Requirements of a dairy farm owneron a organizational software tool : Using interaction design to design and evaluate aprototype of an organizational tool for dairy farmers

Abstract: This study was conducted in collaboration with Agricam, a Swedish agritech company thatdevelops digital solutions to monitor animal health on dairy farms. The purpose of the study is toexamine the requirements dairy farmers have for a new digital planning tool Agricam isdeveloping, and to develop a design proposal that accommodates these requirements. Additionally,the study also aims to examine whether or not both the requirements of Agricam and those of theircustomers can be met simultaneously. The following research questions are posed: “What needsand requirements do dairy farmers have for a desktop-oriented organizational software tool?”,“How can interaction design be used to design a product that meets these needs andrequirements?”, and “Can interaction design be used to accommodate these needs andrequirements while still complying with stakeholder demands?” Through a case study of a singleSwedish dairy farm, requirements were identified and incorporated into a digital prototype usinginteraction design, mental models, and gestalt principles. The prototype was evaluated through afeedback interview with the dairy farm owner, as well as through a heuristic analysis. Theevaluation showed that the prototype sufficiently fulfilled the requirements of the dairy farm ownerwhile maintaining the requirements placed upon the planning tool from the stakeholder Agricam.