The augmented reality (AR) market is expected to grow by billions in years to come, and the accessibility of AR provides many opportunities. There is a huge notable digital divide between younger and older adults. To fill the huge gap between young and older adults by providing fun and enjoyable experiences to older adults, within their space.
I designed a mobile gaming app that will use AR technology to reduce age-related inequalities in digital tools and thus increase participation among older adults. In order to avoid older generation vulnerabilities, I focussed on designing fun games with an easy and simple aesthetic. A game which provides a good wholesome amount of time with learning.
I adapted the design thinking process, which consists of 5 phases: research, define/analysis, ideation, prototyping, and testing & evaluation.
Due to the iterative nature of design thinking, I found this process extremely valuable in discovering insights and informing key decisions for the app.
Understanding Context
I started the project by diving deep into research journals and articles to understand the challenges older adults face due to age and ramp up on the current AR space.
Aging is often framed as a problem and current technology designs always stigmatize aging. Our society is so profoundly ageist, more often aging is termed as a stigma to society. Due to this, there is an increasing gap between young generation and older adults.
"Augmented Reality (AR) promises many benefits for older adults, such as promoting a healthy lifestyle with health-related gaming, maintaining social contact via digital interfaces, supporting rehabilitation, and aiding in everyday life tasks.
AR can help train motor and cognitive skills. The elderly can not only improve their skills, but also build new skills while playing.
User Research
In order to conduct a participatory design process. I conducted total 8 interviews; the findings were diverse; from curious to explore new digital tech to happy being playing with his grandson.
I collaborated on both the findings and created something which is utilized by a large group of people in the same age groups.
Problem Statement
The older generation who are being neglected and ignored in the new age tech space. Many older adults do not have the tech skills needed to compete in an increasingly tech-driven economy. With this constraint in mind, develop technologies which provide fun and enjoyable experiences to older adults, and experiences that they can share with others.
I started with multiple ideas for design and functionality after doing brainstorming, I finalized few designs and created wireframes.
With limited time and resources, a mid-fidelity prototype was the deliverable for this project, exploring in-depth the feature of using inclusive AR mobile games.
1. Overall this project was excellent and a great learning experience for me. To fill the gap between young and older adults, this project analyzes some observations and builds an AR enabled mobile game for older adults.
I majorly focusses in empowering learning opportunities to target user(s), not ones that make them feel overwhelmed, ignorant or helpless.
2. For the next steps, I will definitely plan to integrate more AR implementations to bring out highly immersive and interactive experiences. I have a plan to share with my friends / colleagues grandparents and then work on it based on their feedback.
My primary focus will be usability testing with a maximum number of people to better understand the target user(s) and improving an app which provides a wonderful experience.
I had fun working with Adobe Aero and aligning the real world with superimposed digital objects. While working with AR tech, I feel it has the potential to transform many aspects of our lives. Although, it should be utilized with care and benevolence for everyone.
Overall, this project has been thought provoking for me. It made me see things from a different perspective. It gave me the sense of power to bring change in society through design, designing for all disregard of class, race, age, and sexual orientation. As a designer, I have a responsibility to bring a great (positive) impact in people’s lives who are being marginalized.