“An immense amount of thought was put into every detail. The goal was to take something complex - handcrafted pour over coffee - and make it incredibly easy.”
The key to a successful complex device is to make it feel simple.
Entrepreneur Dustin Sell had a clear vision for Bruvelo: to make it easy for coffee drinkers to brew competition-grade, single-cup coffee. Brewing that perfect cup requires the precise tuning of many elements.
Variables such as brew temperature, ground and water ratio, and steep time differ based on bean type. A database of "recipes" specified optimal values for these parameters suited to the type and amount of beans being used. Users would only need to select bean type, and the system would figure out the rest.
Dustin came to us with a prototype of a mobile app for selecting recipes, sending them to the device, and initiating a brew. Our recommendation was to allow these interactions to happen on the device as well, as groggy users in various states of undress may not have ready access to their phones. After weighing cost and usability considerations, we agreed to pursue a minimal embedded touchscreen experience.
We developed conditional logic accounting for inputs and feedback for all possible states throughout the brew process.
The device combines inputs from the recipe database, hardware sensors, and the user – delivering prompts and feedback to ensure error-proof operation.
Next we explored interaction model concepts and developed wireframe flows of the UI experience.
Interaction was focused within a large circle that served a contextually relevant purpose at different points in the process. Sometimes the primary button, at other times containing key prompts, feedback, or indicating progress.
We created a clickable interaction prototype and assembled a crude representation of the physical device to test the UI workflows in context of physical device interaction.
With no budget for research, we bribed coworkers with pizza and conducted guerilla testing over lunch.
Based on our findings, we revised our concept to better clarify which inputs were automated, and which the user was responsible for.
Confident in our core workflow, we fleshed out secondary workflows and developed a visual design language for the UI that harmonized with the physical design language while remaining true to the brand.
“I couldn’t be happier with Bresslergroup’s work. Not only did they listen to my goals for the product, but they provided invaluable insight into the ‘how and why’ people use a product or feature.”
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