Usability through visualisation : A case study of ISO 26262 at Scania R&D

Abstract: The average person today is more informed compared to the most informed people 25 years ago, however, he or she knows a lower percentage of all available information than those in the 80’s. In today’s society, information is flowing everywhere and through all mediums. Research shows that this constantly accessible information is hampering our daily work– if not presented in an accessible way. This thesis has investigated this particular issue with ISO 26262 as case. ISO 26262 is a standard concerning the safety within E/E –systems and is currently being adopted at Scania. However, the users think the standard, which is originally presented in a pdf document, is both time –and resource inefficient, and also the content of ISO 26262 is presented in such manner that it can be interpreted in multiple ways, and is experienced as a “wall of text”. By carrying out several user interactions, it was discovered that the most critical issue for the users was looking for information and that the standard would be more user friendly if presented in a website. Adjustments of the text and layout within the standard were made based on the conducted literature study, such as a stronger hierarchy of the content, spacing and construction of sections. The approach of the project was based on service design, in order to maintain focus on the user and usage, which during the user interactions were discovered to be the two main areas that had to be investigated, problematised and solved. The user and usage areas were therefore iteratively implemented through all four stages of the approach; exploration, creation, reflection and implementation, which led the final result of a website and its construction, links and layout. The assumed most critical parts of the final website were implemented in order to ensure a fulfilment of the main criteria generated from the user interactions. However, if more time had been available, the website could have been user tested once more, in order to find further critical aspects and ensure their fulfilment.