Advisor(s)

Yingzi lin

Date of Award

12-2010

Date Accepted

12-2010

Degree Grantor

Northeastern University

Degree Level

M.S.

Degree Name

Master of Science

Department or Academic Unit

College of Engineering. Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering.

Keywords

appliances, devices, factors, human, network, usability

Disciplines

Engineering

Abstract

Networked appliances have long held promise of making people's lives easier by allowing users complete access over their functionality through an intermediate device such as a tablet computer. Corporations often see no benefits to standardizing user interface across their multiple appliances, or they feel that their proprietary software offers them a competitive edge in the marketplace. This thesis explores the underlying set of principles for home appliances. It attempts to identify user expectations in terms of what they want to see in their networked appliances in terms of features and functionality, but also provide guidelines for future developers. To accomplish this, two prototypes were developed and tested using a System Usability Scale (SUS) survey and participant success rates were measured in terms of the time it took to complete each task, and the success rate across participants and across tasks. The two experiments were conducted using a remote usability tool. Study results indicate statistically significant differences between the two prototypes.

Document Type

Master's Thesis

Rights Holder

Sanel Selimovic


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