XR : Experience is Everything!
Utilising outdated User Interface/User Experience techniques to design XR Applications is a surefire way to fail. Adopting these outdated techniques for XR Applications prompts the inevitable question, "Why XR?" Historically, the User Interface (UI) was crafted around Transactions, Data Forms/Models, or Screen Designs. When creating an application to facilitate a business process, the design primarily accommodates individuals in a specific role or persona, each completing their tasks as one person in front of a screen with a keyboard, or as a solitary user on a mobile device with a touch interface.
In recent years, even when designing screen based applications, we have progressed from User Interface Design (UI) to User Experience Design (UX).
UI & UX
UI design is centred on crafting the visual and interactive aspects of an application, including screens, buttons, icons, and toggles, focusing on the application's aesthetics and feel. Conversely, UX design is concerned with the overall user experience, encompassing user interactions with the application and their emotional response. UX designers engage in research, develop user personas, construct wireframes, and test design choices to guarantee that applications are functional, accessible, and pleasurable. Thus, although UI and UX design are interconnected, they fulfil separate functions in the realm of application development.
UX design doesn't simply replace UI design; it extends beyond it. While UI design is concerned with crafting visually attractive and interactive elements, UX design covers the full spectrum of the user experience. UX designers conduct research on user needs, develop wireframes, and test design choices to guarantee functional, accessible, and pleasurable applications. Think of UX as the overarching category that encompasses UI design.
The aim of this article is not to establish a standard for UX Design in XR Applications, although such standards are necessary. Rather, the goal is to enlighten readers on the necessity of adopting a unique approach to XR Application design to ensure success.
Many traditional screen-based applications face UX challenges today as they fail to seamlessly integrate into the user's "Natural Workflow." Across various industries, there are issues with application adoption because they are not crafted to facilitate work; rather, they are often utilized to initiate work and document its outcomes. While initiation and documentation are crucial, applications would achieve greater success and generate more valuable data if they were designed as enablers of work.
Applications as work enablers
If applications were crafted to facilitate work, serving as indispensable tools that guarantee well-executed tasks, or act as a beacon of guidance for completing tasks with greater efficiency, safety, and quality, their widespread adoption would likely be more readily attained.
UX design for screen-based applications and XR applications have some key differences. We must consider the following key factors:
Key Factors in UX Design for Screen-Based versus XR Applications
Remember that both types of UX design aim to create seamless, intuitive, and good experiences, but the context and user expectations differ significantly.
When developing XR applications, delivering context is crucial for a successful UX. As discussed in my previous blog post, delivering data in context is a key driver for XR Applications. With XR Applications we can also bring context to application functions.
In applications such as SAP, the ability to open a work order on a screen based client involves navigating to the right screen and performing a search on a table of open work orders, whilst the ability to open a work order in an XR Application can be a button anchored to the real world object to which the work order applies, very little navigation and searching required.
The provision of contextually relevant content is a key consideration when developing XR Applications. The developer must understand the user’s environment, actions, and preferences and provide relevant content in context. By content we don’t just mean data, application functions can be provided in context as well.
In summary, when you develop an application for a screen, the screen serves as your canvas. On the other hand, in the realm of XR application development, your canvas expands to encompass the entire world, be it virtual, physical, or a hybrid of both. By taking these elements into account during the design phase of XR applications, they inherently adopt a Natural Workflow, transforming the application into an Experience. Let's examine a few potential, simple examples:
Example 1 : Delivering Application Functions in Context
Envision a worker at a manufacturing plant entering the Permit office and being automatically offered the options to either raise a new permit or check the status of an existing one pertinent to his location or assigned task. There's no need for him to start an application, log in, navigate to the permit status page, search for the relevant permit, and review its status before beginning a conversation; all this information is preemptively provided by the context of who he is, where he is and the work assigned.
Example 2 : The challenge of selecting the right application or recalling where data is stored may soon become a thing of the past.
Envision approaching a compressor in an oil refinery and instantly viewing associated data such as engineering details, IoT data, and documentation. Additionally, having the capability to access operating procedures and select the appropriate one for the current issue. Imagine being seamlessly presented with ERP application functions to issue a notification, request a permit, or access controls to operate the compressor directly.
Example 3 : An XR Experience could transform Operator Rounds.
A newly hired operator at an oil refinery can be guided to specific points on the site for daily inspections, steering clear of areas where other activities could pose safety risks upon entry. At each inspection point, they would access comprehensive step-by-step instructions and necessary data for tasks at these critical locations. Additionally, the system could provide an automated option to initiate a collaborative call with subject matter experts relevant to the equipment found along their route.
Example 4 : A new experience that enables better management of complex tasks.
A supervisor overseeing a multi-disciplinary maintenance task, involving various personnel across a complex site, could gain fresh perspectives on the placement of essential resources and the advancements in each phase of the intricate process. This would enable them to offer more effective guidance and have a more detailed understanding of the work's influence on production, safety, and other critical site operations. Enhanced supervisory insights and visualisations to enhance coordination and conduct more thorough impact assessments that will enhance both the efficiency and safety of complex procedures.
A user centric, UX approach where data and application capabilities are presented to the user in context of the physical or virtual world around them and in context of the work that is assigned to them will help in building XR experiences that naturally support the user’s Ways of Working (WoW) and naturally align to the business processes that they execute or are involved in. To build these experiences Day in the Life Of (DiLO) studies are a necessity to understand WoW, the environment in which work is done, and the practical challenges people face and how they over come them. However there are two additional challenges that need to be considered:
Not everything goes to plan! In the execution of any workflow, unexpected events may arise that can alter or interrupt its course. It's crucial in Business Analysis to understand and anticipate such potential events, or at least their types, to ensure that the resulting experience is designed to accommodate or respond to these events appropriately. This consideration is significant in the UX design of screen-based applications, but it becomes even more imperative in the design of XR experiences due to their real-time nature. These events can range from simple, such as receiving an unrelated call, to complex, like an unexpected event nearby the workspace that could affect the ongoing XR experience or workflow.
Information or Functional Overload. In my previous blog post, "XR Delivering Data in Context", I explored the challenge of information overload and how context and generative AI could help mitigate this issue. These risks and mitigation strategies are also relevant when designing XR experiences that support natural workflows. Consider the multitude of tasks you can perform on your laptop at work. If all options were presented simultaneously, it would be overwhelming, akin to not seeing the wood for the trees! Context, such as location, assigned work, or the priority/relevance of events—must be employed to filter the data and application capabilities presented to the user, anchored to real-world elements. Nonetheless, users should have the facilities to initiate any capability they require, based on their own intentions and preferred work methods, independent of context, driven solely by their initiative.
Adopting a mindset that embraces UX from a holistic standpoint, taking into account the context and external events, will empower us to craft experiences that not only maximise business results but also provide an engaging environment. This fosters a genuine sense of engagement, enhances job satisfaction, and helps individuals reach their objectives.
Extended Reality (XR) has the potential to revolutionise our work methods, enhance collaboration, and enable more effective interaction with our work environments.
Please note that the opinions specified here are my own and may not reflect the views of my employer.