Heuristic Evaluation

This heuristic evaluation is based on the scenario where children are playing outside in the playground with iBot.

Feedback:
iBot can give information and feedback to the children.
Scenario: iBot tracked the score of the rounders game and informed the children.

Everyday Language:
Currently iBot can only speak English. In the future, iBot will be capable of using multiple languages. In order to do this, iBot would be able to download languages when required. This would allow iBot to help children learning other languages, or communicate with a child who speaks a different language.
Scenario: When a child communicates in a different language iBot can respond.

Undo:
iBot doesn't malfunction when a minor accident occurs.
Scenario: If a rounders ball hit iBot, it would continue playing.

Consistency:
Sometimes iBot performs actions that are unpredictable. Therefore, improvements must be made so that iBot can perform consistently. In the future iBot will respond in similar ways to children’s actions.
Scenario: If a child hit the ball up in the air iBot would try and catch it.

Recognition not Recall:
As mentioned above, iBot is not consistent all of the time making it difficult for children to predict its actions. Children should be able to familiarise themselves with it's behaviour and predict its actions. The children would be able to predict iBot’s behaviour and actions in the same way as they would predict their teacher’s.
Scenario: If iBot caught a ball the child could expect iBot to catch the next ball thrown.

Simple Design:
iBot’s appearance is now robotic and available in several colours.
Scenario: The children were very enthusiastic about the robotic appearance of iBot and found it much more interesting than its previous appearance.

Expert Use:
Teachers in control of iBot are able to assign new tasks to iBot’s schedule, which then can be used in children’s lessons.
Scenario: A teacher can set iBot a new task like playing hide and seek in the playground.

Error Recovery:
iBot has an in-built recovery system to handle serious malfunctions. First the teacher is notified and then iBot connects to its server and attempts to repair itself.
Scenario: If iBot fell over while running to a base, iBot can get back up.

Documentation:
Only part of the required documentation is currently available to the teacher, but in the future detailed online documentation will be available.
Scenario: N/A

Other:
In the future children would be able to communicate with iBot after school hours, while iBot is charging. An instant messenger service could be used to enable this communication.


Farhad Bahramy
Matthew Walker