Overview

Through an intensive 10-week project as part of CS 147: Introduction to Human-Computer Interaction Design, our team was driven to explore solutions under the studio theme "Technology for Mental Health."

Planet is a mobile app that reimagines social connectivity by providing a real-time, visual representation of friends' emotions and statuses. Whether someone is open to hanging out or could use a supportive gesture, the app makes reaching out effortless and natural. Rooted in the principles of rapid prototyping, cognitive design, and iterative user feedback, Planet fosters a community where building connections feels intuitive and supportive.

Update Your Emotional Status

Share how you’re feeling through photos and emotes to keep friends in the loop.

Schedule a Hangout with Friends

Find the perfect time to connect without the scheduling hassle.

Organize Friends into Galaxies

Group your circles to keep close connections within easy reach.

Website

As part of our final project, we created a website to showcase our app and deliverables. I served as the web developer and designer for the Planet website, ensuring that our design values were thoughtfully incorporated throughout. This site earned the "Best Website" award at the CS 147 Final Expo. To explore our design process in detail, click here.

Needfinding

To understand the mental health challenges faced by university students, we conducted four in-depth interviews focused on stressors like academics, extracurriculars, and work-life balance. While we initially planned to address burnout and motivation in relation to our studio theme of Technology for Mental Health, we found that concerns regarding maintaining friendships and relationships were the most recurring themes. Thus, designing for emotional transparency and inclusivity shaped Planet’s core features and values.

POV Statements

After completing the needfinding process, we transitioned to defining actionable problem statements through the creation of Points of View (POVs). By synthesizing the insights gathered from our interviews and empathy maps, we articulated POVs that captured the needs and challenges of our users, ensuring our problem space was well-defined. This process allowed us to reframe our design challenge into clear, meaningful statements, setting the stage for ideation. Below are our top 3 POVs.

We met…
Sofia, a junior majoring in political science at Stanford University who occasionally struggles with planning academics and social events.

We were surprised to notice...
She feels guilt and the need to punish herself for prioritizing social life over academics.

We wonder if this means...
She feels like she should choose between her social life and academics.

It would be game changing...
If she could eliminate the guilt she feels after a social hangout.

We met…
Daniel, an undeclared student at the University of Chicago wants to find more external motivation to be productive.

We were surprised to notice...
That he prefers working in groups, but often ends up working on his own.

We wonder if this means...
He is anxious to create / join study groups to meet up and complete work together.

It would be game changing...
If he could reduce anxiety in forming or finding these groups.

We met…
Grace, an ambitious international junior at UPenn studying engineering and business.

We were surprised to notice...
Despite her willingness to reach out and social events offered by the school, Grace doesn’t feel like she has a close group of friends, and that most friends disappear after a while.

We wonder if this means...
College students need more support to maintain their existing / prior friend groups.

It would be game changing...
To enable students to make more friends while maintaining good connections with their existing friends.

Experience Prototypes

Our experience prototypes allowed us to quickly test assumptions behind our top ideas in lightweight, real-world ways. By simulating how students might share emotional updates, plan hangouts, or reconnect with old acquaintances, we validated which concepts felt natural, uncovered usability challenges, and identified the solutions with the strongest potential to carry forward into Planet’s design.

Prototype 1 — Status Sharing

Assumption

People are willing to share and update their emotions and activities with friends.

Solution Tested

Group chat where friends posted emotional status + activity updates throughout the day, then reflected on comfort and usefulness.

What We Learned

• Frequent, comfortable updates—even for mundane moments.
• Some felt benefits were limited; remembering to post was a chore.
• Few strong emotions shared; trivial posts sometimes felt awkward.

Verdict

Assumption valid. People will share; we should lower friction and make updates feel worthwhile.

Prototype 2 — Rotating Social Planning

Assumption

Scheduling feels like extra work people avoid.

Solution Tested

Friends filled a When2Meet, then each planned a future event (rotating host). We pre‑scheduled three weeks of hangouts.

What We Learned

• All events fit schedules and were enjoyable.
• Felt low‑effort and rewarding; reminders helped.
• Initial setup confused some; no flow for conflicts.

Verdict

Assumption not valid. With the right structure, scheduling felt easy—strong signal to combine with status sharing.

Prototype 3 — Swipe to Reconnect

Assumption

People want a quick way to reconnect with old acquaintances.

Solution Tested

Quizlet swipe mechanic over a dorm list to mark who to reconnect with, followed by an interview.

What We Learned

• Swipe sorting was simple; memory jog worked.
• Interest faded by the 10th card; felt “automated.”
• Real desire to reconnect was smaller (≈15, not 40).

Verdict

Assumption partially valid. Concept works in theory, but engagement drops; overlaps with existing apps.

Low-Fi Prototyping

To bring our early ideas to life, we created a set of low-fidelity prototypes that mapped out Planet’s initial task flows:

• Create an account to establish a social presence.
• Update a calendar to indicate availability and schedule hangouts with friends.
• Customize visibility of posts to reach out to specific friend groups (privacy controls).

We created a set of low-fidelity paper prototypes and tested them with participants around campus to uncover pain points around navigation, clarity, and usability. Feedback revealed that while concepts like “galaxies” and Google Calendar integration resonated, features like visibility customization introduced unnecessary complexity and confusion. Based on these insights, we revised our designs—simplifying icons, pairing symbols with labels, and removing visibility controls altogether to stay aligned with our values of inclusivity and connection.

Final Prototype

After multiple iterations of feedback and testing, we developed our final high-fidelity prototype of Planet. The app integrates emotional status sharing with lightweight scheduling, making it simple for students to stay connected while supporting one another’s mental well-being. Designed with inclusivity and low-friction in mind, Planet helps users share how they’re feeling, see friends’ availability, and naturally plan meaningful hangouts.

Outcomes & Reflections

Planet was presented at the CS 147 Final Expo, where it was recognized with the award for Best Website. Our project demonstrated the potential of combining social connectivity with mental health support, showing that small, low-effort interactions can make it easier to maintain strong friendships and foster community.

Personally, this project taught me the importance of iterative user testing, as well as how low-fidelity and medium-fidelity prototypes can shape and validate early design decisions. I strengthened my skills in interaction design, visual hierarchy, and crafting intuitive user flows while learning to balance user needs with project scope in a fast-paced 10-week timeline. Most importantly, I saw how thoughtful design can directly impact well-being by creating tools that help people feel more seen, supported, and connected.

Team Planet at the 2024 CS 147 Final Expo .𖥔 ݁ 🪐˖