Case Studies Industrial Physics

Embedded Software Design System

Industrial Physics, a global leader in testing and inspection solutions, develops a diverse range of devices across its 14 brands, each featuring unique embedded software interfaces. These interfaces, which vary in screen size from 3” to 21” and include both touch and keyboard inputs, are essential for operators in demanding environments where gloves are often required for safety or hygiene. However, this diversity posed a significant challenge in maintaining a cohesive user experience across different interfaces. To address this, Industrial Physics partnered with Tenacity Works to create a comprehensive, unified design system for their embedded industrial software.

The Challenge

Industrial Physics faced the challenge of interface inconsistency across its instruments, leading to a fragmented user experience that hampered operators’ ability to switch between different instruments within its portfolio. The need for interfaces to be intuitively usable under diverse conditions, including with gloves, demanded a versatile and adaptive unified design system. The inclusion of a dark mode was also crucial for ensuring optimal visibility and minimising eye strain in low-light environments.

The Solution

To address these challenges, Tenacity Works utilised a user-centred design strategy, supported by thorough research, including engineer and operator interviews. This approach was vital in developing a unified design system that was flexible across different screen sizes and maintained usability in harsh conditions. The developed design system includes principles, guidelines, and reusable components aimed at delivering a uniform and straightforward user interface across all instrument screens. Key components of the solution include scalable interface elements, comprehensive iconography, touchscreen optimisation, a unified design language, and a focus on accessibility and ergonomics.

Conclusion

The implementation of this unified design system will significantly improve user experience across Industrial Physics’ instrument portfolio. Operators can now effortlessly switch between different instruments and environments, thanks to the intuitive design and comprehensive iconography. This enhancement has not only reduced the need for extensive training but also increased operational efficiency. The project highlights Tenacity Works’ commitment to innovative design solutions, tackling complex challenges to deliver an intuitive and consistent user experience, regardless of the instrument or working environment.

Schedule a call

Our Process

01.

Tenacity Works conducted user experience workshopping sessions, use case modeling, and created wireframe prototypes across various screen sizes and input methods to ensure a solid foundation for the unified design system.

02.

The user interface design stage incorporated Industrial Physics’ brand, ensuring the creation of a robust global design system. Designs were prototyped and presented to various stakeholders for feedback and refinement.

03.

Tenacity Works polished the various components and output a variety of screens and scenarios as examples for the engineering teams, ensuring the clearest possible display of information and data.

04.

Extensive testing and engineer training were conducted to ensure internal teams could manage the design system going forward. Ongoing implementation meetings were held to update and evolve the design system as real-world applications were rolled out.

The Tenacity Works team showed a lot of engagement during the design process, as well as willingness to understand what our products do, to provide the best solution to our clients. They presented us with a complete and uniform solution, giving us strong guidance on UI design, colour palettes, icons, fonts and much more. The design is amazing. Modern, very intuitive, and minimalistic. It does not overwhelm users; In fact, it guides them. That was our leading requirement. They left us with a style guide, which allows us to further develop new UI elements which weren't known at that time. Even though we received a complete design, the team has been supporting our software engineers while they’ve been implementing the design. Whenever we had questions about UX, the Tenacity team was always there for us. They were open to changes and if possible, incorporated them. If not, they clearly explained why some concepts don’t work well here. It was a great journey with lots of fun and learning. Most importantly, we have received a design which answers our clients need.

Software Engineer & Project Lead, Industrial Physics