End-to-End Mobile App
Objectives:
Design an End-to-End Mobile App
Scope:
App MVP
Contributors:
Zachary Smith – UX Designer
Duration:
10 weeks
Neuralearn. Be your own teacher, anywhere.
Neuralink initially focused on helping people with paralysis regain independence through the control of computers and mobile devices. Since it’s release, Neuralink has been successful in improving the quality of life for people with paralysis and has acted as a perfect starting point for a new kind of brain interface. As our technology develops, we will be able to increase the channels of communication with the brain, accessing more brain areas and new kinds of neural information. This technology has the potential to analyze sensory movement or brain wave activity then provide feedback that aims to optimize the user’s form and/or technique.
Powered by Neuralink, Neuralearn is a mobile app that will optimize users' training. Neuralearn’s greatest value lies in providing a real-time analysis of the user’s brain activity during training, which allows users to gain insight from their own body. The app will be connected to a neural implant known as The Link, which connects to areas of the brain that control movement with micron-scale threads.
During this phase I primarily stuck to secondary research and dug into the science behind Neuralink in order to tap into the potential of The Link.
Goals
- Identify the type of brain training users would
prefer to see within the app.
- Identify the type of user that would benefit
from Neuralearn.
- Identify key features of competitor’s BMI devices.
- Research trends in iOS health tracking apps.
Methodologies
Secondary Research – There are currently only a few approved brain machine interfaces (BMI) so this industry is still in early stages. Luckily, the health and wellness industry is rapidly growing, and at the core is wearable health tech that track health metrics. Neuralearn is similar in essence to companies like Fitbit and Google Fit such that bodily functions are recorded, interpreted, then visualized for the user; only Neuralearn offers significantly deeper insights on health metrics.
Moodboard – The official Neuralink website utilizes a visual language inspired by science textbooks, while overlaying colorful abstractions of the limitless potential of The Link. I created a moodboard to consolidate inspiration and to keep myself in line with Neuralink's branding.
Key Insights
I. Data visualization is key
- Interactive charts and graphs are commonly used to access progression of user’s health over time.
- Data visualization is dependent upon the type of health metric being measured. For example, sleeping pattern data is visualized using a timeline chart while activity monitors are visualized using a progress circle chart.
II. Wearable device users generally view mental health just as significant as physical health.
III. Mindfulness is emphasized in wellness apps
User Persona
I synthesized the data collected during research into a user persona that centered around the largest demographic using wearable health devices – College educated women ranging between 30-55 years old. By giving context and personality to the research data, I formed a clearer picture of the real problem I'm trying to solve for users.
Originally I imagined Neuralearn as a tool to essentially provide relevant in-depth feedback of the user’s brain activity and the electrical signals being sent to muscles all across the body. Feedback such as brain wave status when meditating or sleeping, mind-muscle connection while weight lifting, or even the user’s fine motor skills when performing a complex task. As mentioned before, data visualization is key and it’s essential that health metrics are easy to understand and simple to navigate. Using the implanted chip, The Link can take health metrics tracking to another level by analyzing the user’s brain wave activity and electrical signals sent from the brain to the body when performing a selected activity, which Neuralearn uses to inform the user on how they may optimize the respective activity.
Sitemaps
I created a sitemap for the Neuralearn mobile application to provide an overview of how the features are accessed across pages, and to emphasize the relative pages necessary to design a minimum viable product.
Wireframes
Following the sitemap and user persona, I designed the screens and their elements necessary to complete the user task such as the home screen with relevant health metrics, mind optimization screen, and the pre + post activity screens for optimizing meditation.
The visual language displayed on Neuralink’s website set the direction for developing Neuralearn’s UI. With this in mind, I used a rapid prototyping approach to prepare a minimum viable product that presents the full value of the product. Choosing to focus on the prototyping phase was beneficial in allowing time for experimentation with multiple approaches and ideas toward a solution. As mentioned earlier data visualization is key here, so I focused on designing a prototype with engaging interactions and centered around dynamic health tracking metrics.
Interaction Design
Following the sitemap and user persona, I designed the screens and their elements necessary to complete the user task such as the home screen with relevant health metrics, mind optimization screen, and the pre + post activity screens for optimizing meditation.
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Add to Favorite
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Optimization Complete
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Start Activity
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Post Analysis
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Loading Animation
Neuralearn Prototype
Choosing to focus on the prototyping phase was beneficial in allowing time for experimentation with multiple approaches and ideas toward a solution. As mentioned earlier data visualization is key here, so I focused on designing a prototype with engaging interactions and centered around dynamic health tracking metrics.
User Task: Optimize brain waves during meditation and learn how long you achieved producing theta waves.
Final Iterations
As seen in the prototype, I utilized the style guide to design the final iterations for relevant screens. Transposing dynamic color spectrums onto traditional textbook illustrations created a beautiful contrast and I am absolutely stoked on the outcome.
