Inspirational Designs
Inspirational Designs
List of designs
● Jialiya
1. Mapquest - Allows users to find directions to a particular location.
2. AAA Mapbook - Conventional method of finding how to get from X to Y.
3. Google maps - Similar to mapquest, but with added google features such as google places.
4. iPhone touch interface - a highly responsive and intuitive interface.
5. Yelp Mobile - A service which helps find local businesses.
6. Kindle 3G wireless and Wifi connections - Recently, Amazon started offering free 3G without
7. subscription costs. This network is a bit slower than WiFi but still allows users to browse the internet. Kindles
also have integrated WiFi so users can switch between faster networks at any time.
● Chris
1. Fold out maps - Fold out maps are the original GPS, and are still very widely used. They allow for a full view of
the "story" of the trip and allow users to easily find other possible routes.
2. QR Code Scanners, Spotify, Evernote, Dropbox - Transfering digital information seamlessly between two
physically different devices.
3. united.com - Get from point a to point b, and integrates multiple technologies into one experience (website,
email, mobile app).
4. Google Maps Navigation for Android - Same effective functionality as a GPS, competing device platform which
has big potential for replacing normal GPS units. Takes advantage of high processing power and multitouch
input.
5. Garmin/TomTom/Magellan GPS units - Competition for built-in GPS units.
6. Lexus built-in non-touch screen - Alternative form of navigation/entertainment interaction which is arguably
better than touch. Based on a haptic feedback enabled joystick input that physically "sticks" the hardware to the
current buttons on screen using clever.
● Geoff
1. Google street view - Gives users a more realistic and understandable view than a traditional map view. Allows
users to see store fronts, street signs, etc. that aid in their navigation.
2. Primospot, ParkingMate, etc. - Mobile apps that aid with parking in cities. GPS devices bring people to the
address destination, these apps help users figure out the best place to park their car.
3. Radio traffic reports - Real time traffic updates that can be listened to while driving.
4. Portable GPS windshield mounts - Holds the GPS where the driver can look at it without having to take their
eyes off the road (or at least so that the road is in their line of vision).
5. Local business signs at interstate exits - Gives the driver an idea of shops/restaurants/hotels in the area without
the driver having to look up anything.
Chrome Omnibox
Chrome’s Omnibox (search/URL bar combo) does a great job combining the traditional two text-box model of
browsers before Chrome. It did it in such a great and intuitive way that other browsers are starting to adopt it.
Although a browser may seem distant from the use case for a GPS, the input is what is the most interesting. Inputting
addresses is often difficult and time consuming, and looking at the Chrome Omnibox serves as a direct inspiration for
shortening the time a person has to tell the computer what they want to do. As a user types, the autocomplete
dropdown automatically shows and repopulates. The category of each result is clearly shown via an unobtrusive gray
icon.
The screenshot below shows common Google searches that start with “united states,” the earth icon shows common
websites that include that key term, and the clock icon shows past websites that I have been to that include the term.
The color coding also shows which results will redirect to a website URL, and which results will redirect to a Google
search. The black text also indicates that it is a suggestion text as opposed to typed text. Overall, there is a lot of
information that the Omnibox is displaying, and it does it in a very clean way. Although we cannot incorporate this
exactly into GPS units, we can use it as an inspiration to better the text input process. GPS units already do
autocompletes for searches, but there may be a bit more that can be taken as inspiration from the Omnibox, such as
the information display management systems, as well as the concept of mashing multiple search boxes into one box
that is smart.
PrimoSpot
PrimoSpot is an mobile application that helps users find parking spots in urban locations. The app displays a regular
map with various parking spots mapped out. It provides users with the availability of parking spots, parking rates,
times when parking is not allowed, etc. A regular GPS unit will direct the user to the inputted address, but it won't tell
the user where to park the car. Unless the user is dropping some one off, picking someone up, getting valet parking,
etc., the user will have to drive around without direction looking for a parking spot. We had users tell us that tell us
that finding parking is very difficult, especially when driving in an unknown location. If we could add the functionality of
PrimoSpot to the GPS, this could simplify the navigating experience for users. Users could use the traditional GPS
function to get them to their location, and then could use the extended function of PrimoSpot to help them find
parking. However, we can take this functionality further. The idea behind an app like PrimoSpot is providing extra
information to the driver to simplify the driving experience. We could add other extra driving information, such as
traffic and road blocks, road conditions (is the road unpaved, are there major potholes, etc.) Basically, the GPS has
the opportunity to display more information than just driving directions.
The screenshot shows a parking map on PrimoSpot. The current mode being shown tells the user how long they can
park at a given parking spot. This map provides with many options, and makes it easy for the user to scan the map
quickly and determine where the best parking is.
Yelp Mobile
Yelp is a local business finder. It allows users to filter by a vague search term such as "food", or "gas" and shows all
relevant results nearby up to a distance of 5 miles. GPS units currently try to replicate this functionality with a feature
called Points of Interests. However, the points of interests is rarely used while Yelp mobile has become the defacto
standard for exploring a new area.
Yelp Mobile has several factors that make it an enjoyable experience for users:
1. Simplified interface. When users search on Yelp, there are already default settings which are pre applied. A
first time user with no experience of Yelp can achieve their goal of finding a place in 3 clicks.
2. Speed. The mobile app is highly responsive and a user doesn't have to wait for long loading screens while
their location is triangulated and nearby results are shown.
3. Relevance. When a result for a business shows up, it is rated from one to five stars along with a price range.
Users can also go look at reviews for more details.
4. Monocle view. This feature of yelp mobile overlays businesses with the camera view so that users can just
head towards locations that most interest them without having to use a traditional map.
These 4 factors can act as inspirational designs for us moving forward since current GPS units have high levels of
user frustration with speed, accuracy, and relevance.