Innovating the TUM Heilbronn Smart Campus: Designing Human-Centered Digital Services for Hybrid Environments

Universities invest greatly in digital infrastructure on campus, but students are still underserved. Sensor networks and analytics platforms increasingly optimize processes for the facilities, not for the people studying in those spaces. This work challenges that paradigm. Using Human-Computer Interaction theory and Digital Twin Design for campuses, this research explores what happens when student experiences become the primary design specification. The example is StaySmart, a pilot programme at TUM Campus Heilbronn. A demand-driven approach using mixed methods with a structured survey on importance and satisfaction, and structured interviews guided the inquiry. Both survey and interview data consistently revealed that students were compelled to leave campus prematurely due to infrastructural limitations that interrupted their routines. Using activity theory and participatory design principles, these gaps are reframed: the digital twin is no longer simply a tool for backend monitoring; rather, it is a socio-technical service solution bridging the gap between the operational data and the student experience. StaySmart offers a solution with two app modules: EcoBite and RoomRapid. Contributions include a reproducible approach for needs assessment, a design using activity theory at the routine level, and a governance as interaction-quality approach extending usability evaluation beyond the user interface.