Safety Buddy is a personal safety app designed to keep you and your friends safer 24/7. It’s packed with features for both everyday safety and real emergencies, making it the ultimate safety tool for you and everyone you love.
Safety Buddy puts safety in YOUR hands. Set up your own personal social safety network today.
I was one of the team members that contributed to design the wireframes, user flows, mockups and finally the functional prototype of the mobile application.
Our Problem
We live in a world full of uncertainties most of which we have little or no control over.
- Have you ever felt unsafe when walking alone at night, or jogging on a running trail?
- Have you ever worried about how you actually would get help in case of an emergency?
- Have you been concerned about your loved one’s safety?
Our Process
Research
Our research was conducted across the GTA – North York, Vaughan, Markham, Brampton, Etobicoke, Scarborough, Toronto.
We interviewed 37 people and our findings were
- 62% people did not know what to do in an emergency situation and from that percentage of people only approx 21% people have downloaded an emergency app before.
- 37% knew to follow the protocols of an emergency situation.
Survey Questions
- What apps do you use everyday?
- How often do you look for safety information?
- What situations do you consider as an emergency?
- Do you know what to do in an emergency (such as fire, earthquake, shooting, etc)?
- How often do you pay attention to the local news? – How do you feel about it? (Amber, traffic, safety alerts)
- Have you downloaded an emergency app before? (if yes, which one, if no, what is the reason?)
- Will an emergency app be useful and why?
- What features do you expect from the security app?
- Do you think notification feature is useful for an emergency app?
- Do you think it is important that the emergency app can be activated from your unlock screen (so you can call 911 without unlocking the phone)?
- Do you think the app should also calm you down when you are in a real trouble?
- How likely is it that you will recommend the app to a friend or colleague?
Research Outcome
The younger generation wanted the app to be customizable to fit their needs and the older generation wanted the app more accessible making it user-friendly.
Therefore, we integrated both the aspects allowing the user to customize the feature structure provided by the app i.e. the Hotbar.
Features and Functionality
Based on the research, our team had a brainstorming session to figure out which new functions, renewed old functions, and visual approach could satisfy users needs.
After the brainstorming session, the most important points were selected and sorted into two categories: Functional and Visual.
The reference image is the short-listed version of the final features and functionality we decided upon as a team.
Wireframes
Since we defined the goals and instruments to design the app and the sitemap, it was time to define the framework of the mobile app.
Two people team were assigned the role of creating the wireframe, user flow, mockup and the functional prototype of the app. I was one of the team members that contributed to this aspect of the project.
My team member and I created hundreds of pages with scribbles to determine the right page content and design layout.
Solution
Our safety does not have to be one of those uncertainties.
Safety Buddy Personal Safety Features:
- Walking Buddy
Walking buddy is a tool to track your loved ones when they need help or for them to track you when you need help. - My Circles
My circles is the name given to your emergency contact list. You can add or remove up to 5 contacts. - Hot Bar
Hot bar is an easy way to switch between screens, it is customizable by the user and any notification will be shown there. - Emergency Lock Screen
This feature is design to work under most emergency situations. By pressing the power button on the mobile device five consecutive times the phone will dial 911/Emergency contact number.
With it’s unique features, Safety Buddy will empower you and be your safety companion for life.
Credits
Team
Carla Aziz
Alberto Gozanlez
Lin Guo
Urvi Trivedi
Xiao Yang
Reviewed By
Paul Shectar
Steering committee of York Regional Police
