Reimagining how we explore the skies with augmented reality.
Plane[AR], a Flightradar24 Redesign
CONTEXT
In my Foundations of Interaction Design course, we were tasked with analyzing and improving an existing app interaction. I selected Flightradar24 as the basis for this project, focusing on its AR view feature, which allows users to identify aircraft flying overhead.
SKILLS
INTERACTION DESIGN, AUGMENTED REALITY,
PROTOTYPING
TOOLS
ILLUSTRATOR, AFTER EFFECTS,
PREMIERE PRO, BLENDER
TIMELINE
2 WEEKS - 2024
TYPE
INDIVIDUAL CLASS PROJECT
INTRODUCING
An on-the-go AR experience that makes tracking & learning about nearby aircraft more interactive, intuitive, and engaging
Demo Video
Key Features
Audio-based Proximity Alerts
Stay aware of what’s flying around you. By listening for aircraft
activity & syncing up with live flight information, the app notifies you when something worth capturing is overhead.
Quick-draw Aircraft Capture
See a plane? Flick up, lock on, and pull it right out of the sky. The quick-draw capture system keeps you ready the moment something flies overhead and let's you know exactly what you're looking at.
Spatial Aircraft Explorer
Dive deeper into the flight you’ve captured through a life-scale 3D aircraft model and a spatial flight map that unfolds right in front of you.
Problems
Existing Flighradar24 AR view feature.
Slow access during quick moments
The AR view is hidden behind a small button on the dashboard, making it easy to miss the moment when a plane is actually overhead.
Overloaded with 'invisible' aircraft
The AR overlay shows every nearby aircraft in a user-defined radius, even ones blocked by buildings or completely out of sight, cluttering the view.
No clear target feedback
There’s no clear moment of confirmation of what aircraft you're
looking at which creates uncertainty, especially for those who don't know much about aviation.
NEXT STEPS
Test & strengthen the interaction model
This was my first time designing for mobile device interactions and augmented reality. Some gestures and actions may feel intuitive in theory but need further testing and iteration so every action feels natural and easy to discover. Some interactions may benefit from clearer affordances or simpler alternatives. With more time, I'd be able to further flesh these details out.
Expand the visual language
Coming into this project, I was not familiar with standards for augmented reality design. After learning more, I want to develop
a more cohesive spatial UI language with depth cues, motion rules, color hierarchy, and iconography that feel intentionally built for AR rather than adapted from 2D screens.
REFLECTION
Plan carefully, plan ahead
Working with AR for the first time taught me how important it is to plan for real-world capture. I filmed my demo before learning how camera movement, framing, and lighting affect 3D overlays, which made the Blender work down the line much harder than it needed to be.
Prototyping faster, messier,
and earlier
Unlike conventional screen designs, I quickly learned that
you can't validate AR interactions by just sketching. The sooner I iterated & tested prototypes, the easier it became to spot friction, timing issues, and moments of confusion.
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