Project overview
Resident-facing ledger and fault reporting for one existing shared solar scheme.
- Platform
- Mobile app · Android-first · portrait
- Screens
- 11 screens + 1 unhappy path (12 frames)
- Features
- 3 core features
- Bottom navigation
- Home · Ledger · Faults · Notices
- Prototype
- 4 linked flows
Build order: Auth (screens 1–4) → nav tabs (5–8) → core flow (9–11) → unhappy path → link prototypes.
Problem & primary user
Households using a shared solar scheme may receive payment requests, outage updates, and fault responses through separate channels. A resident-facing ledger can improve trust without replacing the licensed operator or physical meter.
Primary user
"Yakubu, a 44-year-old shop owner in an off-grid community who pays monthly for a shared solar connection."
Geographic scope: State-level (One pilot state)
Goals
User goal: Check account history and report a service fault from one low-data screen.
Business goal: Mini-grid operators, energy cooperatives, estates, and productive-use programs pay per community.
Success: Resident checks account history and submits a fault ticket with service status visible.
Market context
- Question
- Answer
- Who pays
- Mini-grid operators, energy cooperatives, estates, and productive-use programs pay per community.
- Why not WhatsApp
- Payment screenshots and fault reports sit in separate chats, so households cannot see one trusted account history.
- Design focus
- Resident ledger plus service status and fault ticket in one low-data mobile flow.
Competitors to check:
- Paper collector ledger (default)
- Transfer screenshots (not reconciled)
- Operator portal (often staff-facing)
Validate before you design
Interview 3–5 people who match your primary user. Update this brief if interviews contradict it. Do not start hi-fi until you complete the confirmation below.
- Validated user (name, age, city)
- Problem in one sentence
- One interview quote
- Success metric for your test
- Primary colour and tone
- One competitor you checked
Interview prompts
- "Walk me through the last time this happened."
- "What did you use instead? WhatsApp, paper, or nothing?"
- "What would make you trust this on a cheap Android phone?"
- "What would stop you from using this every week?"
Features & scope
v1 · three features
- See service status and current access plan
- Review operator-posted payment and usage ledger
- Submit a fault ticket and track resolution
Out of scope
- Designing solar hardware
- Holding customer funds
- National electricity billing
Screens
Design every row in wireframe, high-fidelity UI, and prototype (where the flow applies).
| # | Layer | Screen | What to show |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Auth | Splash Screen | App logo, name, and tagline for Solar Community Ledger. |
| 2 | Auth | Onboarding (1 screen) | Explain the app in one sentence. One Get Started button. |
| 3 | Auth | Sign Up Screen | Name, phone number, state, and PIN. No email required. |
| 4 | Auth | Sign In Screen | Phone number and PIN. Forgot PIN link. |
| 5 | App shell | Home (tab) | Service on/off status, plan name, and latest operator notice. Show bottom nav with Home active. |
| 6 | App shell | Ledger (tab) | Dated payment and usage entries with balance explanation. Show bottom nav with Ledger active. |
| 7 | App shell | Faults (tab) | Report fault, attach photo, and view open or resolved tickets. Show bottom nav with Faults active. |
| 8 | App shell | Notices (tab) | Maintenance windows and operator announcements for the community. Show bottom nav with Notices active. |
| 9 | Core flow | Home · Service status | Current service state and latest operator notice. Show bottom nav on post-sign-in screens. |
| 10 | Core flow | Ledger · Account history | Payment and usage entries with balance explanation. Show bottom nav on post-sign-in screens. |
| 11 | Core flow | Fault · Ticket opened | Fault report saved with open status and reference. Show bottom nav on post-sign-in screens. |
Layers: Auth = 1–4 · App shell = 5–8 · Core flow = 9–11
Prototype flows
Link these in Figma. Examiners should click through without your voice-over.
Flow 1 · App entry
Flow 2 · Core task (all three features)
Core flow screens: Home · Service status · Ledger · Account history · Fault · Ticket opened
Flow 3 · Navigation
Link every nav tab so examiners can tap each bottom nav item. Tabs: Home · Ledger · Faults · Notices
Flow 4 · Unhappy path
Trigger the unhappy path edge case and link to that screen.
Unhappy path
Design this as its own screen state (frame 12):
Meter data is delayed. Show: Usage last updated [time]. Your service status may be newer.
Link in Flow 4.
Design system
- Colour
- You choose. Keep it simple and readable.
- Type
- You choose. Keep body text easy to read on a phone.
- Tone
- Design for your user, not for a tech audience.
Reuse on every screen:
- Primary button (active and disabled states)
- Input field (empty, filled, and error states)
- Card or list item used across the app
- Navigation bar with correct labels and icons
- Empty state: what the screen looks like with no data
Submit & defense
Deliverables
| # | Deliverable | What good looks like |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Wireframes | Every screen in this brief, plus the unhappy path. Layout and labels clear. |
| 2 | High-fidelity UI | Same frames polished. You choose colour and type. Bottom nav on every post-sign-in screen. |
| 3 | Prototype | Four linked flows (entry, core task, navigation, unhappy path). Examiners can use the app without your voice-over. |
| 4 | AI prototype | Figma Make: at least 2 screens. Share link. |
| 5 | Case study (1 page) | Problem · User · Who pays · Competitors · Solution · One design decision |
| 6 | Presentation (6–8 slides) | Name · Problem · User · Solution · Key screens · Flow demo · One decision |
Before you present
- Every screen designed in wireframe and hi-fi
- Unhappy path screen designed and linked in the prototype
- Four prototype flows linked end to end
- At least one empty state on a list tab
- Shared components reused: button, input, card or row, bottom nav
- Case study names who pays and one competitor you checked
- You can explain one design decision in critique (why, not what)
- Completed 5 user interviews or 1 usability test
- Checked at least one competitor listed under Market context