In-cab software for fleet operations, monitoring, and dispatching
The on-board system is part of a larger open-pit mining management platform. It connects equipment operators with dispatchers, supporting daily operations, task management, equipment monitoring, and communication across the mine.
Mining Fleet On-board System
Critical driving information stays visible at a glance, helping the operator stay focused on the route and locomotive state.
Mining Railway HMI is an onboard system for operators of mining locomotives transporting ore between excavators, unloading points, and the depot. The interface runs on a 10-inch tablet mounted inside the cab and helps operators monitor speed, route, train status, signals, and warnings while the locomotive is moving.
I designed the interface around real operating conditions: vibration, use with gloves, bright sunlight and darkness, limited operator attention, and a large amount of telemetry data. The main challenge was to determine which information must remain visible at all times, which data should be accessed only when needed, and which actions require deliberate confirmation. My work covered the system structure, main dashboard, route navigation, loading, monitoring, status changes, and settings.
Year
2025
Type
Enterprise / Industrial UX / HMI
Users
Mining locomotive operators
Role
Product Design, UX Research, HMI Design
Status
Done
Result
Designed the structure of the onboard system to separate critical information, operational workflows, and rarely used settings, reducing operator workload and supporting faster decision-making while in motion
Product context
The operator interacts with the system while simultaneously controlling the locomotive. This means the interface cannot require prolonged attention or complex navigation.
The main challenge was to prioritize information based on urgency: what must always remain visible, what can be accessed on demand, and what requires an intentional action from the operator.
The challenge
Changing lighting conditions
high contrast in daylight and darkness
Gloves & vibration
large and reliable interaction areas
60–80 cm viewing distance
information must remain readable from a distance
10-inch display
limited screen space
- What needs to stay visible at all times?
- How should critical alerts appear without blocking the interface?
- How much diagnostic information does the operator actually need?
- Should the route show only the next point or the entire journey?
Requirements were gathered through discussions with locomotive operators, technical specialists, and production analysts.
Different roles often had conflicting expectations. Operators needed information to be immediately readable while driving, technical specialists wanted access to detailed system parameters, and production requirements sometimes required full status messages to remain available.
These constraints helped define the hierarchy of information and the separation between operational data, alerts, diagnostics, and settings.
Research
interface and notification preferences
Settings
cameras and system events
Monitoring
material selection and train composition
Loading
navigation and upcoming route points
Route
current state, speed, signals, route and alerts
Home
The system was divided into five main areas based on the operator’s workflow:
Information architecture
Speedometer
A combined analog and digital speedometer supports both peripheral perception and precise speed reading.
Route
The route view combines current position, upcoming infrastructure, distance, and arrival information in a single navigation context.
Loading and train composition
Train composition is visualized as a compact grid, making it possible to identify wagons that require attention without scanning a long list.
Status change
Operational state changes are treated as deliberate actions rather than lightweight toggles, reducing the risk of accidental input.
Monitoring
Camera states are explicit, distinguishing unavailable equipment from temporary loading or interface errors.
Settings
Settings are limited to options that meaningfully affect the operator’s experience, keeping configuration simple and predictable.
Design principles
Glanceable
Critical information can be understood without prolonged focus.
Context-aware
Warnings and system states appear where they are relevant to the current task.
Deliberate
High-impact actions require intentional interaction and are separated from passive information.
The final concept separates information the operator must continuously monitor from data that is needed only in specific scenarios. Critical driving information remains available without additional interaction, while diagnostics, monitoring, and configuration are moved into dedicated sections.
The first version established the core interaction model and information hierarchy for the onboard system. Several technical scenarios, including the handling of asynchronous telemetry and compound faults, remained open for further validation with the development team.
Outcome
