Acknowledging the lack of air conditioning by providing a way to navigate to ventilated rooms through AR.
Figma
Illustrator
Photoshop
Designed in 3 weeks
Solo project
TL;DR...
Problem
California State University - Long Beach has a history of failing building infrastructure and necessary amenities such as air conditioning, proper ceilings, and working escalators. 2022 was hard on many students due to record heat and sub-par classroom conditions.
→ How might we provide information about cooling centers and air conditioning for students at CSULB?
Solution
A navigation app that allows students to see which buildings have outages, find cooling centers and air-conditioned buildings near them, and get directions to them through AR based on their location and distance.
The full rundown
Background
Cal State University - Long Beach has faced multiple student walkouts and protests over the last 8 years. Most recently, Art students walked out in protest of the lack of air conditioning in Upper Campus buildings. Art students spend 6 hours every day in classes without air conditioning and proper ventilation.
Find out more about the recent walkout hereABC 7 Report on CSULB conditions
Box fans and portable air condition boxes were used in place of air conditioning for the remainder of summer. These had little to no effect on the temperature indoors.
Later it was reported that there were plans to renovate the art buildings years ago, but were scrapped.
Long Beach faced heat that reached up to 100 degrees during June to September, which is the highest it has been in years. Heat waves can trigger a variety of conditions such as fatigue, nausea, and heat stroke.
NASA Earth Observatory reports that "In early September 2022, a long-lasting heat dome settled over the U.S. West and brought scorching temperatures that set all-time record highs." Students suffered from May - September without a clear remedy in sight.
I conducted research by listening to CSULB podcast that included professor and student recounts of their experiences in the heat. Classrooms were cramped without air conditioning. Students have mentioned that classrooms and dorms were hotter than they were outside.
After interviewing and doing research, I gained some major insight about the condition of the buildings and how students felt about what was happening. Here are my key findings along with opportunities:
After conducting research and finding design opportunities, I began to sketch out ideas. My initial ideas were an email or post, CSULB app, or physical print letting students know where air conditioning or rooms are.
Many students have their phones with them while at school, and having an app readily available allows students to quickly find buildings on campus. CSULB campus is large, and difficult to navigate. Flyers are hard to update once put out. Email announcements get buried under other notifications.
By creating an app, students can find a cooling center near them, report outages, and avoid classrooms or buildings which are occupied or lack air conditioning in real time.
I mapped out the user flow of an app that allowed students to quickly find the nearest cooling center or unoccupied classroom they can use to cool off. The app can open from single sign on so students don't have to download it and it opens immediately to a map page.
Utilizing the user flow and necessary information needed for students to quickly identify rooms that were available, I began sketching out how I imagined the UI would look and how users can interact with it. I included required elements for the map including: building location, search, navigation capabilities, and outages.
I created wireframes based on my initial sketches of essential pages for the app. This includes login, map, building information page, navigation, and feedback for users who successfully made it to the cooling center.
In my first iteration, I created a system where students can identify which rooms are available for students to stay in, AR navigation, and building profiles that allows students to see information about the cooling center or classroom. Students are able to navigate to empty classrooms with air conditioning or cooling centers.
I reached out to peers at CSULB who experienced the struggle during the heat wave and gained some insights about how I can improve the UI and navigation:
App icon and colors based on current Long Beach apps to keep consistency.
