Contracter Solo Product Designer

Contracter Solo Product Designer

Powervault: Home Energy App

Powervault:

Home Energy App

September 2025

September 2025

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Role Discovery, UX/UI, motion, design system, prototyping, usability testing

Team Tight duo with a software engineer (long-time collaborator). Stakeholders: founders, ops/support, select customers


Powervault builds home batteries for solar/wind users. The web portal had rich telemetry, but customers wanted clear, app-first insights. I led the end-to-end design of a new app: a Live home screen, Totals (day/week/year) with big, legible figures, and a Charts tab (live/daily/weekly/monthly/yearly) that turns complex energy data into simple, digestible insights. Along the way I set design-system foundations, explored motion and 3D, and used AI to accelerate onboarding content and prototyping.

Role Discovery, UX/UI, motion, design system, prototyping, usability testing

Team Tight duo with a software engineer (long-time collaborator). Stakeholders: founders, ops/support, select customers


Powervault builds home batteries for solar/wind users. The web portal had rich telemetry, but customers wanted clear, app-first insights. I led the end-to-end design of a new app: a Live home screen, Totals (day/week/year) with big, legible figures, and a Charts tab (live/daily/weekly/monthly/yearly) that turns complex energy data into simple, digestible insights. Along the way I set design-system foundations, explored motion and 3D, and used AI to accelerate onboarding content and prototyping.

What I worked on

What I worked on


Discovery & Research: stakeholder interviews, portal review, light user survey (mixed confidence levels, many 55+)


Design Exploration:

Advanced/3D (tech-forward, interactive model, richer motion, inspired by best energy/EV apps)

Simple/Native (calm UI using familiar iOS/Material patterns for clarity & accessibility)




Design system foundations: tokens, buttons, reusable cards/tiles, chart components, states, motion guidelines, and light/dark themes implemented with carefully structured Figma variables.


Charts & data design: clear time ranges, energy balance (solar, battery charge/discharge, grid import/export) with plain-language labels and helpful tooltips.


Onboarding & comms: concise “how this works” screens, AI-assisted visuals for a short welcome video.


Prototyping & testing: interactive prototypes to validate hierarchy and readability, quick engineer loops for feasibility and performance.


Discovery & Research: stakeholder interviews, portal review, light user survey (mixed confidence levels, many 55+)


Design Exploration:

Advanced/3D (tech-forward, interactive model, richer motion, inspired by best energy/EV apps)

Simple/Native (calm UI using familiar iOS/Material patterns for clarity & accessibility)


Design system foundations: tokens, buttons, reusable cards/tiles, chart components, states, motion guidelines, and light/dark themes implemented with carefully structured Figma variables.


Charts & data design: clear time ranges, energy balance (solar, battery charge/discharge, grid import/export) with plain-language labels and helpful tooltips.


Onboarding & comms: concise “how this works” screens, AI-assisted visuals for a short welcome video.


Prototyping & testing: interactive prototypes to validate hierarchy and readability, quick engineer loops for feasibility and performance.

Selected highlights

Selected highlights

Home (Live view)

- First glance system status (charging/discharging), plain language and visual indicators (Using solar + battery”).

- Subtle motion for state changes without added cognitive load.


Charts

- Time ranges: live/daily/weekly/monthly/yearly with consistent legends and tooltips.

- “Energy balance” visualisation that’s readable at a glance, but detail-rich on tap/hover.
- Multiple chart views to suit different user goals.

Home (Live view)

- First glance system status (charging/discharging), plain language and visual indicators (Using solar + battery”).

- Subtle motion for state changes without added cognitive load.


Charts

- Time ranges: live/daily/weekly/monthly/yearly with consistent legends and tooltips.

- “Energy balance” visualisation that’s readable at a glance, but detail-rich on tap/hover.
- Multiple chart views to suit different user goals.

Collaboration & Delivery

Collaboration & Delivery

- Designer–engineer duo to validate feasibility early (data calls, chart performance, offline states).

- Structured handoff with component specs, tokens, and motion references.

- Quick, testable prototypes for feedback from support and a small customer group.


- Designer–engineer duo to validate feasibility early (data calls, chart performance, offline states).

- Structured handoff with component specs, tokens, and motion references.

- Quick, testable prototypes for feedback from support and a small customer group.


Designing for home energy is a balance of clarity and depth. We explored a tech-forward 3D route and a simple/native route; user feedback favoured the calmer approach, so we shipped that while keeping 3D for a potential pro mode. Early system work kept the product refinement fast, AI and motion helped explain complex states. From telemetry to everyday understanding, a clear, app-first experience with a system that scales.

Designing for home energy is a balance of clarity and depth. We explored a tech-forward 3D route and a simple/native route; user feedback favoured the calmer approach, so we shipped that while keeping 3D for a potential pro mode. Early system work kept the product refinement fast, AI and motion helped explain complex states. From telemetry to everyday understanding, a clear, app-first experience with a system that scales.

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From startups to stadiums, I’ve designed for millions. Ready for the next scale.

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From startups to stadiums, I’ve designed for millions. Ready for the next scale.

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From startups to stadiums, I’ve designed for millions. Ready for the next scale.

From startups to stadiums, I’ve designed for millions. Ready for the next scale.

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