Plexus

Sensing and solving your HVAC hassles…

Sensing and solving your HVAC hassles…

Role

Interface Designer

Cinematographer

Team

Zoe Bair

Anna Young

Charlie Parsons

Timeline

Jan - Mar 2024

Tools

Figma

Adobe Illustrator

Adobe Photoshop

Rhino 3D

Keyshot

Name

Team

Zoe Bair

Anna Young

Charlie Parsons

Role

Interface Designer

Cinematographer

Timeline

Jan - Mar 2024

Tools

Figma

Adobe Illustrator

Adobe Photoshop

Rhino 3D

Keyshot

Team

Zoe Bair

Anna Young

Charlie Parsons

Role

Interface Designer

Cinematographer

Timeline

Jan - Mar 2024

Tools

Figma

Adobe Illustrator

Adobe Photoshop

Rhino 3D

Keyshot

Project overview

Plexus is revolutionizing how homeowners understand and interact with their HVAC unit and home. By integrating sensors in the HVAC system in conjunction with our thermostat, Plexus allows for true connection between homeowners, technicians, and HVAC systems, saving time and reducing costs for everyone.


As interface designer, my primary role in this project was designing the thermostat interface, creating a style guide and design system, and prototyping the interactions. I also helped with market strategy, user research, and user testing.

Maintaining your home can be demanding

Home visits for technicians to repair these issues are standard in the industry, but oftentimes the problem is not diagnosed yet and technicians arrive without needed materials.


The lack of HVAC diagnostics from the homeowner results in service call-backs, financial loss for both parties, and customer dissatisfaction.

As the HVAC industry grows and advances, middle-aged homeowners are in need of a new system that is more efficient, intuitive, and understandable.

Fixing air vent

Get real-time alerts about your HVAC system's health

Using artificial intelligence models, your smart thermostat generates HVAC health reports and alerts you if your system is in need of repair.

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Send a report to a trusted technician

If a problem is too challenging or unsafe, it can connect you to a reputable HVAC technician for swift assistance.

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View a 360° x-ray scan of the affected area

After taking a photo of the problem area using the smart thermostat, it will match the image to a 360° internal x-ray scan of the system part so you can easily see internal issues.

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Sensors notify you when there's a problem

Built-in sensors constantly monitor your HVAC system’s health and relay alerts through the thermostat.

Get real-time alerts about your HVAC system's health

Using artificial intelligence models, your smart thermostat generates HVAC health reports and alerts you if your system is in need of repair.

Name

Send a report to a trusted technician

If a problem is too challenging or unsafe, it can connect you to a reputable HVAC technician for swift assistance.

Name

View a 360° x-ray scan of the affected area

After taking a photo of the problem area using the smart thermostat, it will match the image to a 360° internal x-ray scan of the system part so you can easily see internal issues.

Name
Name

Sensors notify you when there's a problem

Built-in sensors constantly monitor your HVAC system’s health and relay alerts through the thermostat.

The solution

Creating a new understanding with homeowners and their homes

Get real-time alerts about your HVAC system's health

Using artificial intelligence models, your smart thermostat generates HVAC health reports and alerts you if your system is in need of repair.

Name
Name

Send a report to a trusted technician

If a problem is too challenging or unsafe, it can connect you to a reputable HVAC technician for swift assistance.

View a 360° x-ray scan of the affected area

After taking a photo of the problem area using the smart thermostat, it will match the image to a 360° internal x-ray scan of the system part so you can easily see internal issues.

Name
Name

Sensors notify you when there's a problem

Built-in sensors constantly monitor your HVAC system’s health and relay alerts through the thermostat.

Understanding the HVAC market

Since we tackled a topic that we were unfamiliar with, we did a lot of research into understanding HVAC systems and the market industry.


We learned that in 2022, the global HVAC (heating, ventilation, and air conditioning) market attained a value of nearly 159 billion dollars (Service Business Evolution). Furthermore, it’s estimated the global HVAC market will grow to 227 billion by 2028.

HVAC system research

1

Safety plays a huge factor in comfortability

Unexperienced homeowners felt unsafe perform some repairs and still want professional help.

2

Automating the process

People want something that will self-diagnose problems and contacts the technician for them.

3

Learning felt unexciting

Lessons felt tedious and repetitive, causing users to lose motivation easily.

Gathering user research

We talked to 8 homeowners and 2 technician/engineers, and asked them about their experiences with repairing HVAC systems. From this we were able to identify 3 different opportunity areas.

1

Safety plays a huge factor in comfortability

Unexperienced homeowners felt unsafe perform some repairs and still want professional help.

2

Automating the process

People want something that will self-diagnose problems and contacts the technician for them.

3

Learning felt unexciting

Lessons felt tedious and repetitive, causing users to lose motivation easily.

User interviews in park
User interviews in park
User interviews in park

Narrowing down our target audience

We wanted create a beneficial solution that would save time and money for both the homeowner and technician.


Taking all of our research into consideration, we wanted to focus on 45-60 years old homeowners buying a new home or wanting to install a new, state-of-the-art system, as well as trusted technicians.

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Where do we fall?

In comparison to our competitors such as Google Nest and Ecobee, we wanted to go for a modern and clean aesthetic.


We also wanted to create a new understanding with homeowners and their homes, giving them more control over their home maintenance.

Simplifying our idea into an user flow

We developed a user flow to visualize the steps a user would take and highlight important interactions. It helped us to see what features we should prioritize based on how the user would interact with the thermostat and create the overall structure.

We developed a user flow to visualize the steps a user would take and highlight important interactions.


It helped us to see what features we should prioritize based on how the user would interact with the thermostat and create the overall structure.

We developed a user flow to visualize the steps a user would take and highlight important interactions.


It helped us to see what features we should prioritize based on how the user would interact with the thermostat and create the overall structure.

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Visualizing our concept

When first bringing our concepts to life, we created different variations of the prototype and played around with different layouts, shape language, and interactions. At this stage, we were still conceptualizing our thoughts into how we can expand our features even further.

Due to time constraints and the complexity of designing an entire HVAC system, instead we designed an air handler that uses a labelling system to make it easier to identify parts. Inside the air handler, there are built-in sensors that collect data and relay it to the smart thermostat.

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Thermostat Prototype

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Air Handler 3D Model

Testing our design

We tested 7 different users and conducted 3 rounds of testing utilizing A/B testing, card sorting, and usability testing techniques.


From our multiple rounds of testing, we were able to make constant iterations to our thermostat interface as well as our user flow based off of the user input given.

Plexus Screen

Improving button readability

We added outlines to our buttons and tested our touchpoints to make sure they are accessible.

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Reducing text, utilizing images

By reducing the amount of text on the screen, we can convey information more effectively through images.

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Using clear and simple language

Cleaning up the writing helped us to maintain consistency in language and provide enough information for users.

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Improving button readability

We added outlines to our buttons and tested our touchpoints to make sure they are accessible.

Name

Reducing text, utilizing images

By reducing the amount of text on the screen, we can convey information more effectively through images.

Name

Using clear and simple language

Cleaning up the writing helped us to maintain consistency in language and provide enough information for users.

Name

Improving button readability

We added outlines to our buttons and tested our touchpoints to make sure they are accessible.

Name
Name

Reducing text, utilizing images

By reducing the amount of text on the screen, we can convey information more effectively through images.

Using clear and simple language

Cleaning up the writing helped us to maintain consistency in language and provide enough information for users.

Name

Style guide

While designing our interface, we made a style guide that helped streamline the development process and ensured a consistent and unified brand identity.

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Final design

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Plexus Screen
HVAC System and Sensor
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Project takeaways

Plexus song

We pitched our product with a song!

Storytelling simplifies complex ideas

Storytelling can be helpful in breaking down ideas into understandable scenarios for visualization.

Minimizing touchpoints reduces friction

Making sure that users can access the things they need in fewer steps streamlines the overall experience.

No design is final

Continuous iteration and being adaptable to changes gradually improves the design to fit the user needs.