About
The core of this project centered making the BYU maps more accessible, while introducing new features.
When the mobile team got involved in the project, we were simply meant to revamp the mobile app's feature. Soon enough, the task force in charge of the project decided a larger change was needed, and so I soon became an adjunct task force member, fighting for the users.
Problems
Current BYU maps don't display accessible routing information, including accessible doors, grading, and elevators.
Visitors (and students/staff) often become confused as to where they can park, depending on their parking privileges.
The mobile app displays less information than what's available online, while the online map isn't mobile friendly.
There are too many separate map "features", making it difficult for visitors to find what they need.
Stakeholders
Students–Current, Prospective
Camps–Parents, Counselors, Coordinators, Attendees Employees–Instructors, Faculty, Staff, Administrators Contractors
Public Safety–Security, Police, Fire
Camps–Parents, Counselors, Coordinators, Attendees Employees–Instructors, Faculty, Staff, Administrators Contractors
Public Safety–Security, Police, Fire
Personas
GREG
BYU Student, sophomore, who can never seem to remember building names. Relies on Campus Maps for the first two weeks of classes to memorize the building his classes are in, but from there on out he only focuses on those buildings. Greg is also an active participant in inter-murals.
ALISON
Alison has limited mobility, she relies on a wheelchair to get around campus. Through trial and error she has found the best routes through campus, she’s found that the routes aren’t always the most effective, since she’s relied on one main entrance per building.
GWENDOLYN
BYU Alumni, teaches at a local school. She often has conferences on campus, and brings her class on a field trip to BYU at least once a year. Because of the construction that never seems to stop she often gets lost as she visits.
SARAH
Sarah participates in women’s conference every year. Since she never seems to spend too much time on campus, she can never remember where buildings are, like the WILK. She wishes there were a simpler way to navigate around campus, she currently relies on her phones mapping software.
DR. PETERSON
Teaches at BYU, he’s memorized all the buildings on campus, however he can never find a drinking fountain when he needs it.
Initial Surveys
When I joined the task force, we found ourselves under a tight deadline. In introducing task force members, who represented various groups relating to campus life, to UX, we found that we didn't have sufficient time to do proper UX. So a version 1 plan was made to interview key individuals and make decisions based on those interviews. While working with task force members on finding more detailed data for v1.1.
Accessibility—In our interviews, we confirmed that users who need help navigating campus have no real recourse, and usually end up finding a staff member or volunteer to help them around campus. We also saw several accessibility issues with our map relating to web accessibility (WCAG). Our long term plan was to have the accessibility office send out a survey and look for on- going volunteers.
Parking—During our interviews with the BYU Police, we found that there were around 23 different parking designations based on various factors, including student status, faculty status, donor status, among a slew of others.
Buildings—In interviewing facilities management, they felt the maps had reached an equilibrium. As I went about my classes I had the opportunity of asking fellow students and staff about their thoughts. For the most part I found that in terms of buildings we had indeed reached a point of equilibrium, and just received suggestions, such as "please sort building by acronym vs by name".
Prototyping
Initially our efforts focused on mobile, where are a few wireframes.
As we dove deeper, we became involved in the redesign of a more mobile friendly website. One of the first considerations as we moved to redesign the website was the inclusion of indoor maps.
This is a base map that was used to gather and share ideas with other members of the initiative.
I was also asked to help create a cohesive set of icons that were easily recognizable and accessible. Below are some of the icons I created.
As these icons were meant to help with navigation and accessibility, several variations were created of each, and subsequently tested.
This is a prototype of the indoor portion of a sample building.
Conclusion
This project is ongoing, as I left, many committee members, suggested a separate more official Taskforce be created to manage this effort. According to the Project Manager who I worked with, the efforts made on behalf of the users helped to spur this deeper change.
The project was a joy, and helped open my eyes to how accessibility and User Experience go hand in hand.