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Studies on design evaluation of Product Packaging availability Based on Analysis of
Eye Movements
Pang Yeying
(Hunan University of Technology, Zhuzhou, Hunan, R.P. China, Zip Code 412000)
E-mail: 565491781@qq.com
Abstract—The thesis designed eye movement experiment based
on the packaging case of PINO tissue. It made eye movement
evaluation on the packaging availability of PINO by packaging
open experiment, eye movement experiment and analysis. It
clarified the advantage and limitation of product packaging on
the basis of analyzing the test result. In the design of product
packaging, high purified color scheme will be more attractive
to young consumers. Meanwhile, the key for PINO
accomplishing such outstanding achievement arises from its
vivid color and novel outlook. There are also some
inconvenient problems on the processing of packaging opening.
The analysis and assessment provide reliable experimental
data for optimizing the product packaging in the future.
Key words: eye movement; product packaging; availability;
design evaluation
In modern product packaging design, as marginal effect
gradually diminishes, consumers’ needs and feelings are
being taken highly attention. With product function
gradually perfect, the contradiction between product
function complication and practice simplicity is deepening
which leads to the problem of product packaging availability.
Nilesen(1993) and Hartson(1998) put forward the concept of
user interface availability, but they did not make further
analysis on definition’s operability. 【1】 Damasio A R,
famous psychologist in America, put forth the design
principle of availability by further study on the relation
between consumer’s psychology and availability design in
daily product and successfully assisted the corporation to
design products with high availability. 【2】 Because of
consumer base’s difference, packaging nature and product
feature determine the design connotation with availability
should be involved in product packaging. Under the
condition of product protection, storage, transportation and
sales going well, availability design of product packaging
highlights the function of packaging design and promotes
utility value in aesthetics, economy, environment,
uniqueness, social and culture for meeting consumer’s
subjective and objective emotion needs by packaging design
in style, construction, material, decoration, process etc..
Eye movement evaluation towards product packaging
availability design evaluates consumer’s psychology and
behavior by tracing subjects’ eye movement track so that
can get one qualitative and objective result. Through eye
movement tracing, we can get the first fixation, fixation
arrangement, fixation duration and fixation sequence from
consumers’ feedback towards product packaging and
product shelf’s setting so that can make further research on
consumers’ behavior which . 【3】to a great extent, can affect
and even determine the brand’s competiveness and benefit.
This study is mainly based on PINO tissue and market
analysis which get from market survey and questionnaire. It
analyzes the product packaging availability and evaluates
the phases in eye movement experiment such as packaging
opening, feedback on using and eye movement test etc.
Furthermore, the study analyzes and evaluates the
advantages and limitation of tested products so that it can
provide reliable experimental data for optimizing design of
product packaging in future.
I. RESEARCH METHOD
A. Experimental Facilities
The experiment was done with new generation Sweden
Tobii T60 eye tracker. Its 17-inch LCD is applicable for
revealing stimulus material by viewing screen. By Tobii eye
movement tracing, it can inspect the subjects’ thinking
conveniently and precisely as well as further insight the
human’s behavior without the interference from other
apparatus.
B. Subjects
The experiment included 30 undergraduates, aged 20 to
28 years. Among those subjects, there were 12 males and 18
females who used congeneric product no less than 3 times a
day.
C. Experimental Material
PINO tissue was selected as the main research product
while three other congeneric products were selected to do
packaging contrast experiment. For lowering the influence
of PINO tissue’s visual elements on its color elements such
as color and texture, all the pictures have been modified by
photoshop. Four tissue packaging were put together in the
same pictures as the experimental material. Subjects chose
its favorite packaging. Besides, all picture’s background
were set to white and its central position was hollowed so as
to eliminate the interference of position element. All
products were with the same size, light and dark, perspective
and contrast.
D. Experimental Procedure
1) Main research product was put together with
congeneric products in the same photo to do packaging
contrast. Subjects chose one favorite product. The
experiment tested eye movement attention trace, fixation
duration, first fixation and generated heat map and interest
fixation map. Heat map, which is an image generated by
statistics on the basis of subjects’ eye movement data,
International Conference on Education Technology and Management Science (ICETMS 2013)
© 2013. The authors - Published by Atlantis Press
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reflects the overall condition of fixation and sight movement
on the screen. Different heat maps are drawn by different
eye tracking softwares which cope with the pictures,
webpages even the data from videos of testing activity. 【4】
2) Subjects watched the PINO tissue’s packaging.
Subjects’ watching sequence was: front view-side view-top
view. The experiment tested eye movement attention trace,
fixation duration, first fixation and generated heat map and
interest fixation map.
II. EXPERIMENTAL ANALYSIS
A. Packaging Opening Test
Packaging opening test included 28 subjects who were
divided into 5 groups. Each group included 5 or 6 people. To
open the first layer of plastic transparent packaging, it took
these 5 groups of subjects 10 seconds, 10 seconds, 22
seconds, 21 seconds, 18 seconds respectively and the
average time is 16 seconds. To open the second layer of
packaging, they spent 11 seconds, 11 seconds, 5 seconds, 12
seconds, 14 seconds respectively and the average time is 3
seconds. To take out the product by opening packaging, it
took 2 seconds, 2 seconds, 2 seconds, 6 seconds, 5 seconds
respectively and the average time is 3 seconds. The plastic
packaging was damaged seriously when these 5 groups of
subjects opened the first layer of plastics transparent
packaging. Thus, they suggested that an easy-to-pull
opening should be affixed in the first layer of packaging.
There were 2 groups thought tissue’s opening mark was not
obvious and should be improved. Results of analysis, which
is based on the panel discussion after packaging opening test,
point to the conclusion that: at first sight, 14.2% consumers
have comparative weak desire to buy, 42.8% consumers
have the desire to buy, 7.1% consumers have strong desire to
buy. Results of analysis on the basis of data pointed that,
consumers have deep first impression towards this product;
in the process of opening, 50% consumers think this product
is convenient for using; 82% consumers satisfied with
packaging’s protective effect; only 3.5% consumers think
such product packaging with low protective effect. In overall
satisfaction of this packaging, nobody is unsatisfied and
more than 50% consumers have high or even very high
satisfaction level towards this product packaging.
Figure 1 Heat Map of PINO Tissue’s Overall Packaging
Figure 2 Time to First Fixation Figure of PINO Tissue’s Overall Packaging
B. Contrast Experiment between PINO Tissue and Other
Tissues
The experiment made contrast between PINO Tissue
and other congeneric products by below key points: first
fixation duration, time to first fixation, total fixation duration.
It made the systematic analysis after selecting experimental
field.
First fixation duration is the looking time on the first
fixation in some interest area which shows how many times
subjects look at the products in the process of experiment.
【5】Besides, it presents how much attention the products get.
Generally, the product with contents, complicacy and
novelty is easy to raise the attention. While the more
attention, the better.
PINO tissue was divided into the second interest area as
figure shows.Ⅰ Regarding the summarizing column of
stimulus materials in AOI，N presents how many interest
areas were recorded under one stimulus element; Mean
presents average value; sum presents the summation of
interest areas. We can find out that in the second interest
area, the value of N was 44, the value of M was 0.34 and the
value of S was 15.11 which all exceeded the values in other
interest areas. Thus, PINO tissue won in the first fixation
duration.
Table 1 PINO Tissue’s First Fixation Duration on Comparison Packaging
C. Experiment of PINO Tissue’s Overall Effect ( take
Figure 1 as an example)
Tissue Experiment ( Detailed Graph of the First Fixation
Duration )
Region of Interest Ⅰ Region of Interest Ⅱ
N
Count Mean
Seconds Sum
Seconds N
Count Mean
Seconds Sum
Seconds
41 0.28 11.31 44 0.34 15.11
Region of Interest Ⅲ Region of Interest Ⅳ
N
Count Mean
Seconds Sum
Seconds N
Count Mean
Seconds Sum
Seconds
44 0.33 14.41 44 0.32 14.15
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Table 2 Time to First Fixation Test Result of PINO Tissue’s Overall
Packaging
Time to First Fixation Test of PINO Tissue’s Overall
Packaging
Region of Interest Ⅰ Region of Interest Ⅱ
N
Count Mean
Seconds Sum
Seconds N
Count Mean
Seconds Sum
Seconds
44 0.65 28.59 39 1.44 56.24
Region of Interest Ⅲ
N
Count Mean
Seconds Sum
Seconds
35 0.96 33.74
Table 3 Total Fixation Duration Test of PINO Tissue’s Overall Packaging
Time to First Fixation Test of PINO Tissue’s Overall
Packaging
Region of Interest Ⅰ Region of Interest Ⅱ
N
Count Mean
Seconds Sum
Seconds N
Count Mean
Seconds Sum
Seconds
44 2.25 98.82 39 0.94 36.56
Region of Interest Ⅲ
N
Count Mean
Seconds Sum
Seconds
35 0.83 28.96
In this experiment, the first interest area was front face,
the second area was top face, the third area was side face.
From the data in Table 2, the average value of entering the
first area is 0.65 seconds which is the shortest; however, the
summation of fixation duration is 2.25 seconds. In the
histogram analysis of time to first fixation, RED presents the
first interest area (front face) of “PINO tissue”, GREEN
presents the second interest area of “PINO tissue (top face)”,
YELLOW presents the third interest area (side face). The
analysis is based on the test result of 10 subjects with more
than 90% validity in the histogram. It was clearly shown that
the entry time of text was higher than the images. That is to
say, front side was drawn highest attention in the overall
packaging. So, more effective information should be
arranged in the front side for consumer to identify and
memorize. In the product display, the entry time of side face
was fast so that side face is also indispensable face for
information transfer. Thus, secondary information should be
arranged in side face. Although, the duration in top area is
0.11 second more than side face, the entry time is longer. It
is suggest that the information transfer should not be
arranged in top face.
III. CONCLUSION
The study made eye movement evaluation on the
packaging availability of PINO tissue by packaging open
experiment, eye movement test and analysis. It clarifies the
advantage and limitation of product packaging on the basis
of analyzing the test result. The test result pointed that high
purified color scheme will draw consumer’s attention easily
and bright color scheme will be more attractive for young
consumers. Meanwhile, the key for PINO accomplishing
such outstanding achievement arises from its vivid colour
and novel outlook. However, there are still some problems
in the way of opening the packaging. It took relatively
longer time to open the fist layer of packaging which does
not convenient and have to destroy the packaging to open.
ACKNOWLEDGMENT
Fund Programme：the phased objectives of psychology
social science fund programme “Studies on Product
Availability Design Based on Eye Movement Analysis”
( Approval NO.: 12YBB076).
Author: Pang Yeying (1970-), female, was born in
Shaoshan, Hunan province. The author, with master’s
degree, is an instructor in Technology Institute of Hunan
University of Technology. Direction of research is theory
and culture of modern design.
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[3] Yan Guoli. The Application of Eye Movement Analytical Method in
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[4] Mark C.Russell.HotsPots and Herlinks ：Using Eye-tracking to
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