Tips for Designing Timeless User Interfaces for a Medical Device

User interface design trends might come and go throughout the lengthy design and development phase of a medical device. This implies that keeping up with or predicting user interface (UI) design trends may be difficult.

Furthermore, a user interface with a “dated” design is not just a possible danger to the product’s market image; it may also have ramifications for use.

An interface that does not seem up-to-date, for example, may make a user go for your competitor and choose a different product.

More importantly, since it deviates from recognized UI principles that users have become used to with a plethora of other “modern” UIs, a dated UI may create annoyance or even usage problems.

Of course, the situations may be different. And you should be ready to address them all.

What’s Important in Designing Apps for Healthcare?

Medical device development may take years, from the first phases of user research and prototype testing to releasing an MVP product and enriching it with the target features.

The journey of creating a medical device interface design is quite long. And for you not to get lost, here are some tips for keeping your medical device user interface designs up-to-date as design trends change.

1. Embrace Timeless Design Principles

While fashions come and go, many design concepts survive the test of time. Concentrate on building a strong core for your user interface based on the concepts of simplicity, clarity, and consistency.

Dieter Rams famously stated his ten design principles. Although they are not all about style, they do recommend that design be “useful, honest, unobtrusive, understandable, and speak the brand language”.

By adhering to Rams’ design principles and using them in your medical device design, you can be sure that your product will look modern and will be used by your target audience to the fullest.

2. Use Native Design Systems

Adopting the native design system (such as Google’s Material 3 or Apple’s iOS) might assist medical devices that are displayed on a third-party platform, such as Software as a Medical Device (SaMD) on an Apple or Android smartphone, comply with design trends.

Design systems provide a complete set of rules, style libraries, and reusable components to maintain consistency across several interfaces.

By adopting the native design system, you reduce the possibility of user misunderstanding by developing the UI using components the user is already acquainted with.

You may renew your UI to the native design system when updates are provided each year, keeping it current and visually attractive as the design system changes over time with successive software releases.

3. Focus on Accessibility and Universal Design

Accessibility is a critical feature of user interface design that complements an existing strong user-centered design strategy focused on understanding and addressing users’ requirements.

People with disabilities and impairments, such as visual, auditory, cognitive, or motor impairments, may utilize the UI if accessibility elements are implemented.

Similarly, universal design principles may be used to assess innovative concepts, drive the design process, and result in more useful products.

Apart from focusing on accessibility and universal design advancements, adopting human factors concepts will necessarily impact what users perceive as the UI’s overall “style”.

Guidelines for appropriate readability, contrast, touch targets, and other relevant ergonomics will provide the groundwork for any small stylistic decisions.

By basing UI designs on accessibility, universal design, and human factors principles, you will develop a design that is inclusive to everyone. This approach will help your company stand out and make your customers feel that they are taken care of.

Make UI Principles Work for You

Consider key design principles, adopt the intended native design system, and maintain a strong focus on accessible and universal design.

This way, you will support user interface designs that look appropriate, useful, and appealing long after an involved design and implementation process as you engage in UI design for medical devices.