Imagining the world of XR.

Internship |

UX, XR, Consulting

Overview

Inspiring new Extended Reality market opportunities with business-ready solutions.

Team

Avanade

Role

UX Architect
Instruction Design

Time

10 Weeks

Tools

Dynamics 365
Unity VR
Blender
iOS AR Kit

Background

Question

How can we envision the future of Extended Reality (XR) in our work?

Summary

Using Dynamic 365 Guides on the HoloLens, we created a scalable training module for retail coffee shops that provide an on-hand experience. The goal of the demo was to showcase the business potential for the Extended Reality (XR) market by prototyping around relevant business use cases. The barista training module provides ways to improve retention of knowledge, cuts operating costs, and allows for easy modifiability and expandability.

Source: Microsoft

Roadmap

When the project began, the solution already existed. Now, my role as a designer was to work backgrounds to find the right problem for the solution. The intern team was tasked with creating a demo that could be showcased to clients to invoke new ideas in their heads.

Enterprise Market

After Microsoft transitioned its XR offerings to the enterprise market, they focused on industries like healthcare, manufacturing, and utility services. It was the obvious area of focus as Microsoft had close relationships with companies like Phillips, GE, and Airbus.

Gartner Hype Cycle

Ideation

After secondary research on current AR/VR markets, we began brainstorming ideas for new business cases.

Affinity Diagramming

Feasibility

Viability

Translatability

Afforability

Feasibility

First, we looked at whether the concept was feasible. Understanding the technical limitations of the HoloLens was important. The HoloLens 1 was uncomfortable and lacked precision so we ruled out any cases that required fine movements and long periods of use.

We needed to find a concept that people with various physical abilities and understanding of the technology could run.

Final Concept

Retail Barista Training

The final concept we chose was the retail barista training module. We found that there was a huge market potential due to high-turnover rates in employees and constant updates on the menu required new training to be scalable. It could be translated to other industries like fast-food chains, broader retail, and even hospitality.

Looking at Starbucks alone, we found that 40% of market capture could bring in approximately $5M in revenue.

55K

New Employees

2019

$240

Training Cost per Employee

20h x $12 average wages

$13M

Market Cap

Starbucks alone

Photo by Ali Yahya

Design

Instruction Design

We added the instructions in the Guides using the built-in native tools. Along with the instructions, we created digital doubles of the espresso machine parts using Blender.

Editing Instructions

Placing Guides

Prototyping

Before we had hands on the equipment, we created a prototype out of cardboard boxes to replicate the interactions.

Special Thanks to Recycling Bin

Wizard of Oz

Before we had hands on the equipment, we created a prototype out of cardboard boxes to replicate the interactions.

Testing the Bike Rotor Demo

Deliverable

After weeks of testing, we were able to refine the instructions into a simple procedure with low error rates. At around 10 minute mark, testers began feeling eye-strains and headaches from the device.

Better Coffee = Better Experience

Another insight we learned was that better coffee increased the overall satisfaction for the testers. In our final recommendation, we noted this for future client engagements.

Final Walkthrough

"How ironic that we made coffee everyday during our internship."

Closing Thoughts

In my first professional internship as a UX designer, I realized that real work isn’t always by the textbook. I had to throw away the conventions I learned in school and jump into the creative mess. It made me realize how much I appreciate being human-driven versus being technology-driven because, without the initial connection with the users, it’s hard to imagine the impact I’m creating through my work. The ambiguity between people and technology can be both frightening and exciting, but nonetheless, being the bridge between the human and the tool– is where I find true happiness.

What's Next

This demo is now available in the official Avanade portfolio of work– being presented to thousands of clients across the North America region. However, the future of XR still seems far away, much farther for consumers.