There are currently 50+ stations, with plans for expansion into the University City area. Tour goers met the tour guide, Tom Doogan, at the Qualcomm Stadium station. We then ventured to the San Diego State University station, and then on to the new La Mesa station. Lively discussions ensued about ingress and egress, level of floors and ramps, trolley driver qualifications, usability of ticket booths, system planning, safety issues, and much more. Mr. Doogan fielded all queries that this group of Human Factors – Usability folks could throw at him. Thanks to MTS for an informative afternoon!
Mix them all together, and what do you get? HFES local chapter research into Ice Cream Truck signage!
For the recent HFES conference in Las Vegas, the San Diego Chapter of HFES (SD-HFES) developed an interactive (FUN) display to share their Chapter research project with colleagues. The display showed a number of different ice cream truck warning designs. Passersby at the conference were invited to vote for their favorite design.
Background: The California Vehicle Code regulates the vending locations and warning signage on ice cream trucks that operate in residential areas; however, a very large majority of signage is non-compliant. Children pedestrians in streets are particularly vulnerable if drivers are not properly alerted to the potential dangerous situations that may result during on-street vending. The specifications in the Vehicle Code have an enforcement focus rather than a human factors basis – therefore, SD-HFES has set about to develop recommendations for effective signage requirements for Ice Cream trucks.
Following guidelines set forth by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI), SD-HFES members created alternate warning designs and are currently having them rated by HFES and traffic law enforcement professionals. The Exhibit Hall voting was for ‘Fun’ only and did not affect the formal data collection. The picture shows how colleagues at HFES voted with pushpins for their favorite designs. They also made numerous valuable comments, both in person and as notes on the poster!
In the next phase of the process, several of the winning designs will be presented to more experts to choose a final design. Then the final design will be communicated to legislators as a potential supplement or illustration for the vehicle code.
Beyond the specifics of ice cream truck warning signs, the San Diego chapter wanted to share ideas with colleagues for how a chapter could come together to address an important topic using our professional skills. We’re having fun, doing something important, and deepening our relationships with local and national colleagues.
World Usability Day - Graywater RecyclingSD-HFES participated in World Usability Day by promoting the recycling of graywater, which was profiled on the HFES website. SD-HFES also participated in San Diego EarthFair 2010 at Balboa Park. We had great success in educating and spreading awareness of conserving and recycling our water resources.
Graywater is wastewater generated from laundry and bathing/showering, but NOT from the toilet. Comprising of 50-80% of residential wastewater, graywater gets its name from its cloudy appearance and is neither fresh (white, or potable, water) nor heavily polluted (black, or sewage, water). Water recycling is accomplished by harvesting the graywater from your home and then using the water on your lawn or in your garden - see image below.
Graywater - How It Works
The use of graywater has considerable financial savings and many environmental benefits as well. An overview of graywater and why it is attractive can be found in this printable Graywater Recycling brochure (PowerPoint). Click here for a free PowerPoint viewer.
Additional graywater information: