Susannah Lowe
Ergonomics (Human Factors)
Final year project
Accessibility Evaluation of User Interface Design on Digital Platforms for Visually Impaired and Dyslexic Users
Typography Anatomy
The structure of letter and character design is what characterises font styles from each other. During my Final Year Project, I was investigating Fixation Locations based on which section of letters they occured in and if there was a correlation between key charactersitics and increase useablility.
Susannah Lowe
I am Suzie Lowe and I am a Human Factors and User Experience Designer. Throughout my time at Loughborough I have trained in a wide variety of areas with a passion for User Experience Design. My Final Year Project is titled 'Accessibility Evaluation of User Interface Design on Digital Platforms for Visually Impaired and Dyslexic Users'. Having designed UI and testing the accessibility of websites and apps, I believed that there was a gap in current research on the accessibility of styles of typography and iconography that has been developed in recent years and its impact on users with Visual Impairments and reading difficulties such as dyslexia. For my research, I conducted three experiments that investigated the effects of 8 popular font types on reading speed and fixations, in single sentences and in full web pages. In addition to this, I created three sets of icons that follow three major trends: Glyphs, Line Icons and Flat Colour Icons. These icons were then used in a mobile app prototype and users were asked to complete a series of visual searches. The research further developed my knowledge and the existing pool of research that is currently avaliable on Typography and the beginning of research in the field of Iconography.
For my placement year I worked in the UX team at Yell working on both consumer channels and B2B channels products. Throughout my placement I developed skills in Sketch, InVision, DSM and Adobe Creative Cloud Products such as Photoshop, Illustrator, AfterEffects and MediaEncoder. Whilst I was at Yell, I taught myself 2D animation which has since been used to create animations for Yell's Consumer Search App. My time at Yell helped me to develop a number of skills to aid me in my career. Working closely with the head of SEO, I developed advanced knowledge of Adobe Analytics for both Web and Native App platforms. I also began to learn more about graphic design and UI design, with which I created an icon set for Yell with over 150 icons. My contract with Yell was extended and then I was promoted to Junior Designer in September 2018 which I currently work at along side completing my degree. Throughout this year I have worked on creating a Pattern Library and comprehensive Style Guides for both Web and Native App platforms. In addition I created an illustration set based on emotional design principles for error states and zero states on mobile platforms. So far I have developed firm basis of knowledge that spans across user experiences in both digital platforms and physical design. After University I will start work as a Mid-weight UX designer at Yell in July 2019. In the future, I plan to continue to work in UX, developing my UI and Animation skills to one day be a UX Designer in VR, AR and video game design.
Experience
Yell - Junior UX Designer September 2018 - June 2019 Yell - UX Designer - July 2019 onwards
Placements
July 2017 - September 2018
Yell - Undergraduate UX Designer