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The subtle art of designing physical controls for cars

theturnsignalblog.com

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Re: The subtle art of designing physical controls for cars

#221

Post by genewitch »

hammock wrote: post #120
schiffern wrote: post #112

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The real luxury for me was four knobs (or often sliders). https://i.ytimg.com/vi/W9AjhGko2mA/maxresdefault.jpg The fourth one controls recirculate, and it allowed you to set in-between positions between 100% recirculate and 100% fresh air. To simultaneously optimize pollution/humidity/CO2 I find I prefer about 80% recirculate and 20% fresh air, but achieving this configuration is impossible in most (all?) modern cars…

It is achievable in every car by cracking the window

"It ain't got no gas in it."

Re: The subtle art of designing physical controls for cars

#222

Post by genewitch »

snickmy wrote: post #158
LoganDark wrote: post #28

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I wish the devkits were not out of stock!! I've been wanting to get or make one of these for years

we still have some units, but available only in UK

UK closed its ports and airports or what?

Re: The subtle art of designing physical controls for cars

#223

Post by brailsafe »

typewithrhythm wrote: post #104
brailsafe wrote: post #97

It's wild to me that so many people ITT obviously hate many aspects of the interface they have with their cars, and yet buy them new anyway and deal with it. Having not had a car for years, the only time I'd find this acceptable is if I was just buying a palatable but imperfect used car rather than a new one that's tens of thousands. I'd accept that some of these issues may not be discovered during the lead up resear…

What's the alternative? Most cars have similar interfaces, and few are what I would want; but if you have already decided to buy a new "luxury van" (fill in your preferred type and trim), then you don't really get much of a choice.

> but if you have already decided to buy a new "luxury van"

Is that not a choice? That's the confusing bit. People talking about these like they've been held at gunpoint to consume luxury vehicles.

My sense is that car/automobile purchases are just so ingrained as default necessities that the idea of not having one either is or seems to be unthinkable.

Re: The subtle art of designing physical controls for cars

#224

Post by ninalanyon »

hgomersall wrote: post #200
arkh wrote: post #185

Earlier quoted context omitted.

And I'm a lazy fucker: I want to set a temperature range and then not bother until I sell the car. Under the range? Heat it. Over? Freeze it. But a range, not a single point. So if the temperature is between min and max, the AC stays off.

I posit you're unusual in your opinion. I mostly observe people use the climate control knob like a heater knob. If it's cold, the set temperature gets cranked up; if hot it gets cranked down.

> I mostly observe people use the climate control knob like a heater knob.

That's because their car has badly designed and implemented climate control.

I do that in my current car because it has crap climate control, Tesla S 70D. In my previous car I set it when I bought the car and adjusted it perhaps once a year, Rover 75 Connoisseur.

Re: The subtle art of designing physical controls for cars

#225

Post by s0rce »

nottorp wrote: post #148
Retric wrote: post #67

Earlier quoted context omitted.

A sun load sensor mostly solves this, they used to be a high end feature but it's becoming more common.

High end? It's on my 15 year old Suzuki. I only know that because the diagnostics told my mechanic it's broken and he replaced it once :) It may just not be advertised.

I don't think my 15 year old Suzuki has it :(

Re: The subtle art of designing physical controls for cars

#226

Post by dghlsakjg »

gertlex wrote: post #103
dghlsakjg wrote: post #43

Earlier quoted context omitted.

My 1997 Lexus has a knob that controls the digital climate control. Except that instead of a spinny position encoder, they used a knob with stops so you have tactile feedback for when the temperature is all the way up or down. This is the kind of detail that I love about a well engineered car.

Curious if I am missing a detail: It sounds like a knob with endstops, incremental notches for a finite number of positions between the endstops, and probably a spinny position encoder underneath it? (this also describes my 2009 saturn; I think; unsure, but that's a good sign: I don't look at/think about this knob conciously!)

That's all, you got it.

Its just a nice touch that was pretty clearly done by someone who had a very good grasp of intuitive human interfaces.

Re: The subtle art of designing physical controls for cars

#227

Post by hinkley »

0_____0 wrote: post #48
crote wrote: post #31

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Let me guess: 3DConnexion's SpaceMouse?

I've used it for 3D CAD and seen it on The Expanse as part of the bridge crash couch props on the Martian vessels. They also used an older model of Black Diamond headlamp for the space suit lights in early seasons. There's a balance to be struck here - too much reuse of modern objects and it pulls you out of the action. I think the Expanse did it well.

Seen a lot of borosilicate glass from Bodum with the logo scratched off or covered up too.

Re: The subtle art of designing physical controls for cars

#228

Post by tekknik »

amluto wrote: post #186
nottorp wrote: post #172

Earlier quoted context omitted.

But I test drove a Tesla and besides the stupid tablet controls the smart turn stalks couldn't hold a turn signal when turning left at a crossroads that wasn't at 90 degrees. That's life threatening if you ask me. No, I don't need to know Musk's politics to avoid his cars. Of course, it's well known that BMWs come without a turn stalk so maybe it seems normal if you compare those two brands :)

My biggest objection to modern smart turn signal stalks is that you can’t turn the turn signal off easily. Sometimes the signal is on, I want it off, and there simply is no way to do it reliably. The old latching stalks could be moved to the center position, and the signal would turn off every time.

On a Tesla you do exactly the same, push the stalk back to center. It’s a little confusing at first but so is one pedal driving.

Re: The subtle art of designing physical controls for cars

#229

Post by tekknik »

yial wrote: post #190
Lanolderen wrote: post #173

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The issue I see with AUTO most often is noise. Almost every time I've disabled AUTO was in the beginning of a drive while talking to someone having to yell over the fans or just going to move my car 10 meters and it just being annoyingly loud. The temp I don't believe you can really fix. Sometimes I throw my jacket in the back, sometimes I keep it on, sometimes I'm tired or my stomach is upset and I want it to be a s…

From my experience: BMW , Subaru, and Mazda the auto settings are worthless / not functional. Audi is okay. The best I’ve found is Infiniti, which 2013 ish on, the auto settings are perfect 99% of the time. (This of course means, you do have to adjust the temperature setting, but once set the fans spinning up and down are perfect along with the heat moderation. ) BMW could be user error on my part. The longest I’ve u…

When people get hyperbolic and state that AC controls are pure agony it shows a disconnect with reality and it’s hard to take that person serious.

Re: The subtle art of designing physical controls for cars

#230

Post by amluto »

tekknik wrote: post #228
amluto wrote: post #186

Earlier quoted context omitted.

My biggest objection to modern smart turn signal stalks is that you can’t turn the turn signal off easily. Sometimes the signal is on, I want it off, and there simply is no way to do it reliably. The old latching stalks could be moved to the center position, and the signal would turn off every time.

On a Tesla you do exactly the same, push the stalk back to center. It’s a little confusing at first but so is one pedal driving.

What generation Tesla?

On the originals, sure. The stock physically latches away from the center position when the signal is on. Works great.

On some of the newest ones, there is a left signal button and a right signal button. I think that, if you are signaling right and push the left button and you don’t lose the race against the automatic end of signaling, then you end up not signaling. This is both modal and racy.

On the intermediate models I’ve tried, I’m moderately confident that the stick always rests in the center position. You can’t push it toward center because it’s already there.

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