Physical accessibility for disabled and older people in the built environment is often deficient, but must be improved to comply with anti-discrimination legislation and wider social objectives (e.g. inclusiveness). Improving physical accessibility for disabled and older people improves physical accessibility for everybody. This is the principle of 'design for all.' "Improving Accessibility for those with Impaired Mobility" (I-AIM) is a UK project funded by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC). A telematics-based navigation system was developed to improve physical accessibility for wheelchair users in the built environment. The navigation system is a wheelchair-mounted 'active' unit comprising a smart card reader, a power source, and a visual display. It contains a software map of the built environment in question, and utilizes a 'passive' network of fixed contact-less smart cards distributed around the environment in the form of low cost SmartSigns. The smart card reader interacts with the SmartSigns by inductive coupling. Directional information is presented on the visual display. Users negotiate a route to a predefined destination, moving from node to node by their most appropriate route.
Abstract