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MY ROLE: UX Design, UI Design, Prototyping, User Research, User Testing.
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METHODS: Desk Research, Contextual Inquiry, User Interviews, Usability Testing.
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DELIVERABLES: B2C iPad App, Design Documentation.
1. Discover: Understanding the Challenge
“Healthy, Green, Highly Efficient”—this is the motto of HPS, a forward-thinking power supplier based in Berlin. Their vision is ambitious: make renewable energy accessible to every home.
In 2021, Germany’s new building laws required all new constructions to meet very low-energy standards. Living in a ‘60s-era flat myself, I was captivated by the idea of upgrading to a home that could generate clean energy autonomously.
During my first meeting with HPS, I learned about their groundbreaking energy system. It includes:
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Energy Storage: A compact unit with batteries, electronic components, ventilation, electrolyzer, a fuel cell, and an energy manager.
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Hydrogen Storage: A unit that stores solar energy collected in summer to use during winter.
This tech promises a future where we can generate, store, and control our energy at home. What blew me away was its “transparent efficiency”—heat generated during the process is reused for water and heating, and users only need to set their preferences based on the season or time of day.
2. Define: Focusing on the Users’ Needs
After diving into technical documentation and talking with HPS stakeholders, it was clear that this system needed a way to visualize its complexity in a simple, user-friendly way. That’s when we started designing Picea, an iPad app that lets users monitor and control the energy system right from their walls.
But we had to solve a few big challenges first:
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Price & Target Audience: This advanced technology targets a niche market, so the app needed to feel premium and worth the investment.
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Making Data Useful: Users should be able to ask questions like:
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“How much energy can I save this month? How much money?”
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“Can Picea adjust itself automatically when I’m not home?”
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3. Ideate: Exploring the Solution
Key Features Emerge
Through interviews with HPS researchers, engineers, and stakeholders, we identified two essential new sections for the app:
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History: A timeline of energy production and usage to help users understand patterns over time.
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Settings: A space to group key controls, with options for automated adjustments based on user needs.
To make the app approachable, we also added info panels that could hide or show definitions of technical terms like “electrolyzer.” This made the app accessible to all users, regardless of their tech knowledge.
Early Wireframes
Collaborating with the client, we produced the first low-fidelity wireframes to define the app’s three main sections:
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Overview: Real-time system monitoring.
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History: Energy usage over time.
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Settings: Customizable controls for the hardware.
These early sketches helped us visualize the app’s flow and ensure that the design matched the needs of both HPS and the end users.
4. Prototype: Designing and Testing
This step took a little longer than usual because of how unique the product is. But the client had a great suggestion: explore two distinct design directions.
Design Directions
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Minimalist Approach: Clean, simple visuals focusing on symbolic representation.
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Illustrative Approach: Detailed graphics and visually rich elements.
The biggest challenge? Creating an intuitive interface for such a high-tech system. It had to feel easy to use while still showcasing the beauty of the technology.
Testing Both Versions
We tested both designs with the HPS team and real users. Feedback helped us refine the app to balance simplicity and functionality. The final design combined the best of both worlds, with a clean layout and rich interactions where it mattered most.
5. Test: Real-World Feedback
Usability Testing
To make sure the app worked well for users, we conducted usability tests with both HPS stakeholders and potential customers. Here’s what we learned:
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Users loved the History section for tracking patterns but wanted clearer graphs.
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Info panels made the app more approachable for non-technical users.
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Automation settings in the Settings section were a hit—they simplified energy management for busy households.
Iterating Based on Feedback
We refined the app based on feedback:
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Improved navigation to make switching between sections smoother.
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Enhanced visual hierarchy for data displays, making key stats stand out.
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Tweaked the onboarding process to introduce features gradually.
6. Deliver: The Final Picea App
The final version of Picea is a sleek, user-friendly app that brings cutting-edge energy management to everyday users.
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Overview Section: Provides real-time data at a glance.
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History Section: Offers detailed insights into energy trends.
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Settings Section: Lets users customize and automate their energy usage.
We even created an interactive info card feature to explain complex system components, making the app educational as well as functional.
Final Thoughts
Working on Picea was an inspiring journey. It wasn’t just about designing an app—it was about making renewable energy technology accessible and engaging.
The final product strikes the perfect balance between technical sophistication and user-friendliness, proving that even the most advanced systems can be simplified with the right design approach.
By collaborating with HPS and iterating based on user feedback, we created an app that empowers users to take control of their energy while embracing a greener future.
