PROJECT | tesla case study
12 min read
OVERVIEW
In this case study I wanted to challenge myself by choosing a product that I believe is at the top of the industry in design and innovation. Tesla is constantly improving and pushing the boundaries, especially in the world of user experience. I wanted to explore how I could iterate upon Tesla’s design to make something already great into something even better.
THE DETAILS
MY ROLE
Tesla Case Study Passion Project | Lead
TEAM
Rachel Zolotov | Solo
DURATION
May 2020 – Ongoing
TOOLS
Adobe XD | Photoshop | Google Forms | Excel | Coggle.it
THE CHALLENGE
Create a better experience for Tesla drivers specifically with interaction with the 15″ infotainment touchscreen system.
THE PROBLEM
While the experience with Tesla’s Infotainment system are considered futuristic and unlike any other, I noticed an opportunity to take the interaction to the next level. I believe that the HVAC system is one area that could use improvement. The heating and cooling needs to be more intuitive to avoid unnecessary user actions for proper heating and cooling.
UX METHODS
User Surveys | Personas | Competitive Analysis | Competitive Landscape | Journey Maps | Job Stories | Content Strategy Map
THE PROCESS
EMPATHIZE
conduct research
DEFINE
pain points
IDEATE
brainstorm and sketch
PROTOTYPE
low & high fidelity user interface
TEST
gather feedback
BACKGROUND
UNDERSTANDING THE TESLA BRAND
• Tesla Model S and X include a 17″ portrait mode screen as well as a second screen located behind the steering wheel
• The model 3 and Y have a 15″ landscape screen only
• In all models the infotainment system includes all of the frequently used controls, music, HVAC, navigation, camera, web, and more
• The touchscreen replaces most traditional buttons and knobs
• The infotainment systems are designed to improve over time with regular over-the-air software updates that introduce new features, functionality and performance
USER SURVEYS & RESEARCH INSIGHTS
SURVEY QUESTIONS & OBSERVATIONS
I reached out to Tesla Forums and Tesla Facebook Groups to find willing participants to take part in my study.
36 Tesla users took part in my survey and were all given a link to the same Google Form.
Through these questions, I was able to collect both qualitative and quantitative data about the users experiences with Tesla’s Infotainment system.
"How can I make these already positive experiences even better? Research & find the pain points. Nothing is perfect; everything can be iterated upon."
25 TOTAL SURVEY QUESTIONS
INTRODUCTION QUESTIONS
To begin the survey, I started by asking introduction questions such as age, gender and location to get a better idea of my participant pool.
Next, I wanted to know more about which Tesla Model(s) they owned and for how long.
KEY INSIGHTS
• 75% of the test participants were very familiar with the car as they have been owners for over 1 year and some as long as 7+ years
• the majority of the participants have a Model 3, although the Infotainment system is similar across the models this information helped me decide to focus on the Model 3 for this case study
LONG ANSWER QUESTIONS
In order for me to better understand my users, I needed to empathize with them and get to know how they feel and interact with the Infotainment system on a daily basis. I asked the following questions:
1. How do you feel when you are driving your car? Why?
2. Do you enjoy using the touchscreen? If so, why?
3. Are there any specific features on the touchscreen which make you feel happy? If so, which and why?
4. Have you ever been frustrated with the touchscreen? If so, why?
5. Are there any specific features which confuse you or make you frustrated? If so, which and why?
6. Do you find the layout easy for you to look at? Please explain why.
7. Do you find the AC & heating functionality convenient? Please explain.
8. Has there ever been a time in which you have said (in regards to the screen), “I wish it could do this,” if so, what would that be?
9. What haven’t I asked you today that you think would be valuable for me to know?
Once I had gathered all of my data, I organized all the responses for each question into groups.
Once I had all of the data in one place and organized, I began to pull out the common pain points and trends. I marked the main groups with colored dots and pulled out those responses.
I made a new chart with those groups and summarized the pain points below.
• button size and/or button placement
• common HVAC issues
• navigation issues
"It's frustrating and unsettling to tap the small buttons while driving, like to adjust the temperature or change wiper speed..." -anonymous user
KEY INSIGHTS
• the majority of Tesla drivers feel happy, relaxed and safe when they are driving their car
• when asked if users were happy with the touchscreen, most replied yes
• users appreciated the simplicity and the large map
• once users were asked to talk about a time they were frustrated with the screen, most had multiple issues to share
• many frustrations stem from the buttons being too small or hard to find
• although users enjoy the large map, many wished for multi-destination route options and Waze map integration
• issues with the HVAC system was also a frustration
In order to understand better how my participants were using the HVAC system, I also asked a few multiple choice questions specific to the daily use of the heating and cooling functions.
KEY INSIGHTS
• over 50% of participants adjust the temperature on a weekly or daily basis
• just under 50% of users are adjusting the temperature by 1-2 degrees
• over 50% of participants have had to adjust the temperature or turn off the system because it was unnecessarily heating or cooling.
DEFINE
USER PERSONAS
After gathering the data from the surveys and analyzing it, I was able to pull out the common themes, user needs and pain points.
Having this data, helped me to understand my users and empathize with them. In order to have a visual of my users goals and frustrations, I created 2 personas. These personas remind me that I am not my user, “Speedy Shane” and “Relaxed Rory” are.
DISCOVERY
LANDSCAPE & COMPETITIVE ANALYSIS
I analyzed 5 car companies with models that offer infotainment systems and 2 thermostat companies for inspiration for the HVAC system.
MAIN FINDINGS
• most infotainment systems had more customization options than Tesla
• all companies had an option for Apple CarPlay and/or Andriod Auto which would give more options for navigation
• they all had much smaller screens but much larger buttons
• many of the infotainment systems felt outdated and cluttered compared to Tesla
JOURNEY MAPS
CURRENT STATE JOURNEY MAP
In order for me to understand my users behavior before I redesign the Infotainment system, I needed to visualize the actions my users were taking on their current driving journeys.
KEY INSIGHTS
• where the pain points were along the journey and what solutions could solve them
• opportunities that I could apply to the redesign of the Infotainment system
"Job Stories can help us effectively determine the features and flows within an application based on the needs of the user."
JOB STORIES FOR RORY
• “When I am driving, I want to have access to Waze navigation, so I can have real time up-to-date accident reports.”
• “When I have the HVAC in automatic mode, I want the A/C to stop turning on unexpectedly, so I don’t have to make adjustments mid-drive.”
• “When I want to change a setting, I want to be able to see it quickly and get feedback, so I don’t have to look away from the road.”
JOB STORIES FOR SHANE
• “When I use the navigation, I want the ability to input multiple destinations, so I can easily plan my route.”
• “When using the HVAC, I want to be able to set a target temperature range, so that I don’t have to continuously change the settings.
• “When I am driving, I want to focus on the road not searching for menu items, so I can reach my destination safely.”
FROM RESEARCH TO DESIGN
CONTENT STRATEGY MAP
So far I have defined who Tesla drivers are by their motivations, pain points and goals. One way to put all of this data together was into a content strategy map. This map allowed me to take the GOALS from my personas, the USER MOTIVATIONS from the job stories, the CONTEXT from the journey maps and the COMPETITION from the competitive analysis. I also brainstormed ideas for the hierarchy of the screen re-designs.
DESIGN EXPLORATION
PAPER PROTOTYPING
Once I compiled all my research and spent some time empathizing with my users, I now have a good understanding of what pain points need to be addressed and how to apply them into a re-design of the infotainment system. To begin the process of working out the screen changes, I first sketched out the existing screen and then added my changes on top so I could move them around and see how they would interact.
NAVIGATION
NO MULTI-DESITINATION ROUTING
Multiple users expressed a need for waypoints, a common feature in several other navigation systems. Currently users rely on Waze app on their phone for this feature.
SOLUTIONS
• Added a plus symbol to the existing navigation UI, which enables drivers to easily add additional destinations to their route.
• Once a destination is added, users can quickly rearrange the order of stops and see the estimated time to reach each destination.
• Drivers can change the order of destinations at any time using the reorder button.
• X buttons next to each destination allow the user to remove the individual destinations without canceling navigation.
LACK OF WAZE INTEGRATION
Tesla users currently have no real-time incident reports and must rely on using their phone for this functionality.
SOLUTIONS
• Traffic notifications appear in the same place as other notifications when a reported accident, pothole, or traffic jam is ahead.
• Drivers confirm the problem or report that the problem has been cleared using the green check mark or the red no symbol, respectively.
• Drivers can submit a new traffic problem by clicking on the exclamation button on the bottom-left of the map.
• Along the route, tear-drop icons appear for each reported traffic condition.
HVAC
UNINTUITIVE HEATING & COOLING
Users expressed frustrations with the HVAC system, both in manual and automatic mode. In automatic mode, the system often chose an undesirable mode of operation due to the lack of flexibility in the settings. Manual mode, on the other hand, required users to frequently adjust the settings to achieve the optimal comfort level.
SOLUTIONS
• Split the heating and cooling levels into separate sections. This provides the ability to set a comfortable temperature range instead of a single temperature, alleviating the issue of the heating or cooling turning on unnecessarily, which previously forced the users to make manual adjustments.
• Allow a fan only, cool only, and heat only options. Previously, there was no intuitive way to prevent heat from turning on while leaving fan enabled.
• Show the inside temperature and color-code the temperature setting number to let the user know what mode is currently active (Heat, AC, or Fan only).
SETTINGS
READABILITY ISSUES
One common pain point was that many of the icons were too small and hard to read, especially when pressing while driving.
SOLUTIONS
• Increased the size of the icons in the pop-up menu.
• Added a white layer underneath the top row of icons on the map to increase contrast.
MISSING FEATURES
Users reported the desire to have the ability to view a list of possible voice commands and display of the current date on the top bar.
SOLUTIONS
• Added the list of voice commands to the main menu. This list can be viewed with only two taps. It can be quickly scanned and after a few times of viewing the most common ones can be remembered.
• Added date display to the top bar that can be enabled by a toggle in the display settings.
REFLECTION
I began this passion project as a challenge. It was a way for me to dig deep and come up with creative ways to make a great product even more usable and functional.
Exploring the user research was key to unlocking design solutions. I believe that these changes will enable a better user experience.
I enjoyed the challenge of making over 40 icons in Adobe XD. Having only a few screenshots of the infotainment interface, I used them as stencils to create a clickable prototype. In addition, I designed the traffic icons and the interface for multiple destination routing. Most satisfying was creating the components with animated transitions.
Every time I take a drive, I envision my improvements. I search for the traffic report icon and the plus button to add another destination. I can’t seem to unsee them — now that you have seen them, can you?
Perhaps one day these features will be integrated!
View the Medium article here
