Laboratory automation is the last bastion of usability design. Apparatus took on the challenge of creating an intuitive interaction experience for a specialty chemistry software product. This was a real challenge considering there were team members who flunked in chemistry all through their lives. Read about how we came over the phobia and did an appreciable job of the user interface.
Project
Zaphod: React IR Front-end Engineering
Client
eSymmetrix, Inc.Dayton, MD, USA
Creative Team
Director - Usability as Creative Lead, Information Architect and Visual Designer.
Objective
To define a highly usable and consistent User Interface for the React IR system which acts as a pre-cursor for developing global UI standards for a range of automated lab reactors and analytical instruments of AutoChem. Autochem's long term strategy is to move towards a uniform approach in terms of user interaction methods and look and feel in a phased manner.
Scope
To conduct Application Usability Re-engineering and Design of the product, provide Graphic design and information design inputs, Articulate user interface standards as a style guide document and provide overall user experience critique on application releases.
Users
Chemical Analysts and Scientists using Infrared and Raman spectroscopy for analyzing live chemical reactions within R&D processes in pharmaceutical and chemical industries
Reaction Interaction! Mettler Toledo specializes in the area of precision instruments for R&D processes in pharmaceutical and chemical industries and React IR software helps to analyze live chemical reactions using Infrared and Raman spectroscopy. The domain was new and the functionalities were extremely complex and required in-depth domain understanding of the Chemical Analyst's world.
We took up the challenge and after a series of detailed consultant meetings we were familiar with the world of a spectrographer and were soon identifying usability problems related to the chemical spectrography software. This ability to quickly ramp-up within any new or complex domain, we consider as one of our strongest traits.
Apparatus conducted a number of heuristic usability evaluations on the application developed by ESymmetrix team and suggested improvements on usability areas demonstrated through quick wireframes and deep-slice prototypes . Also we conducted Visual design validation of application interface and articulated the user interface standards as style guide document. Currently as a continuation of this project, Apparatus is involved with Autochem in developing global standards governing development of their software range that enable consistency both in terms of user interaction methods and look and feel.
