Design and Evaluation of Noncontact Elevator Control Mode and User Interface

In response to the global coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, the use of short-term confined spaces has attracted widespread attention, and elevators have become a major pathway for pathogens. This study uses video recognition technology to develop a contactless elevator operating system, which can be operated by hand gestures of the user. This design can solve current elevator usage problems by integrating human and spatial aspects into the control mode and user interface. By observing and analyzing operational interfaces and behaviors in current hospital elevators, specifications for the new interface were developed. A video motion recognition sensory system was applied to formulate the design and planning principles of the noncontact elevator. Gesture images were combined with simulations to create experimental tasks, in which users were timed and interviewed to evaluate the acceptability and efficiency of the designed interface. The results of this study show that the planning and design of noncontact elevator control modes and user interfaces are advantageous, intuitive, and easy to learn. The control interface of the elevator was displayed in an electronic panel using colors, shapes, and sizes to show operational information, enabling a quick search and high learnability.