A Design Driven Approach to Innovate System Interfaces: Insights from a University-Industry Collaboration

The user interface influences the objects and subjects on which our actions focus during the application of the artifact. The field that deals with improving the usability of digital interfaces is known as UX/UI Design (User Experience/User Interaction); many organizations or entities are focusing on this field in order to be able to “dialogue” with an increasingly broad target audience. This paper stems from a research carried out within the Interdepartmental Laboratory EDME (Environmental Design Multisensory Experience) which, in collaboration with a company in the home automation sector, sets as a goal the unprecedented design of an indoor video intercom, setting as target both the installer and the end user. The process followed involves research phases for objectivity of choices, and design development phases; as for research, it is divided into desk research, survey and testing activities in which end users are involved for direct acquisition of usage data. The objective of the paper is to demonstrate how a joint University/business research process enables innovation processes both in terms of human relations and in terms of business dimensions for the company, in line with market demands. In this context, the figure of the designer and, more generally, design-driven operations, help define a development model that overlaps and intersects with the technological one, replicable in different business and networking contexts.