the GEproject

teamfront loaders

ashley jayme katie

teamfront loaders

the research

the interviewsWe interviewed various people in a certain age range in order to gather data on their usage of washing machines and how they feel about their current washers. We used a standard set of questions for each individual in order to hit the key points of information that we needed to gather. The following are specific profiles of the people we talked to.

10weinterviewed

10 peopleand this is what they said

meet jessicaJessica is a 26 year old, epidemiologist living in Louisville, Ky. Between family and work she does 2-3 loads of laundry per week.

meet andyAndy is a 26 year old, safety engineer living in Murray, Ky. Andy does about one load of laundry per week, sometimes two depending on how dirty he gets when he plays football.

she is atop loaderJessica is not fond of the idea of a front loader and enjoys the ease of use and reliability of her top loader.

he is afront loaderAndy bought his front loader so he could do larger loads and because he feels they are more reliable.

individual

meet renéeRenée is 32 and is the Administrative Assistant at the Hite Art Institute. She does her laundry every Sunday and occasionally sneaks in another load mid-week.

she is atop loaderAlthough Renée is a top loader, the idea of a front loader is appealing to her. Because she is a renter at the moment she has not bought a front loader yet.

comprehensive

20%

80%

80%

50%

50%

wash clothes once a week

wash clothes 2-3 times a week

have front loaders

40%

have toploaders

60%

80%20%

when asked how long a washer should last

said washer colordoes not matter

70%

have help from family

20%

view it as a chore

40%

change the wash settings

60%

separate colors70%

the machinesAfter researching our competition, we chose a washing machine in the $900-1,000 range for each of our major competitors. We then compared and contrasted the main components for each washer to see what would best fit on our GE washer. This is what we found.

commonalities

steamoption

colors/normals

delicates/handwash

Between the four washing machine interfaces we found the following commonalities:

quickrinse

rinse& spin

delaystart

LGThis is Extra Large Capacity TurboWash™ Washer which allows you to save 20 minutes per load. LG’s washer pushes:

- TurboWash Technology- Extra large capacities- Steam technology

12 cycles5 temperature settings5 soil levels

pros

cons

The power button is large and easily legible

The light calls out what function you are using which is very helpful

The size and shape of these buttons read simply and are well organized

The countdown clock with icons is efficient

The ruling lines make the information difficult to connect to the dial

The play button can confuse the user

The black box around this information makes it difficult to read it as separate

whirlpoolIn this Whirlpool front loader you can find a large load capacity and easy to use functions. This model lacks any soil levels like its competitors. This Whirlpool model pushes:- Ecoboost- Energystar qualification- Ecomonitor

12 cycles5 temperature settings

Backlit light

Light indicates cycle in use

-Simple clock-Timeline of wash cycle

-All caps type is hard to read-No notches indicating cycle

-Symbols for power and start look to much alike-Placement of buttons

-Too many button sizes-Buttons and settings do not line up

pros

cons

samsungWith this Samsung you can do fewer loads of laundry because of the super capacity size, ultimately saving you water and electricity.Samsung pushes:

- Steam cycle- PureCycle, - Energy Star qualification- VRT, vibration reduction technology.

11 cycles4 temperature settings

pros

cons

The lower-case words around the dial make the choices very easy to read

The orange indicator simply displays what options are related to steam

The timeline effectively portrays which spot the cycle is on

The size of these buttons reads most effectively

These options do not read with the buttons that they correspond with

The different shapes of the important buttons is distracting

GEThe GE Energy Star features a variety of fuctions including its ability to wash bulky bedding.For this model, GE pushes:

- eWash- Steam Assist- HydroHeater

9 cycles5 temperature settings4 soil levels

-Easy to read-Cycles used most on top-Light indicates cycle in use

Clock is the only object on LED screen

Steam Assist called out

Buttons and settings line up

Buttons lost between knob and LED screen

Too many button sizes

pros

cons

colorindicator

on dial

simpleclock

timelinein black

most important

cycleat top

call outindicator

forsteam cycle

bigstart

button

collective pros & cons

allcaps

varyingbutton

sizes

whenoptions

don’tline up

usingruling

lines

too many optionson the

clock screen

play/pausebutton

for start

interfacedesign

design strategySimple, easy and clean. We want people to be able to look at our washer and not have to question what a cycle does or what a button means. Simple, easy to understand, and hopefully, our washer won’t take reading a user’s manual to figure out how to do a basic load of laundry. We want our washer to be so straightforward, anyone could use it.

Whites

Quick Wash

Steam

Handwash/Wool

Delicates

Colors/Normal

Heavy

Permanent Press

Drain/Spin

Sanitize

Bulky

11:47Sensing Wash Rinse Spin

Power

Temp

Spin

Soil

ExtraLight

Light Normal Heavy ExtraHeavy

NoSpin

Low Medium High ExtendedHigh

ExtraCold

Cold Warm Hot ExtraHot

Steam

Start

Stop

initial design

Whites

Quick Wash

Steam

Handwash/Wool

Delicates

Colors/Normal

Heavy

Permanent Press

Drain/Spin

Sanitize

Bulky

11:47Sensing Wash Rinse Spin

Power

Temp

Spin

Soil

ExtraLight

Light Normal Heavy ExtraHeavy

NoSpin

Low Medium High ExtendedHigh

ExtraCold

Cold Warm Hot ExtraHot

Steam

Start

Stop

Whites

Quick Wash

Steam

Handwash/Wool

Delicates

Colors/Normal

Heavy

Permanent Press

Drain/Spin

Sanitize

Bulky

11:47Sensing Wash Rinse Spin

Power

Temp

Spin

Soil

ExtraLight

Light Normal Heavy ExtraHeavy

NoSpin

Low Medium High ExtendedHigh

ExtraCold

Cold Warm Hot ExtraHot

Steam

Start

Stop

Whites

Quick Wash

Steam

Handwash/Wool

Delicates

Colors/Normal

Heavy

Permanent Press

Drain/Spin

Sanitize

Bulky

11:47Sensing Wash Rinse Spin

Power

Temp

Spin

Soil

ExtraLight

Light Normal Heavy ExtraHeavy

NoSpin

Low Medium High ExtendedHigh

ExtraCold

Cold Warm Hot ExtraHot

Steam

Start

Stop

client feedbackAfter pitching our design we realized that it would not work how we had originally planned. We liked the feel of our design, but had to change the layout to accommodate all of the information and keep our overall design simple and easy to use. Our main focus in redesigning our interface was cutting down on the total travel time the consumer would have while choosing the settings for their laundry.

final design

11:47WashFill RinseDrain Spin Done

Power

Temp

Spin

Soil

ExtraLight

Light Normal Heavy ExtraHeavy

NoSpin

Low Medium High ExtendedHigh

ExtraCold

Cold Warm Hot ExtraHot

Whites

Quick WashBasket Clean

Delicates / Handwash

Colors / Normal

Stain Wash

Permanent Press

Drain / Spin

Sanitize

Bulky Bedding

Steam

Delay Wash

Prewash

Extra Rinse

eWash

Stain Removal

11:47WashFill RinseDrain Spin Done

Power

Temp

Spin

Soil

ExtraLight

Light Normal Heavy ExtraHeavy

NoSpin

Low Medium High ExtendedHigh

ExtraCold

Cold Warm Hot ExtraHot

Whites

Quick WashBasket Clean

Delicates / Handwash

Colors / Normal

Stain Wash

Permanent Press

Drain / Spin

Sanitize

Bulky Bedding

Steam

Delay Wash

Prewash

Extra Rinse

eWash

Stain Removal

11:47WashFill RinseDrain Spin Done

Power

Temp

Spin

Soil

ExtraLight

Light Normal Heavy ExtraHeavy

NoSpin

Low Medium High ExtendedHigh

ExtraCold

Cold Warm Hot ExtraHot

Whites

Quick WashBasket Clean

Delicates / Handwash

Colors / Normal

Stain Wash

Permanent Press

Drain / Spin

Sanitize

Bulky Bedding

Steam

Delay Wash

Prewash

Extra Rinse

eWash

Stain Removal

11:47WashFill RinseDrain Spin Done

Power

Temp

Spin

Soil

ExtraLight

Light Normal Heavy ExtraHeavy

NoSpin

Low Medium High ExtendedHigh

ExtraCold

Cold Warm Hot ExtraHot

Whites

Quick WashBasket Clean

Delicates / Handwash

Colors / Normal

Stain Wash

Permanent Press

Drain / Spin

Sanitize

Bulky Bedding

Steam

Delay Wash

Prewash

Extra Rinse

eWash

Stain Removal