Improving the usability and learnability of a home electric appliance with a long-term usability study

Abstract

Recent home electric appliances have many new features and their user interfaces are renewed often. The new functions may allow users to do many new things, but some people may struggle with getting used to new user interfaces. We think that people of all ages, backgrounds and abilities should be able to receive the benefits of advanced technologies. One of the ways to get a wide range of people to discover and get used to new features easily is to design easy-to-use and learn products. The primary objective of this research is to study how older adults learn a new user interface in their daily lives and find out factors that can make their learning process easier. In this research, a total of 24 users used a new remote controller for 28 days in their homes. We found that there was a pattern in learning a new user interface and that users looked for text information and prompt feedbacks right after obtaining the new product. Providing necessary support at appropriate times might be useful to make the learning process easier as well as to keep users motivated for learning.

Keywords:

• inclusive society
• universal design
• home appliances
• long-term usability study

Acknowledgements

The research was supported by TOTO Ltd. and the authors are grateful to the company members who contributed to our study and participants who provided valuable opinions by filling in the forms, sending e-mails and via telephone calls.