Design. Usability. For decades, Motorola has embraced these two principles as a defining approach to bring to market more effective products and solutions for first responders. It's in our DNA. For all emergency first responders - firefighters, law enforcement officers, emergency medical technicians - communication is their lifeline. The technology and processes they use keep them safe, enable better decisions and ensure better outcomes under extreme conditions.


Motorola understands the unique requirements of mission-critical environments. Our user-centered design process delivers purpose-built technology solutions that integrate the rigors of social science with the art of design. Our philosophy integrates best practices from the areas of design, human factors/ergonomics, cognitive and clinical psychology, as well as physical and cultural anthropology. Our human factors specialists are leading industry experts in the field of High Velocity Human Factors (HVHF), the study of human performance in periods of extreme stress and uncertainty.


Motorola's global team of designers immerse themselves in the daily lives of these front-line heroes to better understand their behaviors, needs and underlying motivations. The team has ridden along on hook-and-ladders, in helicopters, on police patrols and in ambulances, and gone through intensive fire training. They've experienced first-hand the world of the first responder, gathering information and insights that enable Motorola to deliver solutions that are not only are durable, reliable and dependable, but also "second nature" to use.

Motorola has a rich heritage of working closely with police, fire and other public safety departments to design and deliver effective mission-critical communications solutions. Over the years, we've developed and executed an integrated, multi-disciplinary design process. The result? Purpose-built technology that is both reliable and easy to use even under the most stressful conditions.

Our Guiding Design Principle

At Motorola, we view design as a key differentiator. First responders need to concentrate on the situation at hand, not on the technology. Our highly skilled designers create intuitive user interfaces, optimizing crucial functionality such as volume, push-to-talk and channel controls. Motorola applies concepts from a variety of disciplines - ergonomics, cognitive and clinical psychology, anthropology, experimental design and analysis and more - to ensure our mission critical solutions keep first responders safe as they work to protect their communities.

Full Immersion

Motorola's designers consult with police, fire, homeland security and other public safety officers on a regular basis. But hearing about a situation second-hand is never as good as experiencing it. That's why our designers and human factors specialists regularly put themselves on the frontline with our customers. We know that it's in the stress and heat of the moment that we can best learn how to improve our technology.

So what have we learned? Emergency buttons located at the base of the antenna can allow immediate access under duress. Control knobs differentiated for tactile feel can provide access without looking down at the radio. Form factors that feel right to the first responders are the result of extensive involvement and dialogue with end users.


Emotional and Psychological Insights

Our teams include generative research experts who possess the skills to dig deeper under the surface, employing a variety of clinical psychology techniques - such as collaging and cognitive modeling. These insights help us understand our end users' underlying motivations, perceptions and emotions and lead not only to better equipment design and performance, but also to a new generation of product concepts.

First responders around the world require unique communications tools. At Motorola, we understand the importance of providing mission critical communications solutions that enable first responders to focus on their mission. Our generative research experts are trained to observe and translate end user motivation, perceptions and emotions. But it's not enough to merely understand the user environment and requirements. That's where our human factors experts step in. They conduct usability testing throughout the product development cycle to ensure our products are easy to use. They work hand in hand with first responders to evaluate the interface and optimize the ergonomics prior to release of the product.

Usability Testing Lab

To create innovative product designs that facilitate 'second nature' operation, our Design Integration teams perform usability testing at every stage of the design process. In our testing lab, first responders help us evaluate interface ease-of-use beginning at our earliest alpha and beta prototype stages. We also conduct strenuous physical testing of our products, including drop tests, vibration tests, static electricity tests and more, to ensure they withstand and perform in challenging field conditions.

Field Testing

Mission-critical technology must excel not just in a controlled laboratory environment, but also in the field. often under unpredictable conditions. Laboratory testing is augmented by extensive evaluative field research, enabling both our world-class designers and human factor experts to observe the use of our technology under real-world conditions. These field tests help ensure that our mission-critical equipment adapts to the way first-responders work, not the reverse. And that it helps makes first responders safer, more productive and able to maximize community service and protection.

A Motorola customer described the role of a first responder in this way: "hours of boredom punctuated by moments of terror."

To help the front-line professionals who put their lives on the line every day, Motorola has pioneered a new field of study that focuses on human performance in periods of extreme stress, volatility and uncertainty. It's called High Velocity Human Factors (HVHF).

HVHF examines human behavior, cognition and performance under circumstances such as extreme danger, time pressure and the emotional excitement frequently encountered by a first responder in the line of duty. HVHF research has revealed that under high stress, humans process information very differently than when they are under little or no stress. For example, first responders often exhibit "attentional tunneling," in which they tune in to an emotionally significant, high-stakes situation while tuning out most everything else. They also often experience "auditory exclusion," in which the world around them goes virtually silent. In dangerous situations that may threaten life and limb, first responders often experience surges in heart rate and hormonal levels. That can result in "regressive behavior," in which rational and reflective behavior takes a back seat to impulsive actions and reactions.

Second Nature Technology

Motorola's goal in using HVHF is to drive the design of innovative technology that accounts for human limitations when under extreme stress. Technology that is so intuitive, so smart, it becomes second nature to operate as a result of its simplicity - even under the most stressful and demanding circumstances. Motorola's human factors experts understand the subtleties of the cognitive load placed on a user under stress, and we are developing guidelines and designs to ease the complexity of the product designs. Motorola understands that simplicity is the key to ease of use.