Discoveroute

An app designed to empower users through urban exploration.

Role: UI/UX Designer
Platform: Figma

Opportunity Statement:

Studies have shown that a 1-hour walk in nature is proven to reduce stress levels.*

Based on this simple fact, my aim was to create an app that provided users with an uplifting and environmentally positive journey. In doing so, I had potential to add to their quality of life.

I did a brief analysis to discover more about potential users and the types of issues that needed to be addressed.

Users

People in cities
Seeking leisure
Fitness oriented

Problems

Daily stress
Air pollution
Street congestion
Dangerous paths

Needs

Stress reduction
Improved health
Access to nature
Assured safety

My project goals were established to help provide quality of life to the user.

1.
Environmental Happiness

Help users enjoy their surroundings

Freedom of Choice

Empower users with options

3.
Intuitive Experience

Create a fun and easy-to-use interface

Promote Health

Help users find inner peace

Key features for the app were ranked in order of importance.

1.
Discover Nearby Natural Paths
Users can browse a quick list of paths close to them.

2.
Choose Your Own Adventure
Users will have options to search by various criteria.

3.
Progress Tracking
Users should be able to keep track of their overall performance.

4.
Encourage Goals
Users can see daily and weekly goals to stay on track with meeting them.

I created a user journey to establish a clear cyclical path for users.

The page flow diagram outlines a clear start and finish that gives users various ways to complete an objective.

I created some initial sketches for the home screen and main pages.

Starting the development phase with rough sketches on paper allowed me to focus solely on visually engaging users and developing intuitive screens.

I designed wireframes for the home screen of the app.

Option 2 - Small Map, Path Thumbnails, Path List

I chose to go ahead with Option 3 because it had the best balance of visual and textual information, with a clear hierarchy not found in the other three options.

I made my mark with an impactful logo.

In designing the main symbol for the app, I aimed to evoke the shape of a natural path using typography.

Icons and symbols were designed to be elegant and simple.

I designed a visual language to represent various modes of transit and app features using recognizable symbols.

I used bold graphic shapes to create a minimal and harmonious aesthetic.

The final results offer users easy access to a healthier lifestyle.

Functionality

The path selection is built into the home screen, so you can easily navigate while seeing general path information.

Organized Adventure

Users can easily sort paths alphabetically, by level of difficulty or trail distance.

Discoverability

I also added a Discover button in the menu bar to let users pick a method of travel before seeing a list of suitable paths.

The app provides users with an intuitive interface so they can tap into environmental happiness.

Discoveroute offers a fun user experience for access to local undiscovered gems for leisure or exercise. Features include a Rankings page that encourages users to reach new personal or social goals.

Assessing the final outcome with usability tests.

Usability tests revealed a key pain point, which was that the users took twice as long to complete a simple sort menu task (compared with the other tasks).

Based on user feedback, I redesigned the sort menu to add clarity and functionality. Follow up tests with the new menu improved time-to-task completion by 63%.

Interactive Prototype

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* Sudimac, S., Sale, V. & Kühn, S. How nature nurtures: Amygdala activity decreases as the result of a one-hour walk in nature. Mol Psychiatry 27, 4446–4452 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41380-022-01720-6