Design is an Open Door Carmen is a student in the Research in User eXperience (RUX) Lab in the Department of Human Factors and Behavioral Neurobiology. RUX investigates the usability and user experience of technology in our everyday world. This is a regular column that explores different technologies typically used by Embry-Riddle students.
Take a moment to think about how many doors you’ve encountered today. You might be able to remember the door you opened leaving your house, the door you opened to get into your car, and maybe one or two doors you opened on campus, but opening doors is such a routine task, we often don’t think about or even notice that we are doing it. This is how it’s supposed to be! We generally only think about doors when we have an issue trying to open or close them. For example, one of the more frustrating doors on campus is the one into COAS 115, the science lab in which I teach. Opening the door to go in is generally not a problem. Opening the door to go out is where people get caught up. Every single day I use that door, I have to stop and think about how it opens. Students have Page 17 even asked
out loud, “Am I stupid?” when trying and failing to open the door. So, what is it about the design of this door that causes this problem? The overarching design principle that we will be examining is “discoverability,” and there are five key design elements within it that we will discuss in relation to this door. The goal of these design elements is to make the process of using something as easy as it can be. Ideally, the user should spend as little time and effort to figure out how to use something as possible.
2. Signifiers A signifier is a signal about how something can be used. It communicates where the action should take place. The signifiers on this door allow us to understand better
how we can open the door. If there was a push bar on the door or a flat panel, we would understand that this door can only be opened by pushing.
1. Affordances Affordances show how something can be used and what actions are possible. For example, a door affords or allows us to open it. This door has hinges on the side that allow for oneway opening.
Photo Courtesy/Carmen Van Ommen