Redesigning Audi's MMI in a one-and-a-half week design sprint
Visual Design, Concept Work
Project Background
MMI (or Multi Media Interface) is the Audi terminology for a vehicle’s infotainment system that comes fitted as standard to all the German brand’s cars, from the A1 supermini to the R8 supercar. The goal of SinnerSchrader’s interdisciplinary team of designers, researchers and strategists was to develop and test potential functions for electric vehicles. This was executed in the format of an extended Design Sprint.
Working in tandem with a second designer, my role was to create the user interface, and a test prototype. I was also responsible for creating wireframes, plus monitoring and evaluating user tests.
Design Process
Clear goals were established initially, communicating achievable objectives within the very limited 7 day time frame.
Prior to the design sprint, many insights about e-mobility were gathered, both from existing research repositories and also following an impromptu meetup. User researchers from SinnerSchrader met, observed and discussed with electric-vehicle users of various OEMs about their mobility experiences.
Following this, pain points were visualised by way a story map developed from an owners' meet-up (German only):
The insights we obtained guided our sketching and wireframing. We also researched the user interfaces of OEMs like BMW, Mercedes, and Tesla for electric vehicles, as well as non-automotive use cases.
A mood board was subsequently developed to inspire creativity.
Following the creation of our initial wireframes, we carefully evaluated them in relation to the research findings. This iterative approach prompted additional development, resulting in an interface that effectively catered to the varied needs of consumers.
Initially, we drew inspiration from Audi's design system for our user interface, but we diverged significantly in terms of our color palette. Within the design sprint, we had the freedom to exercise creativity and select colors that were better suited for the e-mobility use case.
Furthermore, we extensively examined Audi vehicle interiors, analyzing angles and colors, in order to design an interface that harmonized with the overall vehicle aesthetics.
User Testing
We developed a prototype of the interface and had multiple test participants evaluate it.
Our primary objective was to gather qualitative feedback. Before conducting the user tests, we provided the test participants with a customised user story for the prototype.
The testing process was live-streamed and assessed by myself and other stakeholders. Our aim was to identify potential challenges, objections, and insights.
Finally, everything was documented, cleaned and passed over to the client in the form of a rudimentary component library. This set the groundwork for any further development on the project:
