Selected work.

Goal

Build a VR environment that supports team dynamics and improve its usability before scaling training — so interface friction doesn't contaminate what we're actually trying to measure: coordination.

What I did

• Heuristic evaluation across 7 dimensions, with 4 reviewers rating severity 0–4 and reconciling scores.
• Categorized usability issues by priority to inform the next phase of evaluation and data collection.
• Supports a Team Dynamics Measurement Framework within a Synthetic Training Environment.

Key insight

Documentation errors were often behavioral — caused by stress and poor tooling — not just technical failures. That reframed the brief from "build a database" to "reduce cognitive load at the hardest possible moment."

What I did

• Interviewed 7 caregivers and family members; mapped the emotional journey of documentation in a safety-critical context.
• Produced a priority-ranked document model (medical history → insurance → equipment → DNR → will) that became the app's information architecture.
• Designed a dual interface — a Staff View for nurses/admins and a Caregiver View for families — with digitized intake and HIPAA compliance, applying FDA Human Factors Guidance concepts.

The pivot — where research changed the project

We started at the most visible problem: cabin redesign and mobility hardware. Those proved impractical and regulation-bound. Customer discovery revealed the deeper driver wasn't hardware — it was uncertainty. Passengers needed to know their request had been heard and would be there on the other end. So we reframed around transparency and communication, across all disability groups.

What I did

• Led user research to improve the flying experience for passengers with disabilities.
• Translated ambiguous stakeholder needs into a concrete product concept and business case.
• Designed a flow: pre-travel request at booking → automated airline review → assistance allocation → real-time support.

What I did

• Designed controls and displays for three operator roles — pilot, payload operator, and data analyst — including reach and anthropometric considerations.
• Built a two-tier alert hierarchy: low-priority notifications vs. high-priority, action-blocking warnings, with integrated audio-visual cues.
• Defined a supervisory-automation model — the UAV protects itself and payload release can be preset, since manual release is impossible from the operator's position.

What I did

• Ran mixed-methods research, including a heuristic evaluation using the Jahnke framework (technical, pedagogical, and social usability).
• Pivoted the protocol mid-study — when 3 of 5 participants disengaged during a pre/post-test, I switched to open-ended prompts (the drop-off was itself a finding).
• Surfaced key issues: cognitive load (6 of 9 rated long text distracting), motivation dropping mid-lesson, unclear feedback, and an unhelpful AI tutor.
• Delivered prioritized, evidence-based recommendations and a Now / Next / Later roadmap.

What I did

• Identified a gap between the product's marketed and actual functionality (safety vs. presence-detection only).
• Proposed a modular sensor add-on — temperature (45–95°F), dwell-time tracker, buckle reminder — without overengineering.
• Designed a usability-testing plan (targets: SUS > 80, under 5% false alarms, 100% caregiver handoff) and a go-to-market strategy addressing regulatory risk (CPSIA, FCC, ASTM F963) and competitive repositioning.