. The left round buttons used too much screen real estate and confused the important safety
feature on the home idle screen.
Sketch: Control Panel based on Mind Map
Sketch: Reimagined Control Panel with fingerprint recognition
The fingerprint controls can be defined by user in the ‘settings’ option, I will not be addressing system setup. The appliance operations menu appears after the finger-
print controls have successfully allowed entry. A touch of an appliance icon takes the user to the chosen appliance
controls. The appliance operation screens have been pro-
posed in the following sketches on the next page.
Sketch: Appliance operations menu
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Interface Solution
(continued)
5203 PROJECT B: MICRO-KITCHEN
Sketch: Microwave Oven Controls (3 screens)
Sketch: Oven Controls (3 screens)
Sketch: Dishwasher, Area Lighting, Refrigerator, Stove Top and Google Search (1 screen each)
Sketch: Idle Screen while appliances are in use show status of operation
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User Testing 5203 PROJECT B: MICRO-KITCHEN
User Testing With Paper Prototype PARTICIPANTS:
Stacy, Male, 41 years old
Jonah, Male, 13 years old
Kendra, Female, 30 years old Tim, Male, 40 Years old
Process: I presented the entire sketch sequence to the
four participants. They began at the idle/home screen and worked their way through the features.
Feedback: Kendra and Tim user tested together. Jonah and Stacy tested individually. Everyone understood quickly what to do. Tim and Jonah separately said the interface needed to be an app on a tablet. Stacy, a father of two, repeatedly made note of the safety
feature, worried it may be overlooked when navigating to home. Jonah (13-years-old) was on the panel because of his unique per-
spective as a user who has never known life without interfaces, touch screens and wifi; and is highly comfortable with video games
and computer software. He was the only user who noted the need for voice activated controls and one touch options on the Google
screen. He also mentioned there should be an option to store recipes.
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Modifications and Refinement
(continued)
5203 PROJECT B: MICRO-KITCHEN
User Testing Results: Revisions were minimal but important based on the user feedback received through testing with paper
prototype. Displayed are medium-fidelity wireframes which represent user suggestions to the micro-kitchen control panel.
Idle Home Screen Interface This is the home screen interface when appliances are not in use. The fingerprint recognition was well received by users and considered important if children are in the home. The fingerprint control can have multiple users and be configured in settings.
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(continued)
Modifications and Refinement 5203 PROJECT B: MICRO-KITCHEN
Operating Screen and Appliance Engagement The appliances are first engaged on this interface. This screen will take you to the operations of each appliance represented.
Status Screen and Appliance Engagement The status screen is what appears at home/idle when an appliance is in use. To the left you can see the progress bar which communicates the amount of time remaining for respective appliance to complete cooking. The user can tap the appliance status bar and navigate back to the operation screen needed.
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Modifications and Refinement
(continued)
5203 PROJECT B: MICRO-KITCHEN
Oven Operation Interface Test users approved of these screens and found them intuitive and easy to operate.
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(continued)
Modifications and Refinement 5203 PROJECT B: MICRO-KITCHEN
Microwave Oven Operation Interface Test users suggested the addition of a keypad and a simpler interface for the defrost operation.
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Modifications and Refinement
(continued)
5203 PROJECT B: MICRO-KITCHEN
Stove Top Operation Interface The stove can be operated by tapping the desired ‘burner’. The burner glows red when engaged. The heat level is adjusted with the arrows, 1-10. The stove top interface was approved by users.
Refrigeration and Freezer Interface The refrigeration interface serves as both a status screen and an operations screen. A filter status was added by suggestion of the test users.
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(continued)
Modifications and Refinement 5203 PROJECT B: MICRO-KITCHEN
Room Lighting Interface Area lighting within the mircokitchen can be control with a tap of the area light icon. A dimmer switch was added based on user feedback.
Dishwasher Operations Interface The dishwasher can be operated from one screen. One selection on the top row and one (or none) on the bottom row. Then a tap of the start button will activate the appliance. Users approved of this screen.
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Modifications and Refinement
(continued)
5203 PROJECT B: MICRO-KITCHEN
Google Interface A recipe system is not a part of the control panel interface, however, I am including a Google screen. The screen is activated with a single knuckle tap and the search functions are voice activated making it unnecessary for the user to touch the screen with dirty, food covered hands. A Google screen opens up a world of search options.
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Conclusion 5203 PROJECT B: MICRO-KITCHEN
In Summary The cramped living space of a New York city apartment means design and layout must be efficient and usable.
A kitchen design reducing the bulk of the appliances allows for a fully opera-
tional micro-kitchen. The intuitiveness was considered and appliances re-
mained familiar to traditional use with the exception of the refrigeration system.
User testing with paper prototype was an important part of the interface
development. Four users offered modifications that were not considered in
the initial sketch design. While suggestions were few, usability was im-
proved based on user feedback.
The medium-fidelity wireframes demonstrate the embedded appliance con-
trol panel. The centrally located interface keeps all appliance operations and
monitoring in one place – limiting foot-traffic in the modest work area. The
main panel also provides the chef with continuous status monitoring and search capabilites of Google.
While not the preferred atmosphere for food preparation, most chefs would
find this micro-kitchen design provides full functionality without a reduction
of cooking standards.
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