L’articolo proposto si riferisce ad una soluzione tecnologica per utenti non vedenti costituita da un bastone guida dotato di sensoristica e impugnatura interattiva, una gamma di tag applicabili su superfici o manufatti outdoor e un’applicazione web oriented. Tale soluzione utilizza un approccio community-based ed è finalizzata a rendere maggiormente accessibili e inclusivi lo spazio urbano. Abstract: Today, 55% of the world’s population lives in urban areas, and it’s expected to increase to 68% by 2050 (UN; FAO). The urban space has become a functionally and physically complex organism, and it’s normally not that inclusive (1). WAVE is a project addressed at a specific segment of the disadvantaged population, namely the blind people. Several studies (2) related to architectural barriers highlight how the modern cities hide invisible obstacles and constraints both to blind people and to the designers who work on accessibility. Particularly, urban contexts, dynamic and dense with functions and connections, are also "visually centric" and far from easy to navigate for blind people (2). The amount of information to memorize and the physical complexity of the routes makes it difficult to walk to a place never visited before or along a path where something has changed. In such a dynamic context, although a blind person can memorize the most used routes, these routes continuously change so fully enjoying the city’s opportunities is still a great challenge. While ordinary people can use visual information, maps, and other aids, blind people have a reduced set of tools that can help in this challenge, such as tactile maps, whose usefulness has already been demonstrated (3), or fixed aids such as acoustic signals or digital systems, up to the most innovative Smart City inspired solutions (3). Most innovative projects for inclusive cities are top-down solutions, involving co-design between institutions and companies and often essentially new expensive big spot infrastructures (4). WAVE adopts a different approach since it integrates a low-cost identification-localization system and a web platform with social networking functions and a closed community. WAVE is made of walking cane for blind users equipped with an RFID antenna and a vibro-tactile handle, a range of low-cost / low-impact passive tags for outdoor installation, and a web-oriented application that allows relating data and information to different physical locations around the city that can be marked with the tags. It is also designed as an Open Source solution to encourage makers to create and customize their own device. Each user (blind or not) could place tags in the desiredin the desired location; during the journey, the blind person might scan one or more tags receiving haptic and acoustic feedback. Through his own smartphone connected to the cane the user can get assistance for walking and reaching the destination, as well as additional useful information for an Augmented perception of the space. The information related to each tag is previously entered by other members of the community. Conceived as a dynamic and interactive system, WAVE relies on the collaboration between blind people or tutors registered on the platform who progressively tag the city and feed the database with useful information to access places and events, leveraging the experience already performed by other users. 1) Espinosa, Mª & Ungar, Simon & Ochaíta, Esperanza & Blades, Mark & Spencer, Christopher. (1998). Comparing Methods for Introducing Blind and Visually Impaired People to Unfamiliar Urban Environments. Journal of Environmental Psychology. 18. 10.1006/jevp.1998.0097. 2) Doniyorov, Alisher & Polvonov, Jurabek & Jalolova, Shakhnoza & Sattorova, Zilola & Yakubova, Manzura & Gaybullaev, Otabek & Abdullaev, Azam & Abdukarimov, Abdikhalik. (2024). Designing inclusive cities – The role of urban architecture in enhancing accessibility for the visually impaired. Archives for Technical Sciences. 2. 393-402. 10.70102/afts.2024.1631.393. 3) Fatima, Wajeeha & Hanif, Shazia & Yaseen, Aneela & Black, Philip & Khan, Ahmad. (2024). Designing out barriers for disabled: towards an inclusive urban environment. Remittances Review. 9. 1887. 10.33282/rr.vx9i2.102. 4) Makkonen, Teemu & Inkinen, Tommi. (2024). Inclusive smart cities? Technology-driven urban development and disabilities. Cities. 154. 105334. 10.1016/j.cities.2024.105334.
Wave. Design and ICT for an inclusive urban space
Borga, Giovanni
;Maximiliano Ernesto Romero
In corso di stampa
Abstract
L’articolo proposto si riferisce ad una soluzione tecnologica per utenti non vedenti costituita da un bastone guida dotato di sensoristica e impugnatura interattiva, una gamma di tag applicabili su superfici o manufatti outdoor e un’applicazione web oriented. Tale soluzione utilizza un approccio community-based ed è finalizzata a rendere maggiormente accessibili e inclusivi lo spazio urbano. Abstract: Today, 55% of the world’s population lives in urban areas, and it’s expected to increase to 68% by 2050 (UN; FAO). The urban space has become a functionally and physically complex organism, and it’s normally not that inclusive (1). WAVE is a project addressed at a specific segment of the disadvantaged population, namely the blind people. Several studies (2) related to architectural barriers highlight how the modern cities hide invisible obstacles and constraints both to blind people and to the designers who work on accessibility. Particularly, urban contexts, dynamic and dense with functions and connections, are also "visually centric" and far from easy to navigate for blind people (2). The amount of information to memorize and the physical complexity of the routes makes it difficult to walk to a place never visited before or along a path where something has changed. In such a dynamic context, although a blind person can memorize the most used routes, these routes continuously change so fully enjoying the city’s opportunities is still a great challenge. While ordinary people can use visual information, maps, and other aids, blind people have a reduced set of tools that can help in this challenge, such as tactile maps, whose usefulness has already been demonstrated (3), or fixed aids such as acoustic signals or digital systems, up to the most innovative Smart City inspired solutions (3). Most innovative projects for inclusive cities are top-down solutions, involving co-design between institutions and companies and often essentially new expensive big spot infrastructures (4). WAVE adopts a different approach since it integrates a low-cost identification-localization system and a web platform with social networking functions and a closed community. WAVE is made of walking cane for blind users equipped with an RFID antenna and a vibro-tactile handle, a range of low-cost / low-impact passive tags for outdoor installation, and a web-oriented application that allows relating data and information to different physical locations around the city that can be marked with the tags. It is also designed as an Open Source solution to encourage makers to create and customize their own device. Each user (blind or not) could place tags in the desiredin the desired location; during the journey, the blind person might scan one or more tags receiving haptic and acoustic feedback. Through his own smartphone connected to the cane the user can get assistance for walking and reaching the destination, as well as additional useful information for an Augmented perception of the space. The information related to each tag is previously entered by other members of the community. Conceived as a dynamic and interactive system, WAVE relies on the collaboration between blind people or tutors registered on the platform who progressively tag the city and feed the database with useful information to access places and events, leveraging the experience already performed by other users. 1) Espinosa, Mª & Ungar, Simon & Ochaíta, Esperanza & Blades, Mark & Spencer, Christopher. (1998). Comparing Methods for Introducing Blind and Visually Impaired People to Unfamiliar Urban Environments. Journal of Environmental Psychology. 18. 10.1006/jevp.1998.0097. 2) Doniyorov, Alisher & Polvonov, Jurabek & Jalolova, Shakhnoza & Sattorova, Zilola & Yakubova, Manzura & Gaybullaev, Otabek & Abdullaev, Azam & Abdukarimov, Abdikhalik. (2024). Designing inclusive cities – The role of urban architecture in enhancing accessibility for the visually impaired. Archives for Technical Sciences. 2. 393-402. 10.70102/afts.2024.1631.393. 3) Fatima, Wajeeha & Hanif, Shazia & Yaseen, Aneela & Black, Philip & Khan, Ahmad. (2024). Designing out barriers for disabled: towards an inclusive urban environment. Remittances Review. 9. 1887. 10.33282/rr.vx9i2.102. 4) Makkonen, Teemu & Inkinen, Tommi. (2024). Inclusive smart cities? Technology-driven urban development and disabilities. Cities. 154. 105334. 10.1016/j.cities.2024.105334.
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