Thales Case Studies

HNA Group

Aurora

The client

HNA Group, which owned Hainan Airlines and 13 domestic Chinese airlines, was looking for a new in-flight entertainment system to complement their updated fleet. Thales was providing the tech and hardware, and Hainan Airlines decided to move forward with an in-house design for their suite of systems.

This was my first major project at Thales, and one that was certainly unforgettable.

The Hardware

With the retrofitting and debut of their new fleet, HNA Group’s offerings would be state-of-the-art for the time.

The HNA experience would include:

• 3 core devices

  • TPMU - a tethered, handheld controller for all cabins. These devices were equivalent to HTC One phones, at 480x800px resolution.

  • FIT - The main seat-back screen typical of these systems, these HD screens had a 1920x1080px resolution.

  • G4 Tablet - A small tablet exclusive to first- and business-class customers with a resolution of 1280x800px.

• Crew Terminal updates

  • All updated features in this GUI, including seat-to-seat chat and shopping, needed to be reflected in the crew terminal with broader access and control schema.

The hardware was a vital component in this process, as we were limited to minimal graphics processing and other constraints due to FAA regulations on device weight, running temperature, privacy etc. When designing for these items, we often had to bake-in drop shadows or overlays to ensure the lack of GPU and other key components would not be a problem.

The Customer

Beyond Hainan Airlines, HNA Group’s international airline, the holding group would be porting this interface to all 13 domestic subsidiaries, including Deer Jet, Beijing Capital Airlines, and Lucky Air. This was a culture I had no real prior experience navigating within, but was excited by the opportunity to listen and learn! Overall, the customer base for this airline would comprise of:

• 95% domestic Chinese

  • The GUI would need to be reflective of cultural norms and practices

    • Red and gold were calming and familiar to this audience

    • The GUI would need to be flexible using Chinese characters in both a horizontal and vertical format

• 5% foreign nationals

  • The GUI would need to be dynamic to a user’s country of origin, including censorship laws and various content prioritization

    • The interface also needed to translate into 12 languages, including Mandarin and Cantonese, English, Russian, and Arabic, and be dynamic to the needs of each

      • For example, users of Arabic would expect a right-to-left layout for not just text, but interactions and flows as well

Design Process

Initial Concepts & Client Brainstorming Sessions

Project kickoff comprised of initial client brainstorming sessions, where they dictated their needs in terms of content, look and feel, and technical backend. The clients expressed wanting a few options to select from, so I began work on three concepts with slightly different content needs and structures.

Expedition

This concept used the destination to add visual interest and excitement to the GUI, with overlays displaying helping add contrast to the body and nav elements.

Metro

This concept was an attempt at a contemporary, minimalist look and feel, with a contextual nav system that stacked as you explored. In this way, the user always had access to quickly navigate to anywhere in the GUI.

Sojourn

The last of the three concepts, Sojourn used our content library to its fullest potential, with each screen using high-res hero images to wow users. Text and navigation was simple and clean, and even used as an artistic element on each main page.

Design Evolution

And the winner was…Sojourn!

HNA Group’s content library was their main investment for this interface, and Sojourn allowed them to fully capitalize on the various thumbnails, trailers, screenshots, and product images on a high-def screen. With the main design now selected, I began iterating on the initial concepts to come up with the overall IA and map out each user flow within this system for all 3 devices, including a new Kids Mode that contained parental controls and a separate, simplified interface for children.

This exercise also accounted for statefulness between each device, as the TPMU could be used both on its own and as a controller for the tablet and seat-back screen. As such, I constructed a complex user flow document and began designing each page.

Note: In the mapping below, the “Services” section and it’s contents were deprioritized during the final round of approvals.

Onboarding

Onboarding encompassed the idle and welcome screens, as well as a Help overlay and language selection

Entertainment

The entertainment umbrella covered movies, TV, music, games, and Kids’ World, which held it’s own movies, music, TV, and game libraries.

Flight

Flight contained the interactive Maps product, as well as connecting flight info, tourism videos, and various About Us content

System

Lastly, the system screens, which included the various Search and Settings pages available from anywhere in the system. Shown below are some of the handheld TPMU control schema, which fell under this category as well.