Vaisala — viewLinc 5

Enterprise environmental monitoring: redesigned information architecture and web front-end interactions for real-time alerts and regulatory-compliant data logging.

  • Role: Senior UX Designer
  • •
  • Focus: IA, front-end interaction design, usability testing, GUI guidelines
viewLinc 5 overview.

Context

viewLinc provides continuous environmental monitoring across facilities and device fleets with audit trails, alarms, and reporting used in compliance-heavy domains (e.g., life sciences, food, museums). I translated usability findings from viewLinc 4.5 into a redesigned information architecture and interaction model for the upcoming 5.0 web front-end.

Objectives & Constraints

Project Objectives

  • Clarify navigation and system hierarchy (sites, devices, probes, alarms).
  • Improve alarm management (configuration, acknowledgement, and auditability).
  • Produce GUI guidelines for consistent web application behaviour and styling.

Constraints

  • Regulatory expectations (e.g., audit trails, access controls, record integrity).
  • Global install base with internationalization and varied network environments.
  • Backward-compatibility expectations from long-time users.
  • Distributed collaboration with HQ UX team in Finland.

Process

Research to IA

  • Analysed viewLinc 4.5 usage and support feedback to surface friction.
  • Defined system information architecture and revised menu taxonomy.
  • Mapped alarm and reporting jobs-to-be-done to task flows.

Prototyping & Testing

  • Low/medium-fidelity prototypes (paper + interactive) for early validation.
  • Usability studies using Userlytics and remote sessions with SMEs.
  • Iterated interaction patterns for alarms, charts, and device detail views.

Guidelines & Handoff

  • Authored web application GUI guidelines for consistent behaviours and styles.
  • Aligned guidance with existing component libraries (e.g., Bootstrap/ExtJS patterns).
  • Partnered with HQ UX to socialise guidance and support implementation.

Selected Highlights

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Initial UI Concepts

Developed and presented four different design options to choose from for the updated dashboard layout.

Wireframes (Balsamiq): "Aeolus", globe/map based UI design concept.
Wireframe (Balsamiq): "Njord", table & card views UI design concept.
Wireframe (Balsamiq): "Vayu", Metro-style (Windows 8) blocks & horizontal sliding UI design concept.
Wireframe (Balsamiq): "Fujin", map & tables with notification stream UI design concept.

Site Manager Location Properties

Reorganized layout of location/zone display, switched site manager to a tab-based navigation, added icons and increased whitespace to improve usability and accessibility.

Wireframe (Balsamiq): Table of existing devices at selected zone or location.
Mockup (Axure): Re-organized table columns, bringing most important information forward and put "channel history" button in the table to improve efficiency.
Screenshot of implemented location properties page with improved layout and functionality.

Zone & Location Hierarchy

Wireframe (Balsamiq): Reworked the display for zones and locations, adding icons, colour and font styles for quick status identification.

Screenshot of implemented zone & location tree hierarchy with improved UI.
Screenshot of implemented zone & location tree hierarchy with improved UI.

Threshold Alarms

Wireframe (Balsamiq): Added icons, colour and whitespace to table of threshold alarms for improved readability and easier status identification.

Wireframe (Balsamiq): Threshold alarms overview with improved layout and design.
Screenshot of Threshold alarms overview tab in action.

Outcomes & Reflections

Outcomes

  • Clearer navigation and reduced configuration errors for alarms.
  • Consistent GUI guidance adopted across web application modules.
  • Improved efficiency around identifying alarm states.

Reflection

In regulated environments, confidence is usability. Traceable actions, predictable components, and clear task framing helped users respond and act faster while preserving auditability and data integrity.

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