42072 Design for Interaction - Group 5

Test of hot drinks dispenser

First hand user experience and appearance The machine, picture 1, has a lot of buttons, picture 2, which each represents the different kinds of hot drinks. It can be a bit confusing at first, but the buttons are divided into categories, which makes it easier to find the right kind of coffee.

Picture 2

Picture 1

The machine tells you to "insert card," picture 3, but it doesnt tell you that it has to be a "coffee card," and new users can easily think that a credit card or student card can be used. When you realize that your credit card won't work, there are no signs or guides to tell you where to buy the coffee card. When you press the button with your chosen coffee, and you haven't placed a cup, the machine will tell you to, and will not hand out the coffee until the cup is placed. If you want a more or less strong coffee or more or less sugar, this can be adjusted with the top buttons, picture 4.

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Picture 3 Picture 4

42072 Design for Interaction - Group 5 Any cup of coffee or chocolate costs 4 Kr. Several users find the coffee (and milk powder) in the machine disgusting and thus bring their own instant coffee (and milk). Here the users will only use the hot water which is for free. This results in the use of cardboard cups without any profit for the machine maintainer. Machine Failures No message when containers are empty The machine does not tell you when a product is sold out. Instead it just fills up the cup with hot water. You are though still charged for this.

Dirty cup sensors The sensor that registers if a cup is placed in the holder can get dirty and therefore give wrong feedback to the system. This means that is becomes possible to start the machine without a cup placed in the holder.

Difficult to control hot water button The machine is provided with a button for free hot water e.g. for tea. To operate this button the user has to keep pressing the button until the machine has provided the desired amount of water. There is a small delay in the machine reaction when the button is pressed and released. As result of this it is hard to get the exact desired amount of water, picture 5.
Picture 5

Missing coffee card The only way of buying coffee at the machine is by buying a coffee/printer card at DTU. There is no way of using coins or credit card directly at the machine. If you lose your card you have to buy a new one for 25 kr. for the card and fill it with minimum 50 kr. credit.

No registration of card in slot Sometimes the machine fails to register the coffee card when inserted to the card slot, picture 6. When this happens the user have to take out the card and insert it again.

Picture 6

Group 5: Christian Nybo Petersen - ChristofferRu Rasmussen Jens SpanggaardPiltoft - Luise Andersen Hartvig - Maria Thorborg Hansen NikolajApitz Page 2 of 2