Creating immersive experiences for virtual reality (VR) presents new design opportunities and challenges that do not appear when creating experiences on a screen. Creating prototypes and exploring concepts in VR is today limited to professionals with previous knowledge in 3D application development, and testing 3D experiences requires the usage of an Head-Mounted Display (HMD), which forces professionals to switch medium from the computer to an HMD. With new advances in this field, there have to be new solutions to these challenges. The goal of this thesis is to explore how VR technology can be utilized in the experience design process for VR. This is achieved through a literature study and conducting expert interviews, followed by a hardware evaluation of different HMDs and concept creation using rapid prototyping. From the interviews, a number of issues could be identified that correlates with the research from the literature study. Based on these findings, two phases were identified as suitable for further improvements; Concept prototyping and testing/tweaking of a created experience. Lo-fi and hi-fi prototypes of a virtual design tool were developed for HTC Vive and Google Daydream, which were selected based on the hardware evaluation. The prototypes are designed and developed, then tested using a Wizard of Oz approach. The purpose of the prototypes is to solve some of the issues when designing immersive experiences for HMDs in the suitable experience design phases that were identified by analyzing the interview results. An interactive testing suite for HTC Vive was developed for testing and evaluation of the final prototype, to verify the validity of the concept. Using Virtual Reality as a medium for designing virtual experiences is a promising way of solving current issues within this technological field that are identified in this thesis. Tools for object creation and manipulation will aid professionals when exploring new concepts as well as editing and testing existing immersive experiences. Furthermore, using a Wizard of Oz approach to test VR prototypes significantly improves the prototype quality without compromising the user experience in this medium.

<div>Older adults aged 60+ represent the fastest growing segment of the US population, yet they are rarely seen as users of technology. Members of this age cohort often struggle with the material and conceptual requirements of computing—such as clicking small targets or remembering usernames and passwords for account logins—leading them to adopt technologies like smartphones and social media at much lower rates than their younger counterparts. Digital devices and interfaces are not typically designed with older adult users in mind, even though all users are always aging, and the “silver economy” represents a powerful, and often untapped, market for technological innovations. The little existing research in this area often conflates age with disability, framing elders according to a deficit model. While it is certainly important to consider the impacts that aging bodies have on technology use, they are not the sole factor shaping usage for older age cohorts. Moreover, if we reduce elder users to their “impairments,” we risk stereotyping them in ways that curtail design possibilities, as well as these users’ possibilities for full participation in digital life. For this reason, studies of technology users aged 60+ and their communities are necessary to shed light on the multifaceted needs of older age cohorts, and the interventions into technology design, documentation, and education that can help them reach their digital goals. </div><div><br></div><div>To build an understanding of the unique technology use of a group of the oldest Americans (aged 75+), as well as to assess their needs and desires for digital engagement, I conducted interviews and observations with computer users in a senior living community. Data collection revealed a great diversity of computing purposes and activities, ranging from social functions such as email and messaging, to managing finance and medicine, to art and design applications, and beyond. Moreover, participants’ accounts of how and where they developed their computing skills shed light on their motivations for engaging with technology, as well as their fears of technology’s intrusiveness. Analysis of participants’ performance on a series of digital tasks yielded insights into physical and cognitive factors, as well as a clear divide in forms of knowledge and mental models that older adults draw upon when attempting to engage with technology. To conclude, I provide recommendations for technology design and education, as well as future research to account for age as a factor mediating user experience.</div>

Im naturwissenschaftlichen Unterricht werden Daten z.B. in Erkenntnisgewinnungsprozessen eingesetzt und somit ist hier auch die Evaluation von Daten wichtig. Es können Daten aus erster und zweiter Hand unterschieden werden, wobei die Unterscheidung auf Basis des Autoren und der Beteiligung an der Datenerhebung geschieht. Im Physikunterricht werden Schüler*innen mit Daten aus unterschiedlichen Quellen konfrontiert. Es wird angenommen, dass die Evaluation von Daten durch Schüler*innen als Glaubwürdigkeitsbewertung dieser Daten verstanden werden kann. Ergänzend zur Theorie wurde in einer Studie untersucht, welche Kriterien Schüler*innen bei der Evaluation unterschiedlicher Datensätze verwenden, die sich nur durch den Autor unterschieden. Dafür wurden 17 Interviews mit Schüler*innen durchgeführt (13-16 Jahre). Eine qualitative Inhaltsanalyse führte zu einem Codesystem mit vier Codes und diversen Subcodes. Die Codes bezogen sich auf die Themen Eigenschaften des Experiments, Eigenschaften von Autoren, Eigenschaften der Daten und Prüfen/Abgleichen. Unterschiede in der Verwendung der Kriterien für verschiedene Datentypen, wurden in einer zweiten Studie überprüft. Dazu wurden 42 Interviews mit schüler*innen (14-16 Jahre) durchgeführt. Alle Probanden erzeugten selbstständig physikalische Daten und wählten Hypothesen über den Ausgang des Experiments aus. Im Anschluss wurden sie mit einem von drei verschiedenen Datensätzen konfrontiert: ihren eigenen Daten, den Daten eines anderen Schülers oder Daten eines Lehrers. Das Codesystem war die Grundlage einer quantitativen Inhaltsanalyse dieser Interviews. Diese erlaubte es, Unterschiede zwischen den Versuchsgruppen zu finden. Es ergaben sich keine Unterschiede für das Hypothesenwechselverhalten, die Verwendung von Kriterien für die Glaubwürdigkeitsbewertung oder das Rating der Wichtigkeit der Codes zwischen den Versuchsgruppen. Folgerungen für den Unterricht und die Unterscheidung der Datentypen werden erläutert. / In science education data is used in the process of gaining knowledge and it is therefore important to evaluate the data. First- and second-hand-data can be differentiated, whereby the distinction is based on the authorship and the involvement in the data acquisition. In physics education students are regularly confronted with data from different sources. It is assumed that the evaluation of data by students can be understood as the evaluation of the datas credibility. To complement a theoretical model, an interview study was conducted to find out which criteria for the evaluation of the credibility of data are used by students when evaluating different types of data. 17 students (13-16 years) were interviewed. A qualitative content analysis yielded a systems of four different codes and several subcodes. These codes where representations of statements that dealt with properties of the experiment, properties of the author, properties of the data, and testing and comparing. A second study was conducted to test if there are differences in the use of those criteria when students are confronted with different types of data. 42 Interviews with students (14-16 years) were conducted. All subjects acquired a set of first-hand data in an experiment and where asked to choose between 3 hypotheses about the outcome. Afterwards they were confronted with three different sets of data: their own data, another student's set of data, and a teacher's set of data. The system of codes from the previous study was used as the basis for a quantitative content analyses of these interviews. This analysis made it possible to find differences between the experimental groups. No differences were found for the change of the hypothesis, the use of criteria for the evaluation of credibility or the rating of importance of the codes. Implications for education and the differentiation of types of data are discussed.

It was analyzed if instructions on a head-worn Augmented Reality display (AR-HWD) are better for manual industrial assembly tasks than instructions on a stationary screen. A prototype was built which consisted of virtual instruction screens for two example assembly tasks. In a comparison study participants performed the tasks with instructions through an AR-HWD and alternatively through a stationary screen. Questionnaires, interviews and observation notes were used to evaluate the task performances and the user experience. The study revealed that the users were excited and enjoyed trying the technology. The perceived usefulness at the current state was diverse, but the users saw a huge potential in AR-HWDs for the future. The task accuracy with instructions on the AR-HWD was equally good as with instructions on the screen. AR-HWDs are found to be a better approach than a stationary screen, but technological limitations need to be overcome and workers need to train using the new technology to make its application efficient.

The electric vehicle industry is under rapid development and the fleet of chargeable cars in society is increasing fast. As a result, a high demand for public chargers has emerged. Simultaneous to the expansion of the electric vehicle fleet and charging infrastructure the power grid is occasionally highly strained. Additionally, factors like cities expanding and the digitization of society also have a large effect on the power grid. This master's thesis investigates the characteristics of electric vehicle users and presents a prototype of an information display for electric vehicle charging stations. The design is is based on the user studies and founded in theory about sustainable user behaviour with the goal of encouraging behaviours that minimize the strain on the local power grid of Uppsala. It concerns the research topic of how to design for sustainable behaviour and address research questions of how to design electric vehicle charging station information to communicate multiple charging alternatives to a broad variety of users. The work reveals that electric vehicle users suffer from the charging infrastructure being underdeveloped, feel frustration towards payment solutions available and lack information regarding electric vehicle use. Also, electric vehicle user's common passion for tech and environmental consciousness are revealed in the study. These facts are used as the foundation for the mobile application design prototype suggested.

Despite the many technological advancements made in the music industry in recent years, there is still not a single widely adopted platform for musicians to play music together online. In 2020, the Covid-19 pandemic and the subsequent quarantine pushed the need for such a platform into the spotlight. As a response, the music company Elk Audio launched their new product: Aloha. Aloha is a combined hardware and web application that allows musicians to play music in real-time over the Internet. Aloha is currently only intended for musicians who already know each other to connect and play. However, Elk's ambition is to make it the go-to platform for musicians to expand their network.  The purpose of this Master's Thesis is to design the next version of the web application of Aloha, focusing on social interactions. This Master's Thesis investigates musicians' current social and musical behaviour, and their opinions of how this can be done online. Qualitative data was collected by performing semi-structured interviews with musicians of different backgrounds. The study revealed many different goals and needs of potential users of Aloha. Furthermore, we found several determining factors which enable and encourage musicians to form new musical relationships online. The final suggested design is based on the analysed data and founded in theory regarding persuasive and recommending system design, among others. / Trots de tekniska framstegen som gjorts inom musikindustrin de senaste åren, finns det fortfarande inte ett enda allmänt accepterat alternativ för musiker att spela musik tillsammans online. Covid-19 pandemin och den åtföljande karantänten förde behovet för en sådan plattform till rampljuset. I början av år 2020 insåg musikföretaget Elk Audio att de kunde fylla denna lucka med sin nya produkt: Aloha. Aloha är en kombinerad hårdvara och webbapplikation som möjliggör musiker att spela musik i realtid över Internet. Aloha är för närvarande endast avsedd för musiker som redan känner varandra. Elks ambition är dock att göra Aloha till en plattform för musiker där de kan utöka sitt musikaliska nätverk. Syftet med detta examensarbete är att utforma nästa version av Alohas webbapplikation, med fokus på sociala interaktioner. Detta examensarbete undersöker musikers nuvarande sociala och musikaliska beteenden och deras åsikter om musikaliska interaktioner online. Kvalitativa data samlades in genom att utföra halvstrukturerade intervjuer med musiker från olika bakgrunder. Studien avslöjade de många olika målen och behoven hos potentiella användare av Aloha. Dessutom fann vi flera avgörande faktorer som möjliggör och uppmuntrar musiker att skapa och underhålla nya musikrelationer online. Den slutliga föreslagna designen baseras på det analyserade datat och grundas i teori om design av rekommendationssystem, m. fl..

This thesis work has been the result of a five-year Industrial Design Engineering education at Luleå University of Technology. The project has investigated the possibilities of teleoperating forest machines using a human-centered design approach. The work has been conducted for Skogforsk, which is the Swedish institute for forestry. The project’s objective was to present ideas on how future teleoperation can improve the work as a forwarder operator. The aim was to identify the forwarder operators’ specific needs and explore how the development of a teleoperated workstation can address those needs. The project has been carried out using three phases; Inspiration, Ideation, and Impleentation. During the first phase, the project investigated how the work is carried out today and what needs a forwarder operator has. The operators’ needs can be summarised in three different areas; transporting the machine, loading and unloading, and planning. Two kinds of operators can be seen today, the ones who are motivated primarily by working in the forest, and the ones who are motivated by the production and self-competitiveness. During the Inspiration phase, the project also tested what problems exist today with operating a forwarder using teleoperation with the system implemented in the Truedsson Forestry Lab in Uppsala. It was identified that screens are an essential complement to using head-mounted displays such as VR-goggles while not offering the same amount of precision and presence in work as the goggles. It was also identified that the operators did not feel that the machine being an extension of them due to lost feedback of motion and sound. Perceived and actual control of the machine differed, and the operators did not identify the machines’ behavior during transportation. Apart from these issues, the current view did not offer a complete overview of the area around the machine. Neither did it offer visuals on the sides of the machine, and the logs sortings. Along with the identified issues, opportunities for improvement guided the explorational work through creative workshops to solutions presented and tested in either an operational test or in a video test. The ideas included the implementation of sound focusing on the gripper, which was appreciated by the operators. The precision using screens was improved by projecting the gripper’s position on the ground plane. For control of the transportation work, the project proposed solutions for indicators on tilt, roll, and the wheels of the machine. Nevertheless, it proposed an idea of projected tracks improving the work to become more proactive by highlighting obstacles and the near term position of the machine. The project also tested overview improving ideas such as drone views, and a 360 degrees view which may have potential in the future teleoperation work. Several other ideas were tested and can be seen in the Results chapter. For future work, the project proposes more tests of various ideas in a more reality-based setting. The project also proposes future work focusing on defining the future user better. For the individual operators reading this thesis work, I hope this paper can show the potentials of teleoperation, as well as prove that the development is aware of both the difficulties and the possibilities with teleoperating forest machines. For the forestry industry, I hope this paper can inspire future work to use the technology to favor the operators’ needs, and not only adapt the current cabin to work being carried out remotely. It is important to note that work in the cabin and work carried out remotely will have a significant difference in what advantages to offer. We will most definitely see operators working in the forest for many years ahead, and the future operators of teleoperation will probably not be the ones that are motivated by work in the forest today. This means that a new kind of user will emerge supplementing the current users rather than replacing them. / Detta examensarbete är resultatet av en femårig civilingenjörsutbildning inom Teknisk Design på Luleå Tekniska Universitet. Projektet har utforskat möjligheter för fjärrstyrning av skogsmaskiner genom en användarcentrerad designprocess indelad i tre faser; Inspiration, Ideation, och Implementation. Arbetet har genomförts på uppdrag av Skogforsk som är det svenska forskningsinstitutet för utveckling av det svenska skogsbruket. Målet med projektet har varit att presentera idéer kring hur framtidens fjärrsyrning kan förbättra arbetet som skotarförare. Syftet med projektet har varit att identifiera skotarförarens behov och utforska hur utvecklingen av fjärrstyrning kan ta hänsyn till dessa behov. Under den första fasen undersöktes arbetet som det ser ut idag och skotarförarens behov fastställdes genom intervjuer och observationer. Behoven kan sammanfattas till tre huvudsakliga delar; transport av maskin, av och pålastning, samt planering av arbete. I dagsläget kan två olika användare ses, de vars största motivation är arbetet i skogen, och de som motiveras främst av hög produktion och egenutveckling. Under första fasen så undersöktes problem med fjärrstyrning genom test med en fjärrstyrd skotare i Truedsson Forestry Lab i Uppsala. Det identifierades att skärmar är ett nödvändigt komplement till VR-glasögon trots att de idag inte erbjuder samma precision och närhetskänsla. Det identifierades också att förare uppgav att de inte fick samma koppling till maskinen som ljud och vibrationer annars erbjuder i hytten. Uppfattad och verklig kontroll över maskinen skiftade mellan styrning i maskin, och på distans. Förarna uppmärksammade inte slirning, glid, eller lutningsförändringar vid fjärrstyrning. Förutom dessa problem så erbjöd det befintliga systemet inte kontinuerlig överblick runt om maskinen. Lastens uppbyggnad saknades och inte heller visuell blick av området nedanför lastutrymmet kunde erhållas. Med utgångspunkt ur identifierade problem med fjärrstyrning och möjligheter för utveckling av dagens arbete, utforskades idéer genom kreativa workshops under andra fasen. Under tredje fasen valdes idéer ut, utvecklades, och testades genom antingen ett fysiskt operatörstest, eller ett videotest. En av idéerna testade implementering av ljud med fokus på gripen vilket uppskattades av alla testförare. Skärmarnas precision förbättrades genom projicering av gripens position på horisontella ytor. För att förbättra kontroll av maskin utforskade projektet implementering av olika indikatorer kring lutning och hjulbeteende. En idé kring projicerande hjulspår med fokus på proaktivt uppmärksammande av maskinens position och potentiella hinder, utforskades i syfte att förbättra arbetet. Projektet undersökte även diverse vyer för överblick, som drönarvyer, och en 360 graders vy som kan ha potential för framtida fjärrstyrningsarbete. Andra idéer som testades kan ses i Resultat kapitlet. För framtida arbete rekommenderas fler, och mer verklighetsbaserade tester. Det rekommenderas även att framtidens användare definieras bättre för att styra utvecklingen i rätt riktning. För den individuella föraren som läser detta arbete hoppas jag denna examensrapport kan visa på potential för framtida fjärrstyrningsarbete. Jag hoppas även att rapporten kan visa på att utvecklingen är medveten om såväl svårigheter som möjligheter. För skogsindustrin hoppas jag denna rapport kan inspirera framtida arbete att fokusera på fördelar med fjärrstyrningstekniken med utgångspunkt i förarnas behov, och inte bara anpassa dagens arbete i hytten att ske på distans. Det är viktigt att märka på att arbete på distans och i hytten kommer erbjuda olika fördelar. Vi kommer antagligen se förare i skogen i många år framöver och det är troligt att framtidens operatörer inte är de som motiveras av arbete i skogen. Det innebär att en ny typ av användare kommer växa fram som kommer komplettera dagens förare snarare än att byta ut dem.

User Experience Engineering (UxE) incorporates subject areas like usability, HCI, interaction experience, interaction design, "human factors", ergonomics", cognitive psychology", behavioral psychology and psychometrics", systems engineering", [and] "computer science," (Hartson, 1998). It has been suggested that UxE will be the main success factor in organizations as we enter the "loyalty decade" of software development, where the repeat usage of a product by a single customer will be the metric of product success (Alghamdi, 2010; Law & van Schaik, 2010, p. 313; Nielsen, 2008; Van Schaik & Ling, 2011). What is relatively unknown in the current academic literature is whether existing UxE methodologies are effective or not when placed in a longitudinal research context (Law & van Schaik, 2010). There is room for the exploration of the effects of long-term UxE practices in a real-world case study scenario. The problem, addressed in this study, is that a lack of the application of UxE-related processes and practices with an industrial partner had resulted in customer dissatisfaction and a loss of market share. A three-year case study was performed during which 10 UxE-related metrics were gathered and analyzed to measure the improvements in the design of the customer's experience that long-term UxE practices could bring to a small corporate enterprise. The changes that occurred from the corporate and customer's point of view were analyzed as the customer's experience evolved throughout this long-term UxE study. Finally, an analysis of the problems and issues that arose in the implementation of UxE principles during the application of long-term UxE processes was performed. First-hand training between the research team and company employees proved essential to the success of this project. Although a long-term UxE process was difficult to implement within the existing development practices of the industrial partner, a dramatic increase in customer satisfaction and customer engagement with the company system was found. UxE processes led to increased sales rates and decreased development costs in the long-term. All 10 metrics gathered throughout this study showed measurable improvements after long-term UxE processes and practices were adopted by the industrial partner.

The use of autonomous agents is an ever-growing possibility in our day-to-day life and, in some cases, already a reality. One future use might be autonomous robots performing last mile deliveries, a service the company HUGO delivery is currently developing. The goal of developing their autonomous delivery robot HUGO is to reduce the emissions from deliveries in the last mile by replacing delivery trucks with emission free autonomous robots. However, this new way of receiving deliveries introduces new design challenges since most people have little to no prior experience of interacting with autonomous agents. The user interface is therefore of great importance in making the user understand and be able to interact comfortably with the autonomous agent, thus also a key aspect in reaching user adoption. This thesis work examines how an interface for an autonomous food delivery service, such as the HUGO delivery, could be designed by applying a Human-Centered Artificial intelligence and Activity Centered Design focus in the design process, resulting in a design proposal for a web app. The conclusion of the thesis includes identification of the six essential interactions present in an autonomous food delivery service, as well as how HCAI and which of its guidelines can be applied when designing an interface for the interaction with an autonomous delivery robot.

This thesis examines the benefits and drawbacks of cloud computing technology within the GLAM (Galleries, Libraries, Archives, and Museums) sector of Sweden and Finland. It employs the case study of the recently developed and launched Digital Archive Project at Åland Maritime Museum which leveraged the Amazon Web Services (AWS) technology stack to provide a cloud-based digital platform for the museum's archival materials. The primary objective of this study is to understand the interaction, usage, and suitability of cloud computing technologies and the impact of User Experience (UX) (primary users being the GLAM professionals) on digitalization efforts. This study analyzes eight GLAM institutions in Sweden and Finland using semi-structured interviews and compares the trust and readiness of adapting to private cloud service providers. The findings reveal that Finland has a more ‘aggressive’ and experimental approach to newer technologies such as cloud computing tools, compared to Sweden. In Sweden, there is an appreciation for pleasant UX and methods to make heritage material more accessible, but there is also a lot of hesitation due to the data privacy regulations in the aftermath of the Schrems II Judgment and the invalidation of the EU-U.S. Privacy Shield Agreement. The study concludes that AWS as a cloud provider is difficult to incorporate in the public sector GLAM institutions compared to the private sector. The study also provides practical recommendations for GLAM institutions and professionals and calls for further interdisciplinary research with Digital Humanists at the center of it.