Designing Human Mistake-Free Machine: a Mexico City Public Transport Commuters’ Approach

Abstract

Human mistakes are the principal cause of most failures in industry. Designers and engineers have been working on decreasing the difficulties of the machines that have a role in human daily activities. Human centered design allows to focus on diminishing those mistakes through improving the interaction and cooperation between the user and the machine, process or service. Therefore, the next paper defines a preliminary study of a human centered design process developed in Mexico City after a noticeable need of an effective measure to improve the functioning of transport system. The contextual research showed that the first attempt to design and put in operation a machine free of human mistake is considering the users. Therefore, by improving the experience of interaction between the users and the machines it is possible to strengthen commuters’ assertive decision taking. In this study that consideration was developed in three stages, the first one was oriented in getting to know the stakeholders or user, the second stage focused on showing the users patterns, colors and sequences based on their first insights. This stage facilitates the designers and engineers create a prototype that includes the first and second stages results. Once the prototype was built, it was located and proved in its expected position. From this interaction user – prototype was possible to conclude that user satisfactions are close related to the consideration of their desires and needs, as guidance, color, and lights. Also that the TVM does not require distracting elements and finally, that Implementing new technologies such as new payment options are now feasible and a preference of the users.