Zero Mass Water

A digital product to accompany the physical product of SOURCE solar panels. We designed a mobile app for users to control these panels

Role: Product Designer

 
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The Physical Product

Zero Mass Water aims to perfect the highest quality drinking water through technology. They designed SOURCE, a hydro panel that makes drinking water from sunlight and air. These panels tap into the unlimited supply of water vapor in the air, using sunlight to power a renewable supply of drinking water. Without the waste of bottled or filtered water, SOURCE is water you can feel good about drinking. A single SOURCE array offsets the equivalent of over 70,000 plastic bottles over ten years and wastes zero water.

The Problem

With these panels installed, how might we allow users control and track the water supplied by the SOURCE panels?

We aimed to design a product that gives users control over their SOURCE panels which produces water, while also educating users on water consumption.

 
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Industry Research

We researched several smart home devices and analyzed everything that relates to the control factor of mobile apps. In the world of technology, home automation allows people to control all of the different systems in their home using one single, easy-to-use interface. A control system can be simple, time saving, cost-effective and convenient. It contributes to the economy by only using necessary energy and resources when the user is home.

Currently smart home devices are used in everyday living needs such as air purifiers, thermostats, fans and lights. It's no surprise that users are looking for a way to control water production in their homes.

 
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User Research

We researched and studied the needs and goals of potential users. We found:

  • Majority of plain drinking is consumed at home

  • Users are not familiar with how much water they consume

  • Nowadays users were most likely to pay more for an environmentally friendly product

  • Users are willing to spend more on a control system for home automation because it is simple, cost-effective, convenient and time-saving

  • Millenials are leading the implementation of smart home technology in their daily lives

Personas

With the research, four personas with different goals and needs were created to guide the functionalities and development of the product. 

The primary personas were largely used to represent the user needs. Zero Mass Water aims to help users better understand their water consumptions, provide validation in the quality of water (safe and sanitary), schedule and adjust water production levels and create a community that cares.

Secondary personas are created as a way to bridge the business goals with the user needs. Certain types of users were placed as a priority. We built the app in two phases. First phase catered to the primary personas and second phase catered to the secondary personas.

 
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User Flows & Wireframes

After collecting the data and analyzing existing home automation apps, we created a features matrix of what is possible. All possible features were labeled as a Must have, Could have, Should have or Won’t have (MoSCoW). The features matrix informed the navigation and the app structure

We created a list of goals for the creation of the ZMW app.

  1. Track water production and consumption

  2. Stay updated with humidity and weather, and it's affects on the panels

  3. Provide validation that the water is sanitized and safe to drink

  4. Schedule water production based on users' consumption habits

  5. Present the most important information in an easy and digestible manner that is relevant to users

  6. Create a community of advocates of clean, accessible water

 
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Interface Design

Following approval on the wireframes and flows from the client, we moved on to the UI. We wanted a simple yet sophisticated design.

 
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Data Visualization Designs

The challenging part of the UI, was to demonstrate the value of these SOURCE panels. This meant we had to display water production and how it’s relative to the sunshine humidity during that time period. After speaking with the developers on the client side, we were able to understand what information we get from the API. Following research, came up with visuals that were easily digestible. We made sure to incorporate user feedback from testing and only displayed the most important information to reduce confusion.

 
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Results and Metrics

As of October 2018, Zero Mass Water has been testing their API. The product has launched in phase I beta. Since launch, there has been 339 impressions and 100 Sessions. The app has not yet been announced to the full user base.