MILK FROG UNIVERSITY / TECHNOLOGY & EXPERIENCE
Quiet Campus Routes & Friendly Wayfinding
The shortest way is not the only way. Make room for a slower walk or a pause, with clearer choices and fewer uncertain corners.
Read the working materials
- Project reference
- MFU-UX-003
- Current stage
- Wayfinding draft · Published
- Participating schools
- School of Computing & Future Studies × School of Psychology & Wellbeing
- Record updated
START WITH A QUESTION
What do we want to understand?
Beyond showing the way, how can campus directions leave people room to pause, take another path or choose again?
A campus route includes more than a start and a destination: there are corners, surfaces, sounds and places to stop. Computing & Future Studies structures the route and its branches. Psychology & Wellbeing considers different users' needs and checks whether the language is clear and welcoming.
The project begins with a route card on paper. It treats quietness as a changing condition, rather than a permanent promise. Known information, details still to check and alternative choices belong together, so readers can make a decision for their own circumstances.
HOW WE APPROACH IT
Make the process visible.
Break the route into steps
Describe the starting point, a recognisable landmark, the turn and the destination. Give each step one main action instead of fitting several turns into a single sentence.
Keep conditions beside directions
List sound, surfaces, lighting and opening conditions alongside the route. Mark missing information as “to be checked” rather than turning an unknown into a benefit.
Read for different needs
Review the wording as a first-time visitor, someone wanting a pause or someone seeking fewer steps. Find missing conditions and absolute promises, then revise the card.
PROJECT STAGES
Keep a record of each step.
Prepared · Information framework
Ask what people need to know
Define route steps, stopping points, environmental conditions and alternatives as fields on a route card.
Published · Paper draft
Put a route into clear words
The checklist and fictional route card below support class discussion and text-prototype exercises.
Next · Shared review
Find what is still unclear
Collect reading feedback before deciding which landmarks, conditions and branching instructions to add.
OPEN WORKING MATERIALS
A starting point for your own exploration.
Read, take notes and adapt these project examples.
MATERIAL 01
Friendly route design checklist
Answer each prompt with “explained”, “needs work” or “not applicable”, and add a reason instead of giving the whole route a single score.
Start and destination | Are place names recognisable to the reader? Is the starting direction clear? If someone leaves the route, can they find instructions to return to a main path or service entrance?
Turns and landmarks | Does each junction ask for one main action? Do signs include words instead of relying on colour alone? Would the reverse route require different instructions?
Surfaces and access | Are steps, slopes, narrow sections and opening hours identified separately? Are unknown conditions explicitly marked? A map alone is not enough to label a route fully accessible.
Sound and stopping | Does “quieter” include an observation time and conditions? Are the position and availability of rest points clear? Is there another choice if sound or crowd levels change?
Readability and revision | Can a phone reader find the next step quickly? Do icons have a text meaning? Are the version, reasons for changes and unverified details recorded for the next revision?
MATERIAL 02
Paper route card · From the library to the pond
A fictional campus draft for testing the structure of directions. Locations and turns belong to the story; there is no live routing or walking-time estimate.
Route intention | Library porch → courtyard bench → pond path entrance. Use it to discuss what a route card should tell someone who wants a short break from their study desk and somewhere to pause.
Step 1 | From the library porch, face the courtyard and follow the sign marked “Courtyard”. Stop at the bench before reading the next instruction. The prototype still needs a sketch showing the starting orientation.
Step 2 | At the courtyard bench, find the “Pond path” sign and follow it to the entrance. Keep both “pause here” and “continue” as options. If the sign cannot be found, return to the last clear point instead of guessing the missing direction.
Conditions | Steps and slopes: to be checked. Lighting and opening hours: to be checked. Sound: no observation record yet. The card therefore makes no promise of quietness and does not label the route accessible.
Draft review | Mark the first place where the wording makes you hesitate, then add one detail you wish you had. Fill those gaps before deciding on the final visual style and icons.
WORKING ACROSS SCHOOLS
Bring different questions together.
Learning hostCompanion
School of Computing & Future Studies
Write curiosity into code and turn imagination into useful tools. Where computing, design and people meet, create technology with care at its heart.
Explore this school · School of Computing & Future Studies
School of Psychology & Wellbeing
Care about growth and the people experiencing it. Through observation, listening and practice, explore the possibilities of emotions, relationships and everyday life.
Explore this school · School of Psychology & Wellbeing