MyGug
Project duration - 5 Weeks
My Role - User research, Information Architecture, Interaction Design, and Visual Design.
Methods - User research, Needs analysis, Persona, User journey, Ideation, Mind map, Wireframe, Prototype, Visual design, User testing.
Tools - Miro, Paper, Pencil, Adobe XD, and Photoshop.
Prototype Link - https://xd.adobe.com/view/42e757c4-56bb-426a-9b38-54ee0e47c474-17b4/?fullscreen
Design Brief - Design a mobile application to control MyGug, which is an anaerobic digester that produces biogas.
Background - Biogas is a methane gas produced by a biological process called an anaerobic digester (AD). Organic food waste is used to feed AD to produce biogas.
By using an anaerobic digestor cost of transporting food waste to landfills will be eliminated. It will help to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. By using biogas, one can improve their carbon footprint.
88
OR
million tonnes
173
kg per person
Food wasted per year in Europe
What the client thinks of MyGug- The food waste can
be converted into fuel by fermenting it and converting
it to biogas instead of discarding it. A renewable
energy source - Biogas is considered a fossil fuel
alternative by the EU. It is a cost-effective solution.
MyGug's primary objective is to reduce food waste's
carbon footprint. Studies completed by the European
Union shows that most food waste generated in
the 28 Member States is generated by households.
19% by Food processing
53% by Household
12% by Food service
5% Wholesale
11% by Primary production
The Design Process - In order to create a mobile application that meets user needs, the following design process was followed.
Understand
Define
Ideate
Design
During the understanding phase, I interviewed stakeholders to gain a deeper understanding of the product. The parameters for the interviews are What and How questions. What problems do you think users will face while using the product? In what ways will success be measured? What problems do you see this project solving? How does this project solve your problems? How will this benefit users?
A point to remember There is currently no mobile application for operating MyGug. MyGug is also not available to the public yet; it is in a production-ready state. In other words, stakeholders are the only ones who use MyGug every day.
Competitors of MyGug - The main competitor of MyGug in Europe is Homebiogas. I researched them and found out they don't have any mobile applications, and they are in the process of developing the app.
During the define stage, based on research and interviews with stakeholders I came up with a persona and customer journey map.
Analyzing the customer journey from beginning to end is vital to uncover hidden opportunities. A typical interaction with mygug involves cooking, cleaning, or emptying fertilizer bags.
My brainstorming session with stakeholders led to a potential feature list for a mobile app.
1. Temperature
2. Gas production
3. Gas usage
4. Food dosed
5. Methane %
6. Balance tank level
Reminders:
1. Moisture trap
2. Sludge removal
3. Dosing pump servicing
4. Other servicing
Alarms:
1. Gas bag full
2. Gas bag empty
3. Balance tank full
4. Balance tank empty
Achievements:
1. Gas production milestones
2. CO2 reduction milestones
3. Waste treated milestones
4. Ability to tweet or share these milestones
MyGug model details:
1. Unit size
2. Dose rates
3. Year of manufacture
Boost / Hibernate Functionality
1. Boost dose when more gas is needed
2. Reduce dose rate when going on holidays when gas is full
To understand how the functions of the app are related, I drew a mind map with the possible features.
As a result, I designed the following information architecture.
In the ideation phase, While planning the interface, I sketched several possible sketches, choosing one that would serve the functionality best. To organize the content within the app, I created a wireframe; I primarily focused upon the importance and frequency of each task.
In the design stage, based on the feedback from the low-fi prototype, I created a high-fidelity prototype for MyGug. According to stakeholders, the application should be fun. To create a sense of fun while using the app, I added animation.
Colors -
Fonts -
Thanks for taking the time to read this.