Seeing Comfort: An Innovative Research Approach to Car Seat Comfort Perception
Executive Summary:
Amid the digital shift in auto sales, this study examined customer perception of car seat comfort through visuals alone. Focusing on entry-level vehicles such as the Opel Corsa, Renault Clio, Toyota Aygo, Fiat 500, Ford Fiesta and using the Geely Haoyue as a benchmark, this study explored whether customers could grasp comfort features visually. This research redefines how our understanding of how customers interact with vehicles in a digital buying context.
Understanding seat comfort perception, currently unpredictable and hard to measure, is crucial for car seat designers to make informed decisions. Craftsmanship details like material execution, wrinkles, stitching, perforation, or quilting significantly impact customers’ comfort judgment.
Previous beliefs that flawless execution (e.g., wrinkle-free materials) equates to comfort have been proven incorrect, calling for a balance between aesthetic perfection and actual comfort. Future research needs to correlate expected comfort from visual cues with experienced comfort from usage.
Customers can judge a car seat’s comfort solely based on visual cues. This insight allows manufacturers to influence consumers’ selection processes even in digital-only sales channels. Different comfort-contributing aspects of a seat are discernible and adjustable, allowing design departments to make specific changes to impact customer perception.
Key Takeaways:
Craftsmanship & Material Execution: Impact on perception and judgment.
Judging Comfort by Eye: A profound revelation affecting marketing and sales.
Material Matters: A need for exploration of comfort vs. premium appearance.
Color Conundrum: Color might not impact visual comfort perception.
Challenges & Opportunities: Opportunities to redefine comfort, meet sustainability, and tap into digital sales channels.
Lucid Motors
caricos.com
The roar of the digital revolution reverberates through every aspect of modern life, reaching even the once untouchable realm of the car showroom.
A drive through the information highway reveals a profound shift in the automotive landscape: a surge in customers steering towards online car purchases. As recent data ignites the path, it’s clear that by 2016, the digital frontier had already captured 72% of customers’ hearts. The pandemic’s aftermath fueled this digital desire, propelling the figure to an eye-catching 80%.
Yet, this virtual showroom strips away the tactile romance traditionally entwined with the car-buying journey. Gone are the days of the first touch, the first seat, the first drive; instead, potential buyers are left to navigate their desires through screens, deciphering their automotive dreams through pixels. Can the curves and lines of a car seat translate comfort through a digital window? Can the art of design speak the language of luxury without a single touch? The intriguing questions led to a pair of innovative studies, daring to probe the unexplored connection between sight and seat.
A pioneer investigation, embarking on this uncharted road, invited customers to let their eyes dance over the driver seats of entry-segment vehicles, seeking to discover how they ranked appearance and comfort without physical contact. The scientific art of best-worst scaling (BWS) and the subtle touch of semantic-differential scale questions guided the way, unraveling the threads that weave comfort into design. The journey
extended across borders, as German precision met Swedish innovation, further enriching the understanding of visual perception.
The results, both fascinating and groundbreaking, found that customers could indeed feel comfort through sight alone. The senses, once believed to be disparate, were shown to intertwine in a dance that defies convention. This revelation opens a door for car manufacturers, a portal into a future where digital landscapes can be crafted to resonate with human senses. The automotive future, it seems, is not just about horsepower and speed; it’s about feeling, perception, and the art of seeing beyond the screen.
Tesla
Germany and Sweden - cultural differences.
Imagine embarking on a digital journey to acquire a new car, your gaze enraptured by streamlined curves and enticing interiors. The thrill surges as you picture yourself at the helm, speeding along endless roads. But then, doubt creeps in. Will that elegant seat cradle you in comfort during marathon drives, or betray you with stiffness and rigidity? Remarkably, as you dwell on the screen, you discern the answer in mere appearance. It dawns on you that comfort, once believed to be solely a matter of touch, can also be seen!
This revelation is not as simple as it appears. Cultural nuances, intricate and subtle, weave into this visual tapestry of comfort. The study focusing on Germany and Sweden, each with its distinct cultural ethos, unveils layers of understanding. Sweden’s more feminine outlook, with blurred gender roles, might translate into an appreciation for subtler design nuances. Germany’s aversion to uncertainty could manifest in a preference for seats that radiate stability. The Swedes’ penchant for indulgence might steer them towards seats that promise joy. These multifaceted insights not only plunge us into the complex world of car seat aesthetics but also remind us that our very cultural fabric intertwines with our choices. As you navigate the virtual showrooms, remember that the car seat you’re admiring isn’t just a piece of furniture; it’s a reflection of who you are, an interplay of culture, design, and human desire, all converging in a single glance.
Figure 1. Cultural differences Germany -Sweden
Car seat comfort -ergonomics vs. aesthetics.
Buckle up, car enthusiasts, and let’s delve into the intriguing realm of car seat comfort where two seemingly disparate worlds collide - ergonomics and aesthetics. We all appreciate a cozy ride and unsurprisingly, the comfort of a car seat plays a pivotal role in our purchasing decisions. Traditionally, a multitude of research has focused on the science of ergonomics and biomechanics, all with one aim - to reduce any discomfort from the car seat. But what about the seat’s appearance? Can the mere sight of a car seat trigger a comfort response?
Enter the largely unexplored territory of perceived comfort. At first glance, this concept might seem perplexing. After all, how can one judge the comfort of a seat without actually sitting on it? Interestingly, this “first look” is a complex affair, a sensory event colored by context, environment, and our mental model of comfort. A study by Erol et al. beautifully illustrates how the visual appearance of car seats influences perceived comfort, triggering emotional responses, and significantly affecting the perception of comfort.
This is not to undermine the importance of ergonomic features, but it highlights the difficulty users face in distinguishing these aspects visually. Essentially, aesthetics and visual cues have a much more significant impact on perceived comfort than we previously thought. Now, you might wonder, can the comfort of a seat be evaluated in isolation? The answer is a resounding no. The perceived comfort of a seat is inextricably linked to the overall car design, including the interior and visible parts of the daylight opening.
Figure 2. Research methodology applied
The study outlook
The Study’s Demographics
164 respondents participated in the survey, 53 from Germany and 111 from Sweden. The sample represented a balanced gender composition and a varied age distribution. Interestingly, 68.9% of the respondents identified as car enthusiasts, with Sweden’s respondents leaning more towards car enthusiasm than Germany’s.
Car Models Tested
The survey focused on six models within the entry segment: Opel Corsa, Renault Clio, Toyota Aygo, Fiat 500, Ford Fiesta, and Geely Haoyue. All cars are representing entry market segment, except Gelly Haoyue (SUV). One of the assumptions tested were the idea that people must choose higher segment seat as the most comfortable.
Factors Influencing Comfort
When participants were asked about comfort factors, 47% predictably mentioned ‘options to adjust the car seat’ as the most vital. Other significant factors included ‘overall seat width’ and ‘height of the side bolsters.’ As for what constituted a premium experience, the ‘material type and combinations’ stood out, followed by ‘Seat appearance in general’ and ‘Seat features.’
Comfort Rankings Among Models
On a Likert scale from 1 (lowest comfort) to 6 (highest comfort), Renault and Toyota models achieved the highest average ratings for comfort, while Ford scored the lowest. Interestingly, a correlation analysis revealed that those who rated Ford highly also tended to rate Fiat highly, and vice versa. The comfort experience for seat cushion imagining a long journey was assessed separately, with Toyota and Geely getting the highest ratings, and once again, Ford received the lowest scores. Notably, there were no significant differences between German and Swedish respondents in these rankings.
BWS Exercise for Overall Appearance
An exercise comparing the entire seat appearance revealed a similar pattern of comfort perception. The top tier included Geely, Toyota, and Renault, followed by Opel in the middle, and Ford and Fiat scoring the lowest.
Things to take with you.
A Stitch in Time: Craftsmanship & Material Execution. In an age where luxury and comfort often go hand in hand, understanding the
impact of craftsmanship is critical. The detailing, perforation, quilting, and precise execution of seams and stitches are no longer mere decorative elements; they shape a customer’s perception and judgement.
There was a time when wrinkles were considered an imperfection in seat manufacturing. Materials were stretched taut to eliminate them, often at the cost of comfort. The new understanding highlights the need for a balanced approach, one that caters to both aesthetics and comfort.
Judging Comfort by Eye: A New Era. Perhaps the most astounding revelation of the study was that consumers could judge seat comfort simply by looking at photographs or viewing the interior from a distance, such as in a showroom or online. The implications are profound. It means manufacturers can influence a customer’s selection process using digital channels alone, reshaping how cars are marketed and sold.
Material Matters: Comfort vs. Premium Appearance. When asked, “What makes the seat look comfortable?” 42 participants cited selected materials. However, within the study, material was linked to premium appearance rather than comfort. This intriguing discrepancy suggests that a deeper exploration of materials – including factors like stiffness, softness, and wear-resistance – is needed. Furthermore, with a growing emphasis on sustainability, the investigation must also consider eco-friendly materials.
Color Conundrum: A Surprising Hypothesis. While visual design departments often focus on color, preliminary results suggest that color may not impact visual comfort perception. This hypothesis raises questions and opens the door for further research focusing on visual color cues.
A Path Forward: Challenges & Opportunities. The study’s findings present a road full of exciting possibilities and tough challenges. Incorporating attributes like low carbon-footprint, recyclability, and bio-degradability into visual cues will be a complex task.
Moreover, the study revealed a surprising alignment between German and Swedish participants in their judgment, demonstrating that comfort perception may transcend cultural boundaries.
Table 1. Factors contributing to the perceived comfort
Table 2. Overall comfort perception
Conclusion: Redefining Comfort in Automotive Design
As we drive into the future, the perception of seat comfort will continue to play a pivotal role in car design and manufacturing. The nuanced interplay between aesthetics and ergonomics has opened new frontiers in the automotive industry, challenging designers to innovate and adapt.
This research shines a light on the labyrinthine world of seat comfort, where every stitch, material, and design choice counts. The road ahead is lined with opportunities to redefine comfort, meet sustainability requirements, and tap into a new era of digital sales channels. Manufacturers and designers who embrace these insights stand to lead the way in an industry where the journey is as important as the destination.
Disclaimer: This Future Insight is the adaptation of the original research article entitled: “Perceived Comfort of Car Seats: A Research Methodology to Visual Cues Evaluation” written by Kostas Stylidis, Bastian Quattelbaum, Cyriel Diels, Alina Braun, Florian Konrad and Rikard Söderberg. Originally published by Springer in “Design in the Era of Industry 4.0”
About this paper:
Stylidis, K., Quattelbaum, B., Diels, C., Braun, A., Konrad, F., Söderberg, R. (2023). Perceived Comfort of Car Seats: A Research Methodology to Visual Cues Evaluation.
In: Chakrabarti, A., Singh, V. (eds) Design in the Era of Industry 4.0, Volume 3. ICORD 2023. Smart Innovation, Systems and Technologies, vol 346. Springer, Singapore.
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