Simplifying the EV Conversion Experience
Motivo partnered with Formosa EV to create an intuitive, user-friendly system that simplifies the complex process of electric vehicle conversion, culminating in an award-winning product at the SEMA 2024 trade show.
Background
The founders of Formosa EV identified significant challenges within the EV conversion market that created a high barrier to entry for enthusiasts without specialized coding or electrical engineering skills. They envisioned a product that could simplify this daunting process. The key was the vehicle control unit (VCU), the central hub that allows all of a car's components to communicate.
Formosa EV approached Motivo to help develop a user-friendly VCU interface and an infrastructure that would make EV conversions a "plug and play" experience, guiding even a first-time DIYer through every step.
User-Centric Design Process
Motivo implemented a phased approach to take the concept from an idea to a trade-show-ready prototype. Motivo collaborated with Formosa EV on the industrial design of the Vehicle Control Unit (VCU) hardware to the user interface and experience (UI/UX) of the mobile application that controls it. The core challenge was to develop a user experience that struck the perfect balance between being a friendly guide and a highly technical tool.
Phase 1: Market Assessment & Development Roadmap
The project began with a deep dive into the hobbyist EV conversion landscape. Motivo’s work included assessing the overall market, identifying major competitors and barriers to entry, and defining the Minimum Viable Product (MVP) feature set.
Phase 2: Product Requirements & User-Centric Design
With a clear strategy, the focus shifted to defining the product. Motivo provided recommendations on system architecture and generated concepts for the application's workflow and aesthetic.
Motivo Industrial Design: Concept Sketches
Motivo UI/UX Design: Figma Prototype
Central to this phase was an agile UI/UX process that included:
-
Initial Mind Map Workflow Sessions
-
UI Mood Boards To Guide Aesthetics
-
Figma UI Initial Aesthetic Concepts
-
Iteration On Workflow Sessions
-
Figma UI Aesthetic Refinement and Prototype Creation
-
A comprehensive Figma UI prototype tested with target users
-
Usability recommendations provided back to the client
Phase 3: Development and Integration Support
During the final development phase, Motivo acted as Systems Engineers and consultants, coordinating with outside vendors to create a cohesive product. This involved developing system architecture and wiring diagrams, and creating a demonstration mobile application for the SEMA 2024 show. A key challenge was ensuring tight coordination among multiple vendors located in different countries and time zones, which made real-time communication difficult.
To overcome this, Motivo's project management team championed a technical solution to enable effective development across remote teams. Motivo built a custom test bench from scratch, creating a remote testing facility. This setup allowed the client’s international firmware teams to remote in and test their code on the physical hardware overnight. This process of meeting with the remote teams in the evening and providing a stable platform for overnight testing proved to be a highly effective development solution.
Outcome
The effort paid off with Formosa EV’s VCU product winning “Best New EV Product”.
The custom test bench built for remote development was refined by Motivo into a fully interactive product demonstrator, and insights gained from user testing were rapidly identified and implemented ensuring the product was ready to showcase at the SEMA show.
Industrial Design: VCU hardware design; Mobile application UI/UX.
Systems Engineering: Market assessment; Development roadmap; System architecture recommendations; Vendor coordination.
Software Design & Engineering: Application workflow concepts; Aesthetic concepts; Figma UI prototyping; Demonstration mobile application.
Prototyping, Fabrication & Assembly: Custom test bench build (for remote testing); Product demonstrator refinement.
Capabilities Used:
The effort paid off with Formosa EV’s VCU product winning “Best New EV Product”.
The custom test bench built for remote development was refined by Motivo into a fully interactive product demonstrator, and insights gained from user testing were rapidly identified and implemented ensuring the product was ready to showcase at the SEMA show.