CIRCA:Assistive Technology and Universal Design
From CIRCA
Contents |
Assistive Technology
Many see assistive technology as tools or systems in place to help people with disabilities cope and navigate the world as others do. But in fact, all technology is assistive. We all use help from our devices whether it is our phones, smart watches, glasses, etc. All technology is created as a tool to help us navigate through the world. Rather than thinking about designing for diagnostic impairments, all technology is designed to assist different groups of the population.
Normativity
How cultures define, think about, and treat those who currently have marked disabilities is how all their future citizens may be perceived if and when those who are able-bodied become less abled than they are now, whether by age, degeneration, or some sudden or gradual change in physical or mental capacities. All people, over the course of their lives, traffic between times of relative independence and dependence. In many cultures — and certainly in the United States — a pervasive, near-obsession with averages and statistical norms about bodies and capacities has become a naturalized form of describing both individuals and populations. The bell curve is the source of all talk about how individuals measure up relative to others. Exceptional normal-ness is prized above all else. Measurements reassure anxious caregivers, despite little correlation between them and a lifetime of wellness, healthy relationships, or sustaining work. Being ahead of the 'bell curve' is another way of saying being ahead of the normal.
Advatages to a generalized approach to design
Universal Design
Universal Design is the design and composition of an environment so that it can be accessed, understood and used to the greatest extent possible by all people regardless of their age, size, ability or disability. An environment (or any building, product, or service in that environment) should be designed to meet the needs of all people who wish to use it. This is not a special requirement, for the benefit of only a minority of the population. It is a fundamental condition of good design. If an environment is accessible, usable, convenient and a pleasure to use, everyone benefits. By considering the diverse needs and abilities of all throughout the design process, universal design creates products, services and environments that meet peoples' needs. Simply put, universal design is good design.
The 7 Principles of Universal Design were developed in 1997 by a working group of architects, product designers, engineers and environmental design researchers, led by the late Ronald Mace in the North Carolina State University. The purpose of the Principles is to guide the design of environments, products and communications. According to the Center for Universal Design in NCSU, the Principles "may be applied to evaluate existing designs, guide the design process and educate both designers and consumers about the characteristics of more usable products and environments."
- Principle 1: Equitable Use: Provide the same means of use for all users: identical whenever possible; equivalent when not. Avoid segregating or stigmatizing any users. Provisions for privacy, security, and safety should be equally available to all users. Make the design appealing to all users.
- Principle 2: Flexibility in Use: Provide choice in methods of use. Accommodate right- or left-handed access and use. Facilitate the user's accuracy and precision. Provide adaptability to the user's pace.
- Principle 3: Simple and Intuitive Use: Eliminate unnecessary complexity. Be consistent with user expectations and intuition. Accommodate a wide range of literacy and language skills. Arrange information consistent with its importance. Provide effective prompting and feedback during and after task completion.
- Principle 4: Perceptible Information: Use different modes (pictorial, verbal, tactile) for redundant presentation of essential information. Provide adequate contrast between essential information and its surroundings. Maximize "legibility" of essential information. Differentiate elements in ways that can be described (i.e., make it easy to give instructions or directions). Provide compatibility with a variety of techniques or devices used by people with sensory limitations.
- Principle 5: Tolerance for Error: Arrange elements to minimize hazards and errors: most used elements, most accessible; hazardous elements eliminated, isolated, or shielded. Provide warnings of hazards and errors. Provide fail safe features. Discourage unconscious action in tasks that require vigilance.
- Principle 6: Low Physical Effort: Allow user to maintain a neutral body position. Use reasonable operating forces. Minimize repetitive actions. Minimize sustained physical effort.
- Principle 7: Size and Space for Approach and Use: Provide a clear line of sight to important elements for any seated or standing user. Make reach to all components comfortable for any seated or standing user. Accommodate variations in hand and grip size. Provide adequate space for the use of assistive devices or personal assistance.
Examples
References
- Hendren, Sara. “Chapter 15: All Technology Is Assistive: Six Design Rules on Disability.” Making Things and Drawing Boundaries: Experiments in the Digital Humanities, edited by Jentery Sayers, Debates in the Digital Humanities, Series 3, Minneapolis, MN, University of Minnesota Press, 2017, doi:10.5749/9781452963778.
- National Disability Authority and Centre for Excellence in Universal Design. “What Is Universal Design.” Centre for Excellence in Universal Design, 2020, universaldesign.ie/what-is-universal-design.
- https://www.sli.do/
- Review, Disability Science. “The Curb Cut Effect: How Making Public Spaces Accessible to People With Disabilities Helps Everyone.” Medium, 13 June 2018, mosaicofminds.medium.com/the-curb-cut-effect-how-making-public-spaces-accessible-to-people-with-disabilities-helps-everyone-d69f24c58785.
