Stress Testing Gestures for Smartphone System Navigation

The Android operating system (OS) started in 2008 with buttons (Home, Back, etc.) to enable users to navigate their smartphone. We describe a novel research methodology used during Android 10’s development of its first gesture based navigation system. Specifically, we describe a methodology that takes inspiration from using wear-and-tear as a measure of the quality of a product. For example, a shoe that can endure more steps is higher in quality than one that can endure fewer steps. We apply this logic to the research methodology to test gestures for smartphone system navigation - the more times users can gesture without discomfort, the higher the ergonomic quality of the gesture. We use this method in conjunction with surveying participants on their stated preferences. The combination of data affords us greater confidence in our conclusions.