What can data communicators learn from F1 steering wheels?

Hello

Welcome to the Sweet Spot #63: 3 data-inspired things to read, watch or listen to. If you want to get future editions in your Inbox, you can subscribe here.

This month's topic is steering wheels. Yes, you read that correctly. I am about to make a link between Formula 1 steering wheels and our world of data.

F1 explained: The Steering Wheel (F1, 6 minute video)

F1 drivers to adjust their car’s performance in myriad ways during the race. Jolyon Palmer explains how?position,?colour, and?interaction?styles are all used to make it easier for drivers to optimise their car for any corner or straight. For example, the most commonly used buttons are placed nearest the thumbs, so they can be accessed even when tackling high-speed corners. Position, colour, interaction? If that sounds familiar, it should. These are the traits you consider when building dashboards for maximum effectiveness and efficiency. Another interesting point: drivers take their design layout with them if they switch teams. F1 steering wheels are designed for usability and consistency: just like your dashboards.

Valtteri Bottas Explains 2019 Mercedes F1 Steering Wheel?(Mercedes, 4 min video)

Driver Valtteri Bottas dives into the wheel design, along with engineer Evan Short. They talk about the concept of “first order retrievability” -?the driver can get to anything he needs while keeping his hands on the wheel. Bottas’ team creates 3 different wheel designs at the start of a season, and work to optimise the design based on the driver’s feedback on each. The design challenge for wheels is to enable the drivers to be “intuitive creatures” but also give them maximum control over performance. (incidentally,?check out this button config on Carlos Sainz’s wheel: could you click correctly at 200kph?) The business charts and dashboards we make for our end users? They too need to be?intuitive?to use, and?optimized?for speedy usage and?designed in conjunction with the end user?(although I suspect yours don't get used at 200mph).

How does an F1 steering wheel work??(Mercedes, 2 minute read)

This article gives us more insight into the process of making the wheels work for the drivers. The 2019 Mercedes wheel had?25 buttons and switches. The driver has to look at the wheel and make split-second actions to use it. The design changes as the driver and the conditions change. The wheel?layouts change throughout the season, for two reasons. First, the drivers get used to the car and the wheel and change accordingly. Second, different circuits might need specific tweaks.?Does that sound familiar? This is the same for our visual displays and dashboards: they?change over time, in consultation with the user. Would a Formula 1 engineer design a wheel without consulting the driver? No. Would you build a dashboard without working with the end user? I hope not!

That's all for now! If you have comments or questions, let me know on?Twitter, or?LinkedIn. And don't forget: if you want to get future editions in your Inbox, you can subscribe here.