Break Glass to Obtain Hammer
Two months ago I moved from Madrid to London. New city, new country, new language, new currency, new occupation… you get the idea, almost new everything.
It’s amazing how building a new life from scratch is sprinkled with chicken-and-egg problems here and there. For example, in order to open a bank account in the UK you’re asked to provide a utility bill with your name on it. Seems fair, except for the tiny detail that in order to set-up a new utility provider you need a UK bank account. Oops!
Obviously, at some point you manage to get the loose end of the ball of string and all the dominoes start to falling chain, but for a couple of interactions you feel like you are in front of the infamous ‘BREAK GLASS TO OBTAIN HAMMER’ box seen on lots of public transports.
Schrödinger’s glass
It’s sadly funny how this very same glass exists in many different languages. I’ve seen them all over the world, with the very same words, and always presenting the same issues.
GLASS BREAKING HAMMER
BREAK GLASS TO OBTAIN HAMMER
I know, the message is funny but, come on, this is supposed to be an emergency element. It should be 100% clear. When the panic rises every second counts, and even a minor detail could mean the difference between life and death. It’s a very serious matter.
So, I’m going to try to be constructive and find better design solutions for the major issues without changing the hammer itself, which I assume is well designed to break the emergency windows properly.
The copy is confusing
Let’s not forget that the user is trying to get out of a train breaking an emergency glass window, probably using the words ‘break’ and ‘glass’ referring to the hammer and the box (instead of the windows) is not the best idea.
A more straightforward text, such as ‘EMERGENCY HAMMER’, would be easier to understand.
The icon is not recognisable
The icon used resembles the real hammer hidden in the box but gets in the way of what people consider a typical ‘hammer’. An icon should not be realistic, it should be universal and match the user’s mental model.
Something like this one, for instance, would have been a better option.
The frosted ‘glass’ cover
The plastic panel doesn’t allow me to see what’s actually inside the box. What happens if I hit it with my bare fist? Is the ‘glass’ going to shatter and hurt me? Will I hit the hammer behind? Should I use my elbow instead of my fist? No one should be asking themself these kinds of questions on a derailment situation.
A fully transparent material is an absolute must, a material that allows the user to know exactly what to expect behind it. It would be incredibly useful to change the way to access to the hammer as well, peeling from a well identified corner or pulling a lever or handle seems more obvious than a plain cover.
A better solution
But, of course, probably the best solution would be to avoid the box altogether and leave the hammer visible at all times. Like Germans do in this train.
Meticulous design showing clearly how to operate the hammer, preferable smash point and a comprehensive explanation of what to expect after the hammering show us that good copy and proper iconography can do wonders, but approaching a problem without taking anything for granted is the winning way to achieve knock out good design.
