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Interactive Installation To Visualize London Bus Real-time Information(RTPI) System
December 2018 - January 2019
The Origin of This Topic
Interaction design has always been a site for the critique of the social and cultural role of technology. I want to broaden my definitions and understanding of the possibility of interaction design and design a way to aestheticise my invisible system.
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When I was in language course, I almost took bus everyday. I was confused why the countdown system can offer the certain arriving time of buses. In this way, I choose iBUS system as my topic.
Workflow of Bus System
Bus Unit
Central System
Garage System
Central System
X25 Network
Road-side Beacon
GPS Receiver
Door Sensor
Priority Radio Link
RTPI System
Real-time Passenger Information Systems which can offer vehicle information to passengers in real time
Importances of RTPI System
Passengers
-
No one likes to wait aimlessly.
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Improve planning and replace outdated approaches.
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Provide a higher level of mobility for the visually impaired.
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​It is more easily for people, particularly for tourists and people traveling in an unfamiliar part of town, to find their way.
TFL Company
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Improve passenger satisfaction and reduce customer complaints. RTPI decreases the perceived and actual wait times for passengers and improves satisfaction.
-
Increase service usage and revenue. Bus patronage in London has increased by 53%.
London
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Optimize the use of public transport in smart city strategies.
User Survey
Employment Status (2017/2018)
Main Purpose of Journey (2017/2018)
16%
11%
9%
14%
52%
15%
11%
7%
15%
50%
Working part time
Full-time student
Travelling to/from work
Visiting friends/relatives or leisure
Working full time
To/from school/education
Retired
Retired
Other
Other
High Frequency Services (2017/2018)
Low Frequency Services (2017/2018)
10~20mins
16.3%
< 10mins
82.1%
5~15mins late
12.9%
20~30mins
16.3%
> 30mins
0.2%
On time
82.3%
No arrival
3.4%
Early
1.4%
(Data from Translate for London)
As a result, the late arrival of the bus is a common phenomenon.
So what happens when users encounter this situation?
Field Research
Record at the bus stop
Actual Waiting Time
No.12
RTPI System Shows
Bus Number
No.344
No.344
No.C10
No.344
No.C10
4min
2min
3min
1min
3min
4min
2min
7min20
1min23
6min56
1min35
5min24
5min12
3min27
No.12
Behavior model
Quiet
Active
Interview (12 passengers)
-
The frequency of use of the bus route
-
The frequency of use of the bus route
5 or more
2 - 5
less than 2
7
3
2
Quiet
6
4
2
Active
-
Do you think the bus is usually on time
Yes
7
No
3
Quiet
Yes
5
No
5
Active
-
The frequency of use of the bus route
less than 2
2 - 5
5 or more
8
4
0
Quiet
10
2
0
Active
Due to the limited number of interviews, the representation of the data is not high, but it can also reflect problems. Passengers who can tolerate long waits are more in the quiet group, and the reasons for this need to be understood.
Time Perception
Insight
Time perception refers to the subjective experience, or sense, of time, which is measured by someone's own perception of the duration of the indefinite and unfolding of events.
Vertification
No.C10
No.148
No.344
No.148
No.12
Bus Number
RTPI System Shows
2min
4min
1min
3min
4min
Actual Waiting Time
1min23
3min56
2min34
5min24
5min12
They feel
3min
5min
1min35
5min24
8min12
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Shorter intervals tend to be overestimated while longer intervals tend to be underestimated.
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Perceived temporal length of a given task may shorten with greater motivation.
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People can not experience and understand others time perception
Experiments
Based on the fact that most passengers will be restless after waiting for a long time, I want to like people now their own time perception by using my project.
Timer
Cushion that can detect sound
The audience sits on the square and waits for 1 min.
When user feels that they have waited for the scheduled time, they will be restless.
Fail
Calculate the actual perceived time of the user for one minute.
Only show behavior, can not visualize system.
How to visualize RTPI system, the most important things are to tell passengers that it changes all the time and sometimes can not arrival on time.
So suppose the bus also has its own time perception. In this case, the bus's inaccurate arrival on the bus itself is actually punctual, but the passenger is watching the bus time from the perspective of their own time perception.
Bus's Time
Passenger's Time
Interoception Singal
It is difficult to let people feel “bus time perception”, but there is a thing called "interoception" signal which can let people be influenced by the outside things. So I want to use touch sensor like touching heartbeat to let people feel “bus time”, and then they can understand RTPI system.
Calculate “Bus Heartbeat”
Fail
Display Form
“But time” Frequency
made by vibration motor
Frequency Bar
see their heartbeat be influenced
Pulse Sensor
detect passengers’ heartbeat
Pulse sensor will distract the viewer, the main part should be “bus time”.
The "bus time" is extracted and abstracted into the shape of a geometric heart.
​
On the one hand, the soft material simulates the heartbeat and produces a strong touch and impact.
​
On the other hand, placing the product directly on the hand can increase the level of passenger impact and at the same time make the passenger's attention more concentrated.
Servo
Use servo to simulate the feeling of heart twitch, also to enhance authenticity.
Soft Foam
Soft touch, increasing the similarity between "bus heart" and real heart.
Vibration Motor
Frequency based on the timetable of bus No. 10 and the error of the actual time.
Application scenario
Place the product at a London bus stop and connect to the bus's real-time data and change the frequency of the vibration at any time. In this way, they can understand the bus situation in real time, and they can alleviate the anxiety of the passenger to a certain extent as well.
Model Making
Output
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