Integrated application suite for Traffic Control Centres

The rapid expansion of Verkeerscentrum Vlaanderen required a thorough revision of its processes and applications.
Namahn was asked to redesign the basic traffic monitoring functionality and to provide a basis for future integration of traffic monitoring tools.

Operator in a Dutch traffic control centre we visited to compare work processes and best practises.

Understand
A day spent observing in a Dutch TCC provided a good basis for comparing work processes, best practice and insights from a broader perspective. The field study findings were consolidated in a written document, organised by theme and illustrated with pictures and diagrams.

Link analysis exercise with a VCV team at Namahn's Design Studio.

To identify all actors and lines of communication within the control centre, we performed a link analysis. This analysis provided information for exploring the possible physical setup of the control room, plus focus points for task- and process flows.

Second link analysis using our tinkering toolkit.

A further link analysis helped us explore how the future control room could be organised, with a view to optimal support for new workflows, processes and roles within the control centre.

Sample wireframe drawing demonstrating the main design principles.

Explore
We described future interaction flows in a series of scenarios, focussing on the daily routine at the traffic centre, including critical flows for the operator. We then explored design alternatives by means of low-fidelity sketches and verified the main design principles by illustrating the descriptions of the scenarios in the wireframes.

Detailed static screen designs illustrating an individual task flow of an operator

Based on the stakeholder’s feedback we refined the conceptual design, introduced custom controls and added realistic details. Each task flow was illustrated by a sequence of static screen samples.

Define
The design patterns were defined in a style guide, helping developers to build the application correctly and add future functionalities in a consistent way.

During the design process, we focused on consistency in design and efficiency in use. When legacy appications are integrated, they can share interaction patterns and information design. This will make them easier to learn.

The explorations for control room organisation proved valuable for defining the view on future possibilities. The design verification confirmed the extensibility of the design and its potential to support an increasing flexibility in work flow procedures when monitoring road traffic.

What we have done

Integrated application suite for Traffic Control Centres