SeeMore
SeeMore is a prototype that aims to motivate citizens of the Seestadt to spend more time in urban nature and experience new places and activities in their area. Expert Interviews, Cultural Probes, Design Games, Wireframes, Mockup tests, and Technology Probes revealed valuable information that was incorporated into a fully functional prototype.
Our urban mobility does not only influence our external lives and behavior, it also has consequences on our personal well-being. A lot of people, especially in cities, struggle to spend enough time outdoors or in nature. SeeMore motivates people to integrate urban nature and physical activity in their daily lives to help them to reduce their stress.
Research shows that urban green spaces have a positive impact on people's mental and physical health. They help reduce stress and promote physical activity. Additionally, people tend to value a variety of green elements, such as trees, grass, and water. In general, urban green spaces can be classified into different categories, which we can leverage to find appropriate areas to incorporate projects. Finally, the research distinguishes between different levels of involvement in nature, including viewing, presence, and active participation.
Cultural Probe & Design Game
To understand how people perceive nature in the Seestadt, we conducted five cultural probes with participants. We asked them to take pictures of natural elements and create objects with plastilin. The results showed that people associate nature with plants and animals, but also that their perception is influenced by their living situation, such as having children or construction work in the area.
In order to observe people's behavior by incorporating green spaces in their urban paths, we created a design game. Players had to visit different destinations and reduce stress by stopping at fictional green spaces. The game revealed that people mainly visit destinations and reduce stress by doing so. Only a minor group of players integrated stress reduction into their paths.
The Prototype
In the next phase we built on the gathered data from the previous steps to build a prototype. SeeMore is an interactive system that aims to introduce Seestadt citizens to unknown urban green spaces and to allow them to try out new activities they can do there. It consists of two main parts for the users to interact with: the SeeExplorer, a hand held device with a touchscreen that is used to find the SeeCubes inside urban green spaces. The SeeCubes are little objects that the users have to find, in order to be led to new places inside of Seestadt’s urban green spaces. By activating a scanning process with the SeeExplorer, users prove they found a SeeCube. The SeeExplorer’s screen shows an activity, which was written by the previous user. Afterwards it is possible to change the location of the SeeCube and to define a new activity for the next user.
We designed the SeeCube and the SeeExplorer through sketches, wireframes, and a high-fidelity prototype. UI and UX tests showed that the system needed clarity and guidance. Based on these insights, we improved the UI and functionality of the full-functionality prototype.
The SeeMore prototype looks playful and reflects its connection to urban nature. The UI and materials used to build the prototypes recall nature. The SeeExplorer consists of a Raspberry Pi and features a touchscreen display along with other relevant hardware. The SeeCubes are made of a light wood with a RFID tag.
Additional Material
Used Tools and Software
Adobe Creative Cloud (Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign, XD), HTML/CSS/Javascript, Pen+Paper, 3D-Printing (SketchUp), Latex, Figma