AI 911 Operator Drone Interface for the Future Sponsored by Socian Tech
AI 911 Operator Drone Interface for the Future Sponsored by Socian Tech
AI 911 Operator Drone Interface for the Future Sponsored by Socian Tech
About The Project
Team Size
7
Team Size
7
Sponsored by
Socian Tech
Sponsored by
Socian Tech
Project Length
4 months
Project Length
4 months
Primary User
911 Operators
Primary User
911 Operators
911 call centers across the country are key in facilitating a working law enforcement system throughout the country. The technology used by 911 operators to log and obtain information during calls is outdated and clunky. Additionally, hysteria from callers may lead to supplying the dispatcher with inaccurate information.
Working alongside Socian Technologies the team aims to:
Use drone and AI technology to survey the site ahead of time which will allow dispatchers and responders to gather and relay crucial information quickly and effectively.
Reimagine how new 911 operator software can display information to provide a more fluid experience and allow responders to more effectively respond to the situation.
Our ultimate goal is to provide 911 operators with a clean and futuristic GUI that communicates the information a drone picks up at a scene.
911 call centers across the country are key in facilitating a working law enforcement system throughout the country. The technology used by 911 operators to log and obtain information during calls is outdated and clunky. Additionally, hysteria from callers may lead to supplying the dispatcher with inaccurate information.
Working alongside Socian Technologies the team aims to:
Use drone and AI technology to survey the site ahead of time which will allow dispatchers and responders to gather and relay crucial information quickly and effectively.
Reimagine how new 911 operator software can display information to provide a more fluid experience and allow responders to more effectively respond to the situation.
Our ultimate goal is to provide 911 operators with a clean and futuristic GUI that communicates the information a drone picks up at a scene.
Empathize
Empathize
Learning About the Operator Experience
What is a 911 Operator's Current Workflow?
Methods
Secondary Research | User Interviews | Contextual Inquiry
Output
User Persona | User Journey Flow
Our team lacked the understanding of a 911 operator’s workflow.
To learn about the operator experience, it was crucial for our team to understand how 911 operators interact with their current software, what their wants, needs, and pain points are during emergency situations, and what information needs to be displayed to them.
Our team lacked the understanding of a 911 operator’s workflow.
To learn about the operator experience, it was crucial for our team to understand how 911 operators interact with their current software, what their wants, needs, and pain points are during emergency situations, and what information needs to be displayed to them.
Stakeholder Overview
911 Operators & Dispatchers
Primary User
Need to quickly and efficiently take relevant information about an incident/crime scene from the drones and communicate it to first responders with the capacity to manage multiple calls at once.
911 Operators & Dispatchers
Primary User
Need to quickly and efficiently take relevant information about an incident/crime scene from the drones and communicate it to first responders with the capacity to manage multiple calls at once.
911 Operators & Dispatchers
Primary User
Need to quickly and efficiently take relevant information about an incident/crime scene from the drones and communicate it to first responders with the capacity to manage multiple calls at once.
First Responders
May have access to the drone software but are limited to one monitor. They will primarily be receiving information from responders and dispatchers and operators.
First Responders
May have access to the drone software but are limited to one monitor. They will primarily be receiving information from responders and dispatchers and operators.
First Responders
May have access to the drone software but are limited to one monitor. They will primarily be receiving information from responders and dispatchers and operators.
911 Callers
The safety and well-being of callers will be greatly impacted by how quickly first responders are able to obtain and properly utilize drone information from the scene.
911 Callers
The safety and well-being of callers will be greatly impacted by how quickly first responders are able to obtain and properly utilize drone information from the scene.
911 Callers
The safety and well-being of callers will be greatly impacted by how quickly first responders are able to obtain and properly utilize drone information from the scene.
Socian Tech
An interface that fulfills the needs of the Socian Tech company in order to ensure their customers are satisfied with their product.
Socian Tech
An interface that fulfills the needs of the Socian Tech company in order to ensure their customers are satisfied with their product.
Socian Tech
An interface that fulfills the needs of the Socian Tech company in order to ensure their customers are satisfied with their product.
911 Operator Current Interactions and Needs
"Location is the most important [piece of information during a 911 call] because we might not know the situation, but if we have the location, we are able to send someone." - 911 Operator
"Location is the most important [piece of information during a 911 call] because we might not know the situation, but if we have the location, we are able to send someone." - 911 Operator
We also found that 911 operators use separate programs for each tool they use while on a call. Programs include the radio system, phone system, national database portal, dispatching calls, and Google, to name a few. The different programs used (around 8 for the Sheboygan Police Department) aren’t synced together, meaning they are their own separate software that has to be individually loaded. This creates a pain point for 911 operators as the programs all have their own unique interfaces and interactions.
At the completion of our interview, we learned that although the current software interfaces 911 operators use are outdated and not visually up to date, they are what is familiar. Our interviewees are used to the programs they are using and have little to no trouble navigating them.
We also found that 911 operators use separate programs for each tool they use while on a call. Programs include the radio system, phone system, national database portal, dispatching calls, and Google, to name a few. The different programs used (around 8 for the Sheboygan Police Department) aren’t synced together, meaning they are their own separate software that has to be individually loaded. This creates a pain point for 911 operators as the programs all have their own unique interfaces and interactions.
At the completion of our interview, we learned that although the current software interfaces 911 operators use are outdated and not visually up to date, they are what is familiar. Our interviewees are used to the programs they are using and have little to no trouble navigating them.
Figure 1 - 911 Operator Persona Displaying our Found Data (Interviews, Visiting 911 Operating Station, Reddit, YouTube).
Figure 1 - 911 Operator Persona Displaying our Found Data (Interviews, Visiting 911 Operating Station, Reddit, YouTube).
Exploring the 911 Call Lifecycle
To learn more about our users' current experience, we conducted a contextual inquiry at the Lafayette Indiana Police Department. Two team members toured the police department, including the 911 operator call room where we were able to conduct short interviews with these operators.
The operators at the Lafayette Police Department walked us through their responses to a 911 call for help. This gave us a deeper understanding of a 911 call lifecycle by showing us what applications are used, what their workstations look like, and how they update officers on a developing scene.
We also got a look at the Lafayette Police’s drone team’s resources. This gave us a view of how police departments currently handle drone technology.
Figure 4 - 911 Call Lifecycle Journey
Figure 4 - 911 Call Lifecycle Journey
Figure 3 - Lafayette Current Police Drone
Figure 3 - Lafayette Current Police Drone
Figure 4 - CAD System used by the Lafayette Police Department
Figure 4 - CAD System used by the Lafayette Police Department
Conceptualize
Conceptualize
Creating Initial Design Concepts
How Will Our Design Function?
Methods
User Story | Critical User Journey's | Usability & Concept Testing | UI Comparative Analysis
Output
Wireframe Creation | Iterated Most Viable Product
Our team drafted tons of concepts in which we iterated and narrowed down over time, from talking to our primary users. Before we began our design concepts we wanted to ensure that all of our team members were on the same page on how the Socian Drone system works.
The Socian Edge Drone System
Socian Technologies is a startup company that uses drones and AI technology to promote safer police encounters.
Socian Technologies is a startup company that uses drones and AI technology to promote safer police encounters.
Socian Provides its drones and AI solution, EDGE system, to law enforcement agencies. With the system in place, 911 operators can have access to live aerial drone footage of a scene. In turn, they are able to draw accurate information about a scene, which may not otherwise be available through a caller's recollection. With this system in place, they are also able to communicate live details of a scene to first responders.
Socian Provides its drones and AI solution, EDGE system, to law enforcement agencies. With the system in place, 911 operators can have access to live aerial drone footage of a scene. In turn, they are able to draw accurate information about a scene, which may not otherwise be available through a caller's recollection. With this system in place, they are also able to communicate live details of a scene to first responders.
Socian Provides its drones and AI solution, EDGE system, to law enforcement agencies. With the system in place, 911 operators can have access to live aerial drone footage of a scene. In turn, they are able to draw accurate information about a scene, which may not otherwise be available through a caller's recollection. With this system in place, they are also able to communicate live details of a scene to first responders.
After multiple meetings with Mark, our sponsor, throughout the semester he informed us of all features the final interface must display.
We also crafted three critical user journey's that our designs must include:
As a user, I can identify and click on a camera of high urgency / easily switch which camera I am viewing.
As a user, I can quickly and clearly identify different suspects / people at the scene.
As a user, I can identify and interpret information on the map.
After multiple meetings with Mark, our sponsor, throughout the semester he informed us of all features the final interface must display.
We also crafted three critical user journey's that our designs must include:
As a user, I can identify and click on a camera of high urgency / easily switch which camera I am viewing.
As a user, I can quickly and clearly identify different suspects / people at the scene.
As a user, I can identify and interpret information on the map.
We crafted a user journey flow of how the EDGE system will work, to ensure all of our team members were on the same page regarding our design.
Figure 5 - EDGE Drone System Journey Flow
Figure 5 - EDGE Drone System Journey Flow
Before beginning our designs, we found inspiration popular drone, police, and video game user interfaces. Our sponsor specifically stated he wanted our design to look futuristic, like something that "came out of Marvel."
Design, Test, Iterate, Repeat
We then began drafting design for our interface leveraging a crawl, walk, run method. During this time we stayed in contact with 911 operators and Mark, our sponsor, to gain critical feedback on how our design could be improved.
Stage 1:
Figure 6 - Two highlighted designs from our first design drafts.
Figure 6 - Two highlighted designs from our first design drafts.
Stage 2:
Figure 7 - Two highlighted designs from our second design drafts.
Figure 7 - Two highlighted designs from our second design drafts.
Stage 3:
Figure 8 - Two highlighted designs from our third design drafts.
Figure 8 - Two highlighted designs from our third design drafts.
Stage 4:
Figure 9 - Two highlighted designs from our fourth design drafts.
Figure 9 - Two highlighted designs from our fourth design drafts.
Final Design
Final Design
Most Viable Product
What is our Final Design?
Methods
High Fi Design
Output
Most Viable Product
After narrowing our design to two of many iterations, we needed to decide on one design. To do this we attempted to combine our two designs into one final design iteration.
Critical User Journey (CUJs)
As a user, I can identify and click on a camera of high urgency / easily switch which camera I am viewing.
As a user, I can identify and click on a camera of high urgency / easily switch which camera I am viewing.
The user can select one of the six cameras to focus on (center of screen). New activity of urgency is highlighted on the correlating camera via a red outline and exclamation mark.
The user can select one of the six cameras to focus on (center of screen). New activity of urgency is highlighted on the correlating camera via a red outline and exclamation mark.
As a user, I can quickly and clearly identify different suspects / people at the scene.
The user can select see highlighted suspects on the map (red box around suspects). The user can also view suspects as well as other individuals via the detection tab on the left side of the interface.
The user can select see highlighted suspects on the map (red box around suspects). The user can also view suspects as well as other individuals via the detection tab on the left side of the interface.
As a user, I can identify and interpret information on the map.
The user can view the map at all times while viewing the interface on the lower right of the screen. If the user is more interested in the map, they can expand the map by selecting the map in the lower right of the screen.
The user can view the map at all times while viewing the interface on the lower right of the screen. If the user is more interested in the map, they can expand the map by selecting the map in the lower right of the screen.
Conclusion
Conclusion
©2024 by Jack Myers
Projects
©2024 by Jack Myers
Projects
The Value
Socian Technologies lacked an interface to go with their Drone EDGE design concept. After the completion of this design concept interface, they are now able to show their product in full to potential investors and customers.
Show how operators will interact with the interface
Display key information the EDGE system can communicate to operators
Provide Socian Tech with an interface concept that they can continue to iterate and improve over time
Socian Technologies lacked an interface to go with their Drone EDGE design concept. After the completion of this design concept interface, they are now able to show their product in full to potential investors and customers.
Show how operators will interact with the interface
Display key information the EDGE system can communicate to operators
Provide Socian Tech with an interface concept that they can continue to iterate and improve over time
Reflection
I featured this project in my portfolio as it was my favorite experience studio project (5 total) in which I was apart of. I enjoyed the design space and research, like visiting 911 operating rooms and seeing a side of design that I had never thought about before. I also enjoyed how I was designing something for the future, leveraging new technologies like artificial intelligence and drone technology. This design was considered safety critical, meaning that peoples lives are at stake through our design, which made the final design very fulfilling to iterate and create.
One area I would have improved within this project was the competition that formed within our team. As each team member were drafting multiple iterations throughout the duration of this project, competition was created on who could create the best design. As a team we had a meeting to reflect that we are in this project together and that we are working as a team to create a final design. This taught me to not get so caught up on one design, as it can and will change over time as new information becomes available.
I will remember this project through the rest of my user experience design career.
I featured this project in my portfolio as it was my favorite experience studio project (5 total) in which I was apart of. I enjoyed the design space and research, like visiting 911 operating rooms and seeing a side of design that I had never thought about before. I also enjoyed how I was designing something for the future, leveraging new technologies like artificial intelligence and drone technology. This design was considered safety critical, meaning that peoples lives are at stake through our design, which made the final design very fulfilling to iterate and create.
One area I would have improved within this project was the competition that formed within our team. As each team member were drafting multiple iterations throughout the duration of this project, competition was created on who could create the best design. As a team we had a meeting to reflect that we are in this project together and that we are working as a team to create a final design. This taught me to not get so caught up on one design, as it can and will change over time as new information becomes available.
I will remember this project through the rest of my user experience design career.
©2024 by Jack Myers
Projects
©2024 by Jack Myers
Projects