Monthly Archives: October 2011

King of Two Wheels

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On October 15th, we launched a one week bike challenge in our SVA IxD studio. We explained the game rules to four eager studio mates, toasted in some bubbly, and then released them to the chaotic streets of New York City to compete for the title ‘The King of Two Wheels’. From the game rules, the most important thing to understand was the objective of the game:

Have the least amount of thread on your spool at the end of the game.

The idea for the contest was born about two weeks earlier. We had to act fast to make sure our contestants wouldn’t have to fight the bike battle in the snow. See the post King of Two Wheels Launch for some behind the scenes and reflections from the day before game launch, like this very early prototype to figure out the scale and position of the map interface:

We wanted the game to be more than just a race to bike the furthest distance. Given that urban biking is our area for thesis, we had a few concepts we wanted our bikers to explore, namely way-finding, tracking, discovery of places and motivation through social pressure. We gave them eight challenges:

And we put them in a confession booth every day to talk about their biking habits, recent rides and challenges:

The King of Two Wheels challenge allowed us to explore the motivational aspects of biking, both through the contest itself and by making the bikers efforts visible on the studio walls. We proposed opportunities for our contestants to share their bike love by getting other studio mates to bike. To get the whole SVA IxD community involved, bikers and non-bikers alike, we invited students to bet and cheer for the contestants. The blog post Behavior Change and Motivation elaborates on this aspect of the game.

The Status of Our Thesis

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For the past seven weeks, we have been writing ideas on sticky notes, talking game strategy, testing ideas, researching, and observing bikers on the streets of New York every day. Even though we’ve had the added workload of three other grad classes, we have managed to make headway in developing ideas around our four main concepts—wayfinding, tracking, discovery and motivation. Also, as our Thesis Proposal v.2 reflects, we know now that we are making a bike helmet. Below we’ve documented the highlights of the previous seven weeks.

HELMET
Our helmet will have speakers, a sensor that senses if anyone is wearing it, a simple remote control to adjust volume and for simple navigation, and probably a mic for potential phone calls, voice recording and voice commands.

WAYFINDING
The core of our concept is in-ride voice directions on the format seen below. The blog post Low-fi prototyping, part II elaborates on this, and includes a test text-to-speech audio file with directions that we tested while riding to our favorite local restaurant, Rucola.

1. Head southeast on 5th Street toward 8th Ave.
Ride about 282 feet.
Then turn left onto 8th Ave,

2. Turn left onto 8th Ave.
Ride about 0.1 miles.
Then turn left onto 2nd Street.

3. Turn left onto 2nd Street
Ride about 0.4 miles.
Then turn right onto 5th Ave

…

ADDITIONAL FEATURES
We did an extensive post-it session to identify more potential features that could enhance our product. This Features blog post documents the sticky note fun. The session led to a longer list of features that we then narrowed down to a few key concepts we wanted to explore further:

  • Tracking of the bike ride
  • Discovery of new locations in the city
  • Motivation through social pressure

CONCEPT EXPLORATION THROUGH BIKE CHALLENGE
We had been in our own bubble for a while, and started to feel the need to get more people’s perspective on biking and our concepts. We decided to launch a bike challenge, King of Two Wheels, for our fellow studio mates (see Game Rules here). We made sure this challenge also would give us a lot of interesting interview material through introducing our contestants to a video confession booth. When the game was over, we created a video to document our amazing contestants’ journey through the one week long game:

MOTIVATION
The King of Two Wheels challenge allowed us to explore the motivational aspects of biking, both through the contest itself and by making the bikers efforts visible on the studio walls. We proposed opportunities for our contestants to share their bike love by getting other studio mates to bike. To get the whole SVA IxD community involved, bikers and non-bikers alike, we invited students to bet and cheer for the contestants. The blog post Behavior Change and Motivation elaborates on this aspect of the game.

TRACKING
The spool of yarn each contestant got at the start of the competition was used to map their ride on the physical map in our studio every morning. We believe tracking (as long as it’s done consistently) can be another motivational factor – especially when you see your data making a beautiful visual mark for all to see. In addition to the physical mapping, we also got our contestants to try to track their rides digitally with various apps so we could get insights into the joys and hassles of tracking with the tools that are out there.

DISCOVERY
There’s something special about riding a bike compared to taking the subway through a city. You discover new cafes, restaurants and parks all the time, but you might just as easily forget your discoveries as you continue on your journey through a chaotic city. We challenged our contestants to open their eyes to what’s around them to get insights into their strategies for remembering places. We also encouraged our contestants to “connect the dots” and actually visit a few places on their bikes throughout the weekend. Read more about this in the Hit the Hot Spots post.

Thesis Proposal, v.2

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Our intention is to increase ridership and make trips seamless for bikers in urban areas. We recognize that people love to bike in the city but there are also many hassles and pain points that keep people from riding. Taking the bike is both good for human health, the environment and the economy. We want to help people stay on their bikes and encourage the ‘not yet convinced’ that biking is a viable mode of transportation.

ELEVATOR PITCH

We are making a digital toolset embodied in a physical helmet to be used by urban bikers that allows for a seamless riding experience. It will provide spoken directions, track riding habits and facilitate documentation of trips and communication with friends. Unlike a high-tech GPS bike computer, it has a charming personality and is geared towards the casual biker rather than the cyclist pro.

OUR FOUR MAIN CONCEPTS
Way-finding knowing where to go and how to get there, alleviating the stress of navigating while on your bike in a chaotic city

  • find a safe route
  • change suggested mode
  • write your own route, list waypoints
  • change suggested mode
  • say when there’s bike lane and which side of road it’s on
  • warn people of bumpiness

Discovery helping people remember and experience the interesting places they see on their rides (cafes, bars, restaurants, etc.), suggesting new places to visit.

  • allow users to log their favorite places
  • push button or voice command to pin location on a map
  • consider integration with Yelp and/or Google Places
  • plug into reviews from Yelp and/or Google Places
  • learn preferences of rider
  • provide commentary on sites
  • opt into ‘wander mode’
  • localized itineraries
  • suggest a near destination
  • allow people to say ‘I have 2 hours. Take me somewhere…!’

Tracking documenting where riders have been, revealing patterns in biking behavior, helping people feel proud of accomplishments and encourage sharing their progress

  • sensor in helmet to auto-track when you sit on the bike seat
  • put context around data, compare and contrast
  • use variety when giving stats to make it meaningful

Motivation providing a way for riders to challenge people to ride their bikes, using social pressure, coordinating rides

  • compare trips with your friends
  • read aloud SMS from friends
  • notify friends when rider gets on the bike to ride
  • suggest and facilitate riding with friends and/or group rides
  • facilitate conversation and competitiveness between users
  • facebook sharing
  • tweet about trip to bike community #BikeNYC
  • report stories and funny encounters
  • site specific encouragement and stories
  • play music from local bands performing that week
  • let people listen to their own music

INTENDED AUDIENCE
Intermediate riders
People currently biking in the city. They might already use navigational tools like bike maps and apps, and are searching for new ways to make their trips more seamless whether they want to get from A to B or wander.

Beginner riders
There’s a difference between knowing how to ride a bike, and being confident riding in an urban environment. Beginner riders might use their bike for recreational trips and are not yet convinced that biking can be a viable transit option.

Tourists on bikes
People that want to explore a new city from the bike seat. Might rent bikes from bike shops, or using bike share programs.

CONTEXT OF PROJECT
The bike community
Open Plans, Bike Share, Ride the City, Transportation Alternatives, New York City DOT, Bike Tech Meetup, Bike activists (bloggers, political figures, etc.)

Bike Tools
mobile apps that track behavior, apps aiding navigation, bike computers for pro cyclists, GPS for bikers (TOM TOM has turn by turn voice directions in Europe)

Products with related concepts
Motivational, data sharing, storytelling, creative personalities, way finding, trip planning, etc.
Websites and apps: Weight Watchers, RunKeeper, Nike+, Daytum, OpenTripPlanner, TripAdvisor, Yelp, Tamagotchi etc.

INTENDED FORM AND EXPERIENCE
The form of the product is a helmet with speakers, mic, sensors and buttons along with a mobile app. It is a friendly and delightful product that is aware of what the biker needs and when, alleviates stress from biking in chaotic surroundings, eases the process of using your bike for transit and inspires discovery of new places.

Progress Plan, v.2

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ACHIEVED SO FAR

  • Create a journey map
    Zoom out and identify pain points and opportunities within the area of urban biking.
  • Create a conceptual model of project
    Narrow in on a concept suitable for our thesis
  • Host King of Two Wheels bike challenge
    Organize a bike challenge in the studio to test concepts and conduct user research.

NEXT STEPS

  • Conduct contextual research (November 3)
    Continue to learn about projects with similar concepts and features
  • In-Ride-Experience MVP (November 1-30)
    Choose a route, get people to ride it, ride behind them while providing voice directions and testing main concepts.
  • Develop an MVP (November 15-December 19)
    Software: Creating a web app for a user to input start and end point, and get directions through voice.
    Hardware: R&D for speakers, bluetooth, button, sensors, and connecting these pieces to each other and the app.
  • Pitch video (by Christmas)
    Show our product and it’s features. Purpose is to get our ideas out there, get feedback and solicit help with our next steps and development.
  • Redesign blog (by Christmas)
    Get our blog in shape with a nice visual profile.

Christmas Break

  • Define Alpha prototype (January)
    Which features and what technology
  • Build Alpha prototype (January-April)
    Make the technology work
    Design interface with mobile app
    Design interface with helmet
    Develop personality, language and visuals

Spring Break (March 2-11)
SXSW (March 9-13)

  • Release Alpha prototype (mid-March)
    release prototype for 4-8 people to test
  • Iterate on Alpha prototype (mid-March-April)
  • Documentation (mid-March-April)

Graduation (early May)

Game Rules of King of Two Wheels

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Hello there. At the launch of the King of Two Wheels bike challenge, we got together with the contestants to toast in bubbly and review the following game rules.

King of Two Wheels
The SVA Ixd Community Bike Challenge

Welcome. You are competing to become the King of Two Wheels of the SVA IxD studio. Prepare to bike a lot and to be bet upon by your studio mates. The final winner will be honored on the studio kitchen Wall of Fame, as well as be celebrated along with the other contestants at the King of Two Wheels finale party. The winner will also be treated to a complimentary, candle-lit, crock-pot dinner following the competition.

OBJECT OF THE GAME
Have the least amount of thread on your spool at the end of the game.

HOW TO WIN
There are two ways to dwindle your thread—(1) map your rides with your thread or (2) earn rewards to cut off thread through challenges.

Map rides: For every mile you take on your bike throughout the duration of the game, map it. Be as specific as possible with your route. You are welcome to use digital tracking apps to assist with this. And it may even help you score extra points later in the game.

Earn rewards: You get rewards by doing challenges. Challenges will involve a bike-related activity and a report (or confession) about your experience.

CHALLENGES
Challenges spur you to try new things and to encourage you to reveal your biking stories and strategies. Trying new things will happen on the streets of New York; Revealing biking stories and strategies will happen in the ‘King of Two Wheels’ confession booth.

REWARDS
There will be daily winners and a final winner – the SVA IxD Bike King. For each challenge completed, there will be rewards in form of inches of thread cut of your spool. The scoring and rewards of challenges differ based on its nature. Some daily challenges are judged by the quality of your confession. Challenge winners are honored by day on the studio Wall of Fame.

CONFESSIONS
First and foremost, we want you to have fun! Our second want is to capture your insights as New York bikers. The confession is a place for you to record your thoughts based on some questions we put on the wall. Talk to the camera in the booth as you would with your nice game administrators. Talk about what you encounter while biking, your strategies for finding your way on a bike in NYC, and what motivates you to get your bottom on the bike seat.

TRUST
This game operates on trust. Yes, trust. Please be honest about your miles. And please keep your nose to yourself in the confession booth.

DURATION
The duration of the game is one week. It starts Tuesday Oct 18th and lasts until Tuesday Oct 25th at 1:00PM. Your two-wheel enthusiasm should last forever.

Please be safe out there on the road. We are not liable for any incidents on the road.

May the best rider win!

Carrie & Kristin

Behavior Change and Motivation

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Changes are hard to make. Whether it’s changing your diet or turning your transit mode from the subway to biking, we as humans we need other people to hold us accountable and help us adjust to new habits. That’s why behavior change comes best through the support of community. On the last jaunt with strangers that ride bikes, Tour de Taco, this is something that I learned, again. While each biker was on the group ride for various reasons, some were there to get back into biking. I talked with two specific bikers that previously pedaled to work, but had stopped, for their own respectable reasons. They both confessed, in their own words, that they came to get their butts on their bikes again. Basically, they forced themselves to be surrounded by a lot of people doing the very thing they wanted to be doing.

We previously launched the King of Two Wheels. We’re challenging four contestants within a community of 30 SVA IxD grad students to bike more than usual for one week, track their miles on a shared map, discover new parts of the city and to recruit others to join them. The King of Two Wheels will be our first experiment with learning how people are motivated to ride. Through it, we hope to get people talking about and doing more biking, while gaining insights into their habits, tips and tricks, and motivations.

We put out eight challenges within the week of the contest. Along with these, we had multiple strategies to get them motivated and biking more:

Map rides on a shared map to document progress and compare achievements.

Prompt riders to recruit friends to get the community involved organically.

Invite riders to get a team mate for the day.

Invite the community to bet on their chosen contestant to win

…and using the bets as a visual bar chart display in a common area.

Honor a challenge winner every day.

King of Two Wheels Launch

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To test our ideas about motivation, and to get some insights into different bike personas, we’ve decided to launch a game in our studio. Four contestants, a map over New York City, and 500 feet of yarn are some of the ingredients required to (hopefully) make this work. Here’s an early prototype:

The contest is mainly a race to make people bike more during a week. But in addition to measuring how much you bike through pinning yarn on the map, there will be different challenges. These challenges are crafted to touch upon some of the themes we’ve been researching lately; Way-finding, Tracking, Discovery, Group rides, Safety, etc. And to make sure we capture our contestants thoughts, joys and worries when it comes to biking in the city, we’ll make them pour their heart out in the video confession booth. As this also is an experiment in designing for public interfaces, we’ve tried to design the booth as a “walk-up-interface” so that you don’t need people guiding you through the process. Cartoonish drawings of people are hopefully enough to make our contestants talk:

We’re also thinking of different ways to involve the rest of our classmates. Our hypothesis is that a big part of motivation for many is the social pressure – which is why sharing the love for biking will be valued even more than just riding long distances solo.

It’s hard to plan a game like this. We’ve made a program for the whole week, but we need to plan for potential adjustments throughout based on how things evolve after the launch. If all goes well with our last preparations, the game starts Tuesday morning. We’re very excited that our bike princes and princesses have accepted the challenge – to fight to become the King of Two Wheels:

Guri, Cooper, Tash and Dave – GOOOOOOD LUCK!

Wandering

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Following up on Frank Chimero’s suggestion about having two buttons – one to get lost, and one to not get lost, we’ve been thinking a bit about the possibility to encourage wandering and discovering new areas with your bike. When we did our post-it analysis last week, we tried our best to make sure we emphasized this opportunity by making a high level purple category for it:

But then we realized, as much as we like this feature, neither Carrie or I are often “getting lost” on purpose with our bikes. We mainly ride from A to B, and try our best to not take any detours. We might simply not be the target audience for such a feature, and have no real insight into how the “bike wanderers” behave. So we went around to ask our classmates if they possibly could fill us in… All of a sudden the Wandering category had a lot more content:

From this we learnt two things; something about wandering specifically, but also something about our process. We need to talk to people sooner rather than later – let’s do some interviews!