Thesis (M.S. in Management) Naval Postgraduate School, June 1997. / Thesis advisors, Nancy C. Roberts and Mark W. Stone. AD-A331 894. Includes bibliographical references (p. 79-81). Also available online.

<p> With the growth of technology there is recognition of the fact that communication requires improving between decision-makers and the people who will eventually use or be affected by the system under consideration. The main thrust of this work is to explore means of facilitating clear unambiguous communication of relevant needs to all parties involved in the design process.</p> <p> A number of approaches to this problem from different disciplines are reviewed. Some of these approaches are already in existence while others require adapting to the particular problems encountered in the design process.</p> <p> Suggestions are put foreward as to how these techniques can be integrated to produce a unified approach to the problem of producing a Total Specification embodying all information necessary to the designer in his capacity as decision-maker.</p> / Thesis / Master of Engineering (MEngr)

Over the past decade a large amount of research has been dedicated in academic literature to improving the technical capabilities of improved cookstoves; primarily the performance efficiency and reduction of emissions. Unfortunately, as published literature has highlighted, the trade-offs that result from placing such a concentrated emphasis on these technical objectives is that improved cookstoves lack the same level of usability as traditional cookstoves. Thus, users often return to using their traditional stoves and the potential impact of the improved cookstoves is never fully realized. In order for improved cookstoves to have greater impact, there must be better balance between the two competing design objectives of technical capabilities and usability. This research explores the challenges and benefits associated with achieving the appropriate balance, and provides guidance on how to more effectively achieve this. A list of the most common customer needs from around the world is provided for cookstoves. Interestingly, there are needs that are common to all cookstove users (global needs), and needs that apply to only a subset of users (local needs). Due to the diversity of such needs, there are many unique challenges that come with trying to satisfy these in the design process. A design methodology is presented that accounts for these challenges and helps balance the competing design objectives. This methodology is demonstrated through the modification of a traditional cookstove used in the Tambogrande region of Peru. This modification includes an inexpensive set of pot skirts that integrates directly with the traditional stove. These pot skirts allow for varying sizes and number of pots, and the use of traditional fuels. Laboratory testing, using the Water Boiling Test (WBT), identified the skirts' technical improvements: 41.7% increased thermal efficiency, 32.7% decreased fuel consumption, 28.8% decreased time to boil. Field testing was performed to determine the pot skirts' acceptance and compatibility with the traditional cookstoves, with over 75% of the participants recognizing some type of benefit. Although the technical improvements of these pot skirts are less than other cookstoves on the market, the higher levels of usability are likely to lead to a more positive end-user reaction, which could potentially lead to higher rates of adoption and impact. Though this research is primarily focused on the application of improved cookstoves, the need for more balance between technical and user objectives is applicable to nearly all products being designed for the developing world.

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Electric car sharing is gradually expanding as an innovative and more sustainable mobility alternative to private cars. Though, the use of such mobility service has not yet reached the desired levels worldwide despite attracting large number of customers. For car sharing operators, thus, it is imperative to understand the users and their needs beyond the existing demographics and quantitative data in order to design more desirable and useful services that expand customer acceptance and usage rate of such alternative. This thesis is an exploratory study about users’ needs, behaviors, and experiences toward electric car sharing and the service requirements resulting from these dimensions. Using user- centered service design approach, the study focuses in obtaining qualitative insights about users through workshops with focus groups in regards to LEV-pool, a research project that intends to field test a new approach to car sharing by offering small size electric vehicles for local mobility at a large workplace. Based on three user-centered service design methods: customer journey map, personas, and stakeholder map, a visual mapping of users, their needs, behaviors, and experiences, and service requirements is developed. The findings point at different user types with distinct purposes of using car sharing, whose needs for mobility (at work) are affected by external factors such as work activities and job occupation. Their mobility behavior differs in terms of how they interact with car sharing service and is partly influenced by the service offering. In general, users show various experiences toward car sharing systems, and many relate it to technical aspects of the service. In terms of service requirements, the results highlight available vehicles at the needed time, simple and easy booking system with many features responsive to users’ needs, maintenance and cleanliness of vehicles, effective communication of service offering, and simple pricing schemes. The underlying user dimensions explored show as relevant in shaping the users’ evaluation of a service and their decision to use a certain mobility alternative. / Electric car sharing offers a more sustainable mobility alternative to private cars. Though, the use of this service has not yet reached the desired levels worldwide despite attracting large number of customers. For car sharing operators, thus, it is imperative to understand the users and their needs in order to design more desirable and useful electric car sharing services. This thesis is an exploratory study of the users and the service of electric car sharing systems. Using user-centered service design approach, the study focuses in obtaining qualitative insights about users in regards to LEV-pool –a research project that intends to field test a new approach to car sharing by offering small size electric vehicles for local mobility at a large workplace. The study applies three user centered service design methods to capture and present a holistic understanding of users, their needs, behaviors, and experiences toward electric car sharing and the service requirements resulting from these dimensions. The findings suggest that users are distinct and have different needs for mobility (at work), which are shaped by the external factors such as work activities and job occupation. Their mobility behavior differs in terms of how they interact with car sharing service and is partly influenced by the service offering. In general, users have various experiences toward car sharing systems, and many relate it to technical aspects of the service. By exploring the users, the results point directly to different requirements that the service shall meet for it to enhance usage such as available vehicles at the needed time, simple and easy booking system with many features responsive to users’ needs, maintenance and cleanliness of vehicles, effective communication of service offering, and simple pricing schemes.

This work sought to explore, evaluate and then improve the process of development for personal Military Load Carriage Equipment (MLCE), such as rucksacks. It was suspected that current MLCE had a number of user interaction deficiencies which should have been addressed during development. Three research questions were posed to determine: the influences on MLCE development, what needed improvement in MLCE development and how MLCE development could be improved. The work was based on eight studies conducted in three phases: the first to explore MLCE development and the observed deficiencies, the second to evaluate MLCE development, and the third to improve it. The chosen research strategy was henomenological, using a grounded theory methodology within which phenomena could emerge. Grounded theory approaches were adopted for this research because they were the best way in which to access the design domain. The research was framed within cycles of reflective action research to enable the researcher to re-orientate the enquiry to make the best use of the research opportunities that arose from the organisational context in which the research was sited. An initial investigation into the development of in-service equipment was done via a comparative case study, using documentary analysis and interviews with authorities in the field. Through this investigation it became clear that MLCE development was based on heuristics and tacit knowledge of manufacturing techniques, and collaboration between professional groups, including: materials / manufacturing, human systems, project management and military personnel. Deficiencies within MLCE development, determined through the comparative study, were validated against current practice through a further case study and additional evaluations. A comparison of outputs from these studies was then reviewed in a grounded manner to gain a holistic understanding of MLCE development. The interaction and importance of the various influences on MLCE development was then better understood, in particular the inadequate understanding of MLCE user needs, and requirement specification. To refine the possible avenues and target audience for an improvement of MLCE development stakeholder interviews were undertaken to develop a better understanding of how military user needs were gathered and applied. Following the interview survey, a tool was developed to analyse video and audio data of soldiers operating with MLCE on current operations. The tool was then reviewed by a panel of MLCE developers and stakeholders. The panel thought that the tool had a number of benefits to MLCE development: improving understanding of soldier environments, improved quality and reliability of information used in development, and as a conduit for concept evaluation. The research has provided a novel perspective on MLCE development, and provided a number of avenues upon which subsequent research could focus. The research has been able to make original contributions to understanding, albeit in a manner limited by the methodologies used.

Although, the literature reveals that coach interior designs have been emphasized as an important factor determining their competitiveness in the market and the quality of an interior design can be effectively improved by using information about passenger expectations, few practical studies exist to assess the urban railway transport interiors from the passengers&rsquo / perspective. Consequently, designers lack reliable criteria to guide their decisions which would satisfy users. In this study, it is intended to develop a procedure to create interior design alternatives of urban railway transportation vehicles with regard to subjective needs and preferences of users. In order to acquire design criteria and recommendations for such interiors, the design alternatives are then evaluated quantitatively through the medium of semantic assessment tools. The thesis is supported with the arguments collected from literature and with the data from three empirical studies.

Tyrimo objektas: klientų pasitenkinimas Kauno miesto turistiniais maršrutais Tyrimo tikslas – įvertinti Kauno miesto turistinių maršrutų atitikimą klientų poreikiams. Tyrimo uždaviniai: 1. Pateikti turstinių maršrutų sampratą ir jų rengimo teorinius aspektus 2. Apibūdinti vartotojų poreiki teorinę sampratą. 3. Apibūdinti Kauno miesto turistinius išteklius ir infrastruktūros galimybes. 4. Apibūdinti klientams siūlomus turistinius maršrutus Kauno mieste. 5. Atlikti klientų pasitenkinimo Kauno miesto turistiniais maršrutais tyrimą. Tiriamieji klausimai: 1. Ar turistinių maršrutų patrauklumas didina vietovės patrauklumą ? 2. Ar miesto infrastruktūrą ir turizmo ištekliai sąlygoja maršrutų patrauklumą ir maršrutų kūrimo galimybes? 3. Kauno miesto turistiniai maršrutai yra patrauklūss ir atitinka klientų poreikius? Rezultatai ir išvados. Atlikus turistinių maršrutų Kauno mieste patrauklumo analizę bei jų pritaikymo klientų poreikiams tyrimą, nustatyta, kad patogi Kauno miesto geografinė padėtis ir gerai išplėtota turizmo infrastruktūros sistema turistams leidžia sudaryti patrauklius turistinius maršrutus, aplankant žymias Kauno vietas, istorijos, kultūros paminklus ir t.t. taip pat didina Kauno miesto turistinį patrauklumą ir į miestą atvykstančių turistų skaičių. Tačiau yra pasigendama turistinių maršrutų įvairovės bei vieningos informacijos apie turistinius maršrutus Kauno mieste pasiekiamumo. Todėl siekiant, kad turistinės Kauno miesto vietovės bei maršrutai būtų patrauklūs... [toliau žr. visą tekstą] / The object of customer satisfaction in Kaunas tourist routes The aim - to assess the Kaunas city tourist routes meeting the client's needs. Objectives of the study: 1. The turstinių routing concept and theoretical aspects of their training. 2. To describe the user needs a theoretical concept. 3. Describe the city of Kaunas tourism resources and infrastructure capabilities. 4. Describe the customers suggested touring routes in Kaunas. 5. Make customer satisfaction Kaunas city tourist routes investigation. Research Questions: 1. Are trails attractiveness increases attractiveness of the area? 2. Is the city's infrastructure and tourism resources determines the attractiveness of routes and route development opportunities? 3. Kaunas city tourist routes are patrauklūss and meet customer needs? Results and conclusions. After hiking trails in the city of Kaunas attractiveness analysis and its applications, customer research found that Kaunas convenient geographical location and well developed tourism infrastructure in tourist makes an attractive tourist routes and visiting famous places Kaunas, historical and cultural monuments, etc. also increases the attractiveness of the tourist city of Kaunas and the number of tourists arriving in the city. However, there is lack of trails diversity and agree on tourist routes in Kaunas is available. Therefore, in order to Kaunas city tourist areas and routes to be attractive, it is necessary to: expanding the cognitive, educational and... [to full text]

The research reported in this thesis had two aims. To investigate how the variability and complexity of the mobile context of use should be addressed when capturing user needs for mobile products and to explore the role of indirect methods of data capture as tools for eliciting user needs in a form appropriate for informing the scenario based design of mobile products during the. earliest stages of product development. This research presents a novel scenario-based approach to eliciting and representing user needs in a form suitable for informing the earliest exploratory stages of mobile product design. Within this approach scenarios are used to provide snapshots of actual or envisaged product use that can be used to find a starting point for design when there is no clearly defined focus for innovation. Scenarios are organized into sets using scenario tables to structure consideration of key variables within the mobile context of use. These key variables are identified as: mobility, emotion, social relationship and communication purpose. Three user studies were conducted using UK undergraduate students as the study population. Study One explored use of schematic representations ('maps') of each participant's social communications and mobility as tools for eliciting user needs, both in relation to existing mobile product use and in relation to projected use of future mobile product concepts. Study Two used a diary study method to explore existing mobile communications use. Ways of structuring consideration of the mobile context of use were explored and the effectiveness of the diary as a tool for eliciting user needs and for scenario generation was assessed. Study Three extended the diary study approach to include consideration ofthe emotional context of product use and to include pictorial feedback of diary entries to study participants. These personal representations of product use were used to further explore user needs and to prompt participants to generate narratives describing motivations for product use suitable for presentation in scenario form.