Learning to See Iconography
The following is a reflection piece for UX Academy
Icons are everywhere. From apps to computers and even directing traffic, the humble icon carries a lot of responsibility in providing clear communication that informs and educates. For the purpose of this exercise, I hopped in my car and drove to the gym, looking to uncover some new icons that had been previously taken for granted in my everyday life.
Upon entering my car, I immediately noticed several icons I had been using for years without really taking the time to look at them. The first was this funny looking symbol of a chair with three wavy arrows emerging from beneath it. Given the context of a car and it’s proximity to the seats, it’s easy to figure out that this represents the heat seating function. But I wondered how this might be interpreted within different surroundings. Looking it at now, it could be a golf club, or a weirdly shaped skillet. I also found it interesting that the “heat” lines only emerge from the bottom, when the seats also have back heaters as well. It’s possible someone could be using this car for years without ever knowing they could heat more than just their bottom!
The next icons I noticed were these two, located just to the right of the passenger side air vents. The three wavy lines represents air flow, and is meant to convey that as you scroll the wheel upward more air comes out, and if you scroll towards the box with the ‘X’ in it, the airflow is blocked. The bottom icon is one I have always thought strange; I’m reminded of an email or mailbox icon whenever I see it. I’ve always wondered why they didn’t instead show the three wavy lines with an ‘X’ over top or some other alternative.
This icon, located on the driver’s side arm console, is the most interesting to me. Because I’ve been driving since I was 15, I know what this symbol is meant to convey, but if I had less experience, I might not know right away. If you press this button, it child locks all of the passenger windows. Without its placement right next to the other window controls and within the context of the car environment, I think this one would be confusing.
Finally, there’s this tiny icon located on my rear view mirror. Pressing it once turns on the compass display on the mirror, and pressing it again turns it off. I like the simplicity of this compass symbol; it’s effective and clear to the viewer immediately even if it were found outside of the car.
Once I arrived at the gym, I was surprised by the overall lack of icons that functioned on their own without text. The majority of symbols that I found were nearly always accompanied by clear labels, like these mountain icons found on an exercise bike. These buttons represent different interval training options, with the top mountain representing “random hills”, and the bottom a steeper and more intense “alpine climb”.
Finally, I did come across one icon that was presented on nearly every machine without labeling. Of all the icons I came across, this was my favorite; it’s able to represent a somewhat complex warning in a clear, unambiguous way. The icon shows a hand being crushed between two weights, and serves as a caution sign to prevent injury when using the machines.
