HMI Design& UI Design
Lucid Motors
Worked along-side Lucid Motors in-house team on location in Newark to bring the in-car digital experience of the new Lucid Air to life. Also lead additional projects that fall within the Lucid Motors brand.
Based in California, Lucid Motors is a premier luxury electric vehicle manufacturer. The Lucid Air, their flagship model, epitomizes cutting-edge design, seamlessly integrating California-inspired aesthetics with a spacious full-size interior within a sleek mid-size exterior footprint. As a vital member of a five-person team, I played a key role in enhancing the in-car digital experience for the Lucid Air. Tasked with creating, researching, and implementing a revolutionary user interface, our collaborative efforts aimed to redefine automotive technology, ensuring that the digital experience of the Lucid Air mirrored the vehicle's unparalleled luxury and innovation.
Project Overview
User Experience Design
User Interface Design
Design System
Iconography
12 months
Role & Duration
We joined Lucid Motors when their in-house team was formulating the System Interaction Model for the various screens within the vehicle. Our role was to establish intuitive and user-friendly UX principles. Our objective was to design a system where users could anticipate responses and behaviors without consulting a manual, and to create innovative interaction patterns that promote familiarity through repetition.
One effective strategy we employed involved establishing a continuous relationship between the Instrument Cluster Right (ICR) and Center Information Display (CID) screens. This integration enables users to seamlessly transfer content from ICR to CID, providing them with the capability to perform additional tasks not suited for the limited real estate on ICR. We collectively agreed that while ICR serves as the primary screen for infotainment content, the layout and positioning of CID are ideal for handling detailed and complex tasks, such as entering a destination via the keyboard for Navigation.
Research and Explorations
Ensuring the synchronized visibility of the pulling and dragging response on both screens is essential for the new interaction paradigm to be ingrained as a learned behavior.
My Key Contributions and Responsibilities throughout the Project
As the Design Lead for multiple projects in the Infotainment Department, I spearheaded various initiatives, including UX/UI design for the media app, ensuring seamless integration with Spotify. Other projects encompassed features such as phone integration, seat controls, massage options, quick controls, and various vehicle system settings. These endeavors unfolded over several months of intensive collaboration at Lucid Motors headquarters in Newark, California.
Each project was organized with dedicated teams comprising a designer, product owner, engineer, and various stakeholders. In fulfilling my responsibilities, I frequently collaborated with safety lawyers, hardware engineers, and multiple other departments.
Throughout these efforts, I acquired valuable experience in tailoring presentations for diverse audiences. When presenting ideas to engineers, the presentations needed to be technically comprehensive, anticipating any questions about functionality. In contrast, presentations for stakeholders and CEOs required a more visually focused approach. This flexible communication style allowed me to merge UX research with UI design and customize it for different audiences.
The success of these projects relied on a massive team effort, involving meticulous documentation, thorough exploration, and research. Our focus extended beyond design objectives, as we diligently addressed safety and legal requirements.
Project Example: Integrated Phone App
One of my initial projects involved defining the behavior of the phone app within the vehicle. This encompassed tasks such as Bluetooth pairing, managing profiles, and incorporating Alexa-specific commands for the phone. Recognizing that our primary user base consisted largely of business professionals, we prioritized features like seamless conference call management, quick merging, and the ability to place calls on hold. Additionally, we aimed to empower users to access comprehensive contact information, including addresses, phone numbers, and profile images. Looking ahead, our roadmap included plans to integrate calendar and email functionalities.
In the collaborative process with the product owner and engineers, we developed
numerous user cases during our regular meetings. These sessions were crucial for
aligning user expectations with technical capabilities, guiding us in generating user cases tailored for each sprint.
UI Design for the Phone App
As a UI designer, I played a pivotal role in establishing the brand system, which encompassed designing iconography and defining various color themes. After the system was established, my responsibility extended to the conversion of UX screens from the projects I led into fully functional UI screens. Our rigorous testing process involved evaluating all screens on the OLED display in diverse settings, including both day and night conditions, to guarantee optimal visibility of colors, typography, and iconography.
Main Takeaways
Lucid Motors was the second in-car project I had the opportunity to collaborate on in my relatively short career. The experience provided valuable lessons in working with diverse teams, honing skills in project management, and effectively presenting my work to stakeholders and crucial investors. Leading various projects from inception to completion, I gained a comprehensive understanding of the development process.
The structured design system we created for the infotainment screens has proven versatile, finding application not only within internal tools but also in crafting new themes for the latest models and vehicle trims. The public release of the Lucid Air in 2021 marked a significant milestone, and its subsequent recognition through various awards underscores the success and impact of the collaborative efforts invested in the project.
And there is so much more...
I have been fortunate to work on several amazing projects over the years. However, due to non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) and contractual obligations, I am unable to share specific details about them. If you're interested in getting a sneak peek at an internal tool I developed for the Lucid Motors manufacturing plant, please click the link below to request temporary access.
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