Abstract
| Language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages | 520-534 |
| Number of pages | 14 |
| Journal | Presence: Teleoperators and Virtual Environments |
| Volume | 13 |
| Issue number | 5 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - 31 Oct 2004 |
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Keywords
- haptic interfaces
- wheelchair navigation
- built environment
- bioengineering
- Disability Discrimination Act 1995
- access rights
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Haptic interfaces for wheelchair navigation in the built environment. / Harrison, Colin S.; Grant, P.M.; Conway, Bernard A.
In: Presence: Teleoperators and Virtual Environments, Vol. 13, No. 5, 31.10.2004, p. 520-534.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article
TY - JOUR
T1 - Haptic interfaces for wheelchair navigation in the built environment
AU - Harrison, Colin S.
AU - Grant, P.M.
AU - Conway, Bernard A.
PY - 2004/10/31
Y1 - 2004/10/31
N2 - A number of countries have recently introduced legislation aimed at ending discrimination against disabled people; in the United Kingdom the Disability Discrimination Act (1995) provides the disabled community with new employment and access rights. The intention of the act is to help those who rely on wheelchairs for mobility and who Frequently find that not all buildings provide conditions suited to easy access, Central to these new rights will be an obligation for employers and organizations to provide premises that do not disadvantage the disabled, This work reports on the development of instrumentation that allows wheelchair navigation within virtual buildings and can assist architects in identifying the needs of wheelchair users st an early design stage. Central to this project has been the need to provide a platform that can accommodate a range of wheelchair types and will map intended wheelchair motion into a virtual space. This interface must have the capacity to provide feedback to the user reflecting constraints present in the physical world, including changes in floor surface characteristics, gradients, and collisions. Integrating visual and nonvisual sensory feedback correlating to the physical effort of wheelchair propulsion has been found to augment the perception of self-motion within the virtual world and so can create an effective instrument for use in the study of wheelchair accessibility within the built environment, This project represents a collaborative effort between architects and bioengineers engaged in research related to platform design, construction, and interfacing, while testing and evaluation has been accomplished with the assistance of user groups.
AB - A number of countries have recently introduced legislation aimed at ending discrimination against disabled people; in the United Kingdom the Disability Discrimination Act (1995) provides the disabled community with new employment and access rights. The intention of the act is to help those who rely on wheelchairs for mobility and who Frequently find that not all buildings provide conditions suited to easy access, Central to these new rights will be an obligation for employers and organizations to provide premises that do not disadvantage the disabled, This work reports on the development of instrumentation that allows wheelchair navigation within virtual buildings and can assist architects in identifying the needs of wheelchair users st an early design stage. Central to this project has been the need to provide a platform that can accommodate a range of wheelchair types and will map intended wheelchair motion into a virtual space. This interface must have the capacity to provide feedback to the user reflecting constraints present in the physical world, including changes in floor surface characteristics, gradients, and collisions. Integrating visual and nonvisual sensory feedback correlating to the physical effort of wheelchair propulsion has been found to augment the perception of self-motion within the virtual world and so can create an effective instrument for use in the study of wheelchair accessibility within the built environment, This project represents a collaborative effort between architects and bioengineers engaged in research related to platform design, construction, and interfacing, while testing and evaluation has been accomplished with the assistance of user groups.
KW - haptic interfaces
KW - wheelchair navigation
KW - built environment
KW - bioengineering
KW - Disability Discrimination Act 1995
KW - access rights
UR - http://portal.acm.org/citation.cfm?id=1232098
UR - http://dx.doi.org/10.1162/1054746042545265
U2 - 10.1162/1054746042545265
DO - 10.1162/1054746042545265
M3 - Article
VL - 13
SP - 520
EP - 534
JO - Presence: Teleoperators and Virtual Environments
T2 - Presence: Teleoperators and Virtual Environments
JF - Presence: Teleoperators and Virtual Environments
SN - 1054-7460
IS - 5
ER -