User experience aspects of radiant floor heating, Considerations for supporting users mental models

Abstract

To promote energy savings, manufacturers implement system features such as programmes and schedules to their thermostats. Despite these features, the energy saving levels are not sufficient. The main user interface for the heating system is the thermostat itself. These thermostats often lack in creating an user experience that provides enough usability in order to support adequate energy savings. The thesis is written in collaboration with a company that has the goal to develop a thermostat for their product line. The aim of the thesis has been to explore the domain of residential floor heating thermostats and their users, in order to create a better user experience by supporting users’ mental models of floor heating systems. The thesis has resulted in 7 design considerations that aims to support manufacturers during their development of thermostats along with providing research with knowledge on users behaviour within the heating system domain. The design considerations are suggestions on how features and information could be developed and presented for the user in order to improve the user experience. They include considerations such as Aligning mental models by introducing the user to system functionality, that through a design concept, Ethermal, is exemplified and aims to show how the design considerations could be implemented in practice.