The problem

We accounted for how transportation in the city of Atlanta is a mayor societal problem. Having a car is a very dependable asset in order to commute across the city for many residents specifically people use their car to monetize their ride-sharing services. We considered these factors, and focused in the possibility to provide a mobile platform that allows drivers to explore different ways to save time, money and increase convinience when its time to look for gas stations.

Users & Audience

We built this solution targeting drivers specifically shared-ride drivers such as Uber Drivers who are actively on the road and are frequently requiring to find nearby gas stations where they can compare each other based on their needs.

Team & Role

I led a core team of 4 Software Developers (including myself), and took the role of UI/UX Designer with occasional support from classmates with background of software development.

I coordinated and led all facets of design including: user cases, storyboard, wireframes, database and prototyping.

Initial Application Idea

Local drivers need an app to find gas stations near their location. They are interested in the lowest price and the best service.
A driver is interested in a specific gas type, and it’s price.
It is essential to know if the gas station provides additional services: ATM access, air pumps, a car wash.
A driver wants to know the rating of the gas station based on other people's experiences.
Some people are hungry during their trip. They want to know if it is possible to buy some food or a snack at the gas station.
Every driver wants to find the shortest route to the gas station. We can find the fastest way to get to the gas station based on the current car location.

Meet the User

I am a local Uber driver. I need an app to find Gas Stations near my location to compare prices, distances, and reviews.
I have high maintenance of my car, and would I like to find gas locations with different amenities such as fuel types, air pump areas, ATMs, cash wash, etc.
Sometimes, I have to rest on the road or find a quick snack/drink, and I want to find gas stations that include restaurants, kitchen areas, and even a restroom.
I also would like to see what other people have reviewed about certain gas stations rated by stars, so I can compare and decide easier between various of them.
When I am on a tight budget, or I try to use my gas efficiently, I would like to see the prices of each gas station and their distance based on my location, and I can compare which one is the best option for me, and have driving directions to get there
Different gas stations are not open 24/7, so I would like to see on the app their office hours, website, address, phone number, etc.

Wireframes

We sketched our wireframes to visualize the framework of the mobile application. We used LucidChart software to layout the content and functionality of different pages and taking account the user needs and journeys.

User Interface Design

The objective of the interface is to consider a Map View where the user can find gas stations based on their location and a list view showing gas station information. The interface includes a search engine that focuses on only gas stations from a 12-mile perimeter based on their geolocation, ignoring other retail locations or shops.

Also, the interface allows showing more details from the list view for each gas station showing different gas type prices, address of vicinity, phone number, rating, and logo. As the user chooses a gas station, the Map View allows getting directions from their position to their destination with Google's Map turn-by-turn directions.

Takeaways

For our Mobile Application Class, we successfully developed our first mobile application on the Android platform with a duration of 4 months. During our development, we had some limitations, such as finding accurate information about gas prices. We had to web scrape data from the Gas Buddy website, and there was no API or database to plugin into our application.

Our application accomplishes the goal to provide information to drivers about gas price, distance, ETA, services, amenities, gas types, driving directions based on their location.

Gas Radar