An investigation of user interface designs for an automated part recognition system

Abstract This research documents the results of an empirical investigation of five user interfaces designed for an automated part recognition system. The primary objective was to evaluate the effectiveness of the designs with respect to both user performance and preference. The interfaces combine three system command structures (menu, button, keypad) with three input devices (mouse, UnMouseTM, touchscreen). Empirical results indicate that the successful performance of required user-system interactions tasks remains independent of interface design; none of the interface designs degrade human task performance. Users indicate a preference for a button-style command structure.