Category Archives: Kiosk Usability

Kiosk Application, Kiosk Design, Kiosk Usability

Kiosk FAQ Frequently Asked Questions

Kiosk FAQ is intended to answer those questions that we are asked frequently, no surprise there.

Kiosk Mode
Kiosk Mode
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How to Setup Kiosk Mode

Example FAQ for Outdoor Kiosks

Why Outdoor kiosks cost so much

Outdoor kiosks are typically two, sometimes three times the cost of indoor kiosks. The reasons are varied but can best be summarized as follows:

Kiosk Design: An outdoor kiosk needs to be designed from the ground up as a watertight enclosure. It is generally not cost-effective to try to modify an indoor kiosk model to be outdoors compliant. The primary reason for this is that the kiosk needs to have all seams watertight and must be insulated on the inner walls to protect from heat and cold. Outdoor kiosks also need to be much more durable in construction as they will more often than not, be in unsupervised environments. After all is said and done, the outdoor enclosure (the cabinet only) is twice the cost of a comparable indoor unit.

Kiosk Display: The monitor must not be susceptible to .sunlight washout.. The effect is most commonly seen on ATM machines in the sunlight: you cannot read what.s on the screen due to direct or indirect sunlight. The solution is high backlighting and this can only be done on LCD monitors. LCD monitors in themselves are a bit more expensive than CRT monitors, although the cost differences are narrowing. High backlighting more than triples the cost of a LCD. For example, a 15. LCD with touch screen and with high backlighting and will cost about $2,000. The decision to use high backlighting is up to the customer but if they decline, we will want that in writing. Before you ask, we will not deliver outdoor kiosks without the LCD solution. We will never provide a CRT solution. The CRT approach has proven to yield unsatisfactory results and we want no part of that since an unsatisfactory monitor solution is virtually assured.

HVAC: The kiosk may well require a heater/air conditioner installed to maintain an acceptable temperature and humidity inside the kiosk. Depending on the environment, we may have to use various degrees of air treatment methods, which may add up to $3,200 to the cost of the kiosk. There are some areas in the country that may allow outdoor solutions without HVAC or your outdoor installation may be in-wall where you can take advantage of air conditioning in the building for your kiosk. The issue, however, is not only heat but also humidity. Protecting the electronics inside the kiosk is expensive.

UL Testing: Any kiosk that goes outdoors MUST pass the official UL tests for outdoor electronic enclosures. These UL tests ensure that the units are truly waterproof and more importantly, are shockproof in the rain and snow. Liability is the issue here. We will not build an outdoor unit without this testing, so don.t even ask us to do so. If you get an outdoor kiosk from KIOSK or our other sponsors, it will be UL tested. UL testing cost at one time was $1,500 to 3,500 for the first kiosk and $250 to $350 for every kiosk of identical design thereafter.

PC Hardware:  Because of heat generated by the components inside the kiosk (mostly by the LCD and the PC), we recommend the use of a very small form factor, low heat generating PC. This adds to the PC cost a bit but lowers the amount of heat that must be removed by the air treatment/conditioner system. Bigger PCs generate more heat and more heat means more expensive and capable air treatment/conditioning which costs more, etc., etc.

Kiosk installation:  This is an extra and un-calculated cost of outdoor kiosks. Typically, outdoor kiosks need to be bolted to the ground, which implies that they have a level cement slab on which to be mounted. There must be power and whatever other connectivity you will need, delivered to the kiosk (frequently underground and through the cement slab). The power cables and connections must also be watertight and in agreement with local electrical standards which vary from state to state. The site preparation for this could be costly and time-consuming, as you will have building permits, specific guidance from the state or local government, specific subcontractors that must be used and related costs and delays to complete this.

Internet kiosk, iPad Kiosk, Kiosk Design, Kiosk Mode, Kiosk Usability

iPad Kiosk Ergonomics

iPad Kiosk Ergonomics and what is a tall user versus a short user is addressed in reprinted blog entry from Lilitab

iPad Kiosk Ergonomics Explained

We frequently get questions along the lines of “Can really tall people use your iPad kiosks?“, “Can children use your kiosks” or alternately “We need telescoping iPad kiosks so users can adjust the height“. This is particularly relevant for healthcare iPad kiosks and hospital iPad kiosks as patients may be seated, in bed, in a wheelchair or standing.

The short answer to the first two questions above is “Yes” and the answer to the last question is “You don’t need telescoping kiosks and it will most likely cause your users problems“.

Now allow me to explain why those answers are valid—but first a little background.

Our executive team has over 40 years of experience designing and deploying interactive kiosks for many fortune 500 companies and we have incorporated many of those lessons learned into the lilitab tablet kiosk platform. Prior to launching lilitab our customers often asked us the same questions for full-sized interactive kiosks (the kind you might encounter checking in at airports for example) and we always told them the same thing; height adjustability/telescoping is not a useful feature for the vast majority of kiosk deployments and it will only cause your users problems.

Why? Keep reading…

Good Design Always Wins

Upper 5th percentile male

A well-designed tablet kiosk will position the display at the right height and angle to accommodate the vast majority of people and wheelchair users. In designer parlance this is everyone above the lowest 5th percentile female (i.e. short women) and below the upper 5th percentile male (i.e. tall men). A good example of this are ATMs—they have no height adjustability and yet they manage to serve the vast majority of the public and banks are very sensitive to ADA lawsuits, they have very deep pockets after all. “But wait!” you say, “there are almost aways two heights of ATMs in every bank of ATMs; a lower height one and a taller one“. This is true. However that’s because ATMs are very sensitive about privacy and so they tilt the display back further than they ergonomically need to be, which results in the need for two heights; one for wheelchair users and one for everyone else.

Do They Even Know it’s There?

Lower 5th percentile female.

Most kiosk users are untrained (i.e. this is the first time they are using the device) and informing them of the presence of a height adjustable feature, where it is located and getting them to use it is very difficult. Most first time users walk up to the device and start interacting right away; very few of them will stop to read any instructions or look around the kiosk for a method to adjust the height. This can become a problem if the previous user adjusted the kiosk all the way up or all the way down as the subsequent users will likely not realize the kiosk can be height adjusted and just assume it is not meant to be used by them and keep walking. When consulting for a kiosk client on this very topic a few years ago we determined that most of their customers were not aware of the feature and many of their kiosks were permanently positioned all the way up or all the way down rendering them unusable for most people.

Don’t Overlook ADA Compliance

Wheelchair user.

ADA compliance requires that any user operated feature be operable with one hand and require only 5 lbs of force to operate. This means most would need a mechanical assist such as a gas spring or motor to move the kiosk up and down, anything else would open you up to ADA compliance lawsuits. This adds considerable cost for no real benefit (assuming you can serve the same range of users without height adjustment, which you can see diagrams inline).

For more details on ADA compliance see our previous blog posting on the subject here.

 

So How do you accommodate users of varying heights?

Well the first step is to identify what a “tall” and a “short” user are. According to our handy dandy ergonomic bible “Human Dimension & Interior Space” the upper 5th percentile male is @6′ 1″ tall and the lower 5th percentile female is @4’11” tall (you might add 1″ to that for shoes). Wheelchair users will fall in the middle so as long as you do not conflict with other ADA wheelchair requirements such as setback or side versus front approach (see our previous blog post here) you should be ok by just designing for those upper 5th percentile male and lower 5th percentile female users.

Adding tilt adjustment will increase the range of users you can accommodate but more importantly tilt adjustment is almost universally understood and easily used. This means that if you add tilt, your users will not find the kiosk in a state they can’t use it (too tall or too short) and they will instinctually understand how to adjust it to suit them just by tilting the display. Another key advantage of a tilting display over a telescoping is ADA compliance. The display only requires one hand and under 5 pounds of force to tilt so it’s ADA compliant.

Ok so what does this mean to the iPad kiosk deployer?

You can rest easy in the knowledge that all lilitab kiosk products are designed such that very tall and very short people can use them comfortably and are fully compliant with all ADA requirements. The lilitab Pro line incorporates user tilt which will help users adjust for glare from overhead lights, something that can be a concern in certain retail settings. The Basic line offers a fixed neck but is still fully ADA compliant and ergonomically compatible with very tall and very short users, by design.

Questions? Shoot us an email at info@lilitab.com.