An integrated application suite for Traffic Control Centers

An integrated application suite forTraffic Control Centers

time Q32009duration two months

About VCV

Verkeerscentrum Vlaanderen monitors Flemish (highway) traffic to ensure traffic safety and traffic information reliability for an increasing number of vehicles on the road. Operators in the Traffic Control Centre monitor and guide traffic in real time by controlling traffic messages and signalization on the roads.

business b2b

Design challenge

The rapid expansion of Verkeerscentrum Vlaanderen requires a thorough revision of its processes and applications.

Namahn was asked to redesign the basic traffic monitoring functionality and to provide a basis for future integration of traffic monitoring tools.

discipline interaction design

Approachunderstand explore define Field study Link analysis Design requirements & constraints

Scenarios of use Conceptual design Prototyping

Style guide

understand explore define

Field Study (1)

Several observations on site allowed us to gain insights in the operators’ working processes, their needs and habits within the current application context.

“I prefer controlling traffic events manually to ensure that the information we send out is accurate.”

“I regularly check whether traffic information appears correctly on our website.”

During the night shift, the operator on duty moves from desk to desk to manage the complete Flemish region.

While discussing ongoing traffic events, operators actively used the live footage. Sometimes they even walk over to the video wall and point out a specific event on one of the monitors.

Traffic jams are monitored and managed automatically, based on counters. The operators rarely need to intervene in this automated monitoring system.


Field Study (2)

A one-day observation in a Dutch TCC provided a good basis for comparing work processes, best practises and insights from a broader perspective.

Operators focus mainly on defining and managing traffic diversions (whereas for the Flemish operators, this is of secondary importance).

Operators are “always” on the phone coordinating the road inspectors. Sometimes, they even compete with the traffic police to be the first on the incident scene.


Link analysis (1)

To identify all actors and lines of communication within the control center, we performed a link analysis.

This analysis provided information for exploring the possible physical setup of the control room and focus points for task- and process flows.


Reporting

The field study findings were consolidated in a written document.

Learnings were grouped thematically, and illustrated using pictures and diagrams.

For prioritising the requirements, we applied the MOSCOW-matrix:• Must have• Should have• Could have• Would have


Design requirements

Results from the field study were reformulated into prioritised design requirements, so the scope and focus of the design became clearer.

Constraints focused also on: • The control room• Working methods• Representation of the traffic situation• Technology


Design constraints

The boundary conditions were captured in design constraints. These focused on technological, organisational and process-oriented constraints.

Both the constraints and requirements defined the design space for exploration.

We wrote three scenarios:• A day in the control centre• Dealing with a new traffic event • A crisis situation


Scenarios of use

We described future interaction flows in a series of scenarios, focussing on the daily routine at the traffic center, including critical flows for the operator.

In each scenario, we focused on the various aspects that come into play: the organisation of the room, the work place, the software interactions and the human interactions.

Due to the multiple monitor set-up, we did not solely focus on the screen design of the individual work monitors. The concept also defined organisation of, relations between and interactions with video monitors.


Conceptual design

We explored design alternatives by means of low-fidelity sketches and verified the main design principles by illustrating the descriptions of the scenarios in the wireframes.


Detailed design (1)

Based on the stakeholder’s feedback we refined the conceptual design introducing custom controls and added realistic details.

Each task flow was illustrated by a sequence of static screen samples.


Detailed design (1)

Based on the stakeholder’s feedback we refined the conceptual design introducing customized controls and added realistic details.

Each task flow was illustrated by a sequence of static screen samples.


Link analysis (2)

Based on the link analysis, we explored how the future control room could be organised so as to optimally support the new workflow, processes and roles within the control center.


Detailed design (2)

During the design workshop, the designs were verified and refined for the specific tasks at hand.

We focused on collaboration, exchanging and sharing information and situation awareness of the operator team.


Style guide

The design patterns were defined in the style guide.

This document helps the developers to build the application correctly and to add future functionalities in a consistent way.

Outcome

During the design process, we focused on consistency in design and efficiency in use. As a result, the legacy applications that will be integrated share interaction patterns and information design, increasing the learnability and familiarity.

The explorations for control room organisation proved valuable for defining the view on future possibilities. The design verification confirmed the extensibility of the design and its potential to support an increasing flexibility in work flow procedures when monitoring road traffic.

Minding the user throughout

Grensstraat 21 rue de la Limite B-1210 Brussels +32 2 209 08 85

Contact:

Grensstraat 21 rue de la LimiteB-1210 Brussels

[email protected] | +32 2 209 08 85

An integrated application suite for Traffic Control Centers

Documents

Transcript of An integrated application suite for Traffic Control Centers