Entering numbers is a common task in the operation of many interactive devices. The fundamental purpose of any number entry interface is very simple - to select a specific value. The interfaces provided to do this can however be deceptively complicated as we have discovered in devices ranging from microwave ovens to infusion pumps. Moreover the way these interfaces are implemented ignores user error and can result in unpredictable and potentially adverse outcomes.
The number entry project aims to discover and understand the types of errors common in number entry tasks, explore what (design) factors influence these errors and build fundamental understanding of how people think about number entry and what effect an interface has on their thinking.
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CHI+MED publications
Harold Thimbleby Errors & bugs needn't mean death (PDF, 342 KB) Public Service Review: UK Science + Technology, 2:18-19. 13 Oct 2011
Paolo Masci, Rimvydas Ruksenasi, Patrick Oladimeji, Abigail Cauchi, Andy Gimblett, Yunqiu L, Paul Curzon & Harold Thimbleby The benefits of formalising interactive number entry (PDF, 1.1 MB) Proceedings of the 4th International Workshop on Formal Methods for Interactive Systems (FMIS2011), volume 45 of Electronic Communications of the EASST 12 Oct 2011
Harold Thimbleby Interactive systems need safety locks (PDF, 321 KB) Proceedings of the IEEE 32nd International Conference on Information Technology Interfaces ITI, 29-36 8 Oct 2011
Patrick Oladimeji, Harold Thimbleby and Anna Cox (2011) Number entry interfaces and their effects on error detection 13th IFIP TC13 Conference on Human-Computer Interaction, Proceedings, Part IV, 178-185. Lecture Notes in Computer Science 6949, Springer. doi:10.1007/978-3-642-23768-3_15
Harold Thimbleby don't use 7-segment displays (PDF, 3.4 MB) Proceedings BCS Conference on HCI, pp.3C:1–6, Newcastle, England. Oxford University Press, 2011. 31 Aug 2011
Paolo Masci, Rimvydas Ruksenas, Patrick Oladimeji, Abigail Cauchi, Yunqiu Li, Paul Curzon & Harold Thimbleby On formalising interactive number entry on infusion pumps (PDF, 1.1 MB) Proceedings of the Fourth International Workshop on Formal Methods for Interactive Systems (FMIS 2011), Electronic Communications of the EASST, vol. 45, 2011, ISSN: 1863-2122 25 May 2011
Ann Blandford, Abigail Cauchi, Paul Curzon, Parisa Eslambolchilar, Dominic Furniss, Andy Gimblett, Huayi Huang, Paul Lee, Yunqiu Li, Paolo Masci, Patrick Oladimeji, Atish Rajkomar, Rimvydas Ruksenas & Harold Thimbleby Comparing actual practice and user manuals: A case study based on programmable infusion pumps (PDF, 1.1 MB) Proceedings of EICS4Med, First International Workshop on Engineering Interactive Computing Systems for Medicine and Health Care 25 May 2011
Abigail Cauchi, Paul Curzon, Parisa Eslambolchilar, Andy Gimblett, Huayi Huang, Paul Lee, Yunqiu Li, Paolo Masci, Patrick Oladimeji, Rimvydas Ruksenas and Harold Thimbleby (2011) Towards Dependable Number Entry for Medical DevicesProceedings ACM SIGCHI Symposium on Engineering Interactive Computing Systems (EICS): Engineering Interactive Computing Systems for Medicine and Health Care, pp.53–58, Pisa, Italy, ACM, 2011.
AbstractBibtex
Number entry is an ubiquitous task in medical devices, but is implemented in many different ways, from decimal keypads to seemingly simple up/down buttons. Operator manuals often do not give clear and complete explanations, and all approaches have subtle variations, with details varying from device to device. This paper explores the design issues, critiques designs, and shows that methods have advantages and disadvantages, particularly in terms of undetected error rates.
@inproceedings{HT39, title = {Towards Dependable Number Entry for Medical Devices}, author = {Harold Thimbleby and Abigail Cauchi and Paul Curzon and Parisa Eslambolchilar and Andy Gimblett and Huayi Huang and Paul Lee and Yunqiu Li and Paolo Masci and Patrick Oladimeji and Rimvydas {Ruk\v{s}\.{e}nas}}, abstract = {Number entry is an ubiquitous task in medical devices, but is implemented in many different ways, from decimal keypads to seemingly simple up/down buttons. Operator manuals often do not give clear and complete explanations, and all approaches have subtle variations, with details varying from device to device. This paper explores the design issues, critiques designs, and shows that methods have advantages and disadvantages, particularly in terms of undetected error rates.}, year = {2011}, booktitle = {Proceedings {ACM SIGCHI} Symposium on Engineering Interactive Computing Systems ({EICS}): Engineering Interactive Computing Systems for Medicine and Health Care}, pages = {53--58}, publisher = {ACM}, location = {Pisa, Italy} }
Harold Thimbleby (2011) Interactive numbers: a grand challenge (PDF, 412 KB) In Blashki, K., editor, Proceedings of the IADIS International Conference on Interfaces and Human Computer Interaction, xxviii-xxxv. IADIS. 14 Oct 2011
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Number entry is an ubiquitous task in medical devices, but is implemented in many different ways, from decimal keypads to seemingly simple up/down buttons. Operator manuals often do not give clear and complete explanations, and all approaches have subtle variations, with details varying from device to device. This paper explores the design issues, critiques designs, and shows that methods have advantages and disadvantages, particularly in terms of undetected error rates.
@inproceedings{HT39, title = {Towards Dependable Number Entry for Medical Devices}, author = {Harold Thimbleby and Abigail Cauchi and Paul Curzon and Parisa Eslambolchilar and Andy Gimblett and Huayi Huang and Paul Lee and Yunqiu Li and Paolo Masci and Patrick Oladimeji and Rimvydas {Ruk\v{s}\.{e}nas}}, abstract = {Number entry is an ubiquitous task in medical devices, but is implemented in many different ways, from decimal keypads to seemingly simple up/down buttons. Operator manuals often do not give clear and complete explanations, and all approaches have subtle variations, with details varying from device to device. This paper explores the design issues, critiques designs, and shows that methods have advantages and disadvantages, particularly in terms of undetected error rates.}, year = {2011}, booktitle = {Proceedings {ACM SIGCHI} Symposium on Engineering Interactive Computing Systems ({EICS}): Engineering Interactive Computing Systems for Medicine and Health Care}, pages = {53--58}, publisher = {ACM}, location = {Pisa, Italy} }
CHI+MED videos and blogposts
• Sarah Wiseman (based at the UCL Interaction Centre) gave a talk at the York Doctoral Symposium on Computer Science as well as a short stand up comedy show at UCL's Bright Club.
You can watch the videos below (hover over video and click on full screen to enlarge, or click on red icon to watch on YouTube).
