The design of disability products with special reference to the user : case study - domestic seating for young adults with arthritis (original) (raw)

Translating user needs into product design for the disabled: an ergonomic approach

This article describes a user-centred design method in which the ‘voice of the disabled customer’ can be translated into product requirements in a form that designers and manufacturers can use. Wheelchairs were chosen as the product for study. The method emerged from surveys of wheelchair designers, prescribers (physiotherapists and occupational therapists), rehabilitation engineers, users and carers on their views on wheelchair design, assessment, prescription and use. The user-centred method for products for disabled people comprises a set of 11 phases including Preliminary Strategic Planning, Approaching the Users, Investigating the Problem, Product Planning, Concept Design, Prototyping and Testing and Verification.

Design from anfd for the periphery: Wheelchairs design, an academic experience

Medical and rehabilitation products are normally designed and produced in the denominated "developed" countries and the problem is that, the sociocultural conditions of the countries in which they distribute, doesn’t have to do with the conditions where they were conceived. A clear example of this are the wheelchairs. At Mexico these products are made by transnational companies following the standards that mark the first houses. The costs make them inaccessible to great part of the usuary population, that, in addition to the segregation by its physical limitations, adds the economic segregation when not having resources to purchase of this type of rehabilitation product.

Experiences of a User-Centred Research Approach involving Old People in Early Phases of Design; Reflections from Furniture Manufacturers

The paper concerns the furniture industry’s increased interest in opportunities and challenges to respond to demographic shifts and to meet future senior markets. A central issue discussed is how a user-centred approach in a collaborative design research project benefited the industrial partners. The paper focuses on the perspectives of the participating furniture manufacturers. The most involved representatives from each of the seven participating companies in the project were recruited as respondents. Semi-structured interviews were carried out. The results indicate that a user-centred design research approach with an early focus on old people contributed with knowledge on a general level that benefited the industrial partners. All respondents stated that they were strengthened in their presumptions about old people as furniture users and consumers. The majority stated that their understanding of end users improved. Based on lessons learnt three recommendations for future work in ...

Measuring the effects of seating on people with profound and multiple disabilities--a preliminary study

Journal of rehabilitation research and development

This paper describes a preliminary study to investigate a range of approaches that might be used for measuring the effects of special seating on people with profound and multiple disabilities and their carers. A number of tools are proposed for measuring the effects on quality of life, function and carer satisfaction. The results of applying these tools to measure the effects of intervention with customized molded seating on nine people with multiple disabilities are described. The results suggest that these tools are sensitive to this intervention, showing a general beneficial effect with good carer satisfaction. The study points the way towards application of these tools to people with a wider range of disabilities and to different interventions.

Furniture Design For the Rehabilitation of Disabled People

Istanbul University - DergiPark, 2008

Bu araştırmada, fiziksel engelli bireylerin yaşam koşulları, sorunları ve çözüm önerileri incelenmiştir. Öncelikli olarak kaynak ve istatistikî verilerin toplanıp gözlemler dâhilinde engelli birey ebeveynlerine ve fizyoterapistlere bu konuda anket uygulanmıştır. Rehabilitasyonu sağlayan eğitim kurumlarının incelenmesi ve anket sonucuna göre; ülkemizde engelli bireyler için yapılacak mekân düzenlemeleri, bireye özgü hareketliliği arttırıcı uygun cihazların kolay temin edilmesi, engelli bireylerin ihtiyaçları doğrultusunda mekan ve mobilyaların kullanıma sunulması, bu insanların yaşamlarını ve tedavilerini kolaylaştırdığı söylenebilir. Bu nedenle, engelli bireylerin başkalarına bağımlılığını azaltmak, mevcut potansiyellerini üst düzeye çıkartmak için ergonomik kıstaslar da dikkate alınarak, özgün ayakta durma ve oturma baca-masası tasarlanıp üretimi yapılmıştır. Baca-masanın üretiminde kontrplak, fren mekanizmalı tekerler, sökülüp takılmasına ve yenilenmesine kolaylık sağlayan ayarlı cıvatalar ile döşeme uygulamasında kauçuk ve suni deri, üst yüzey işlemlerinde ise su bazlı vernikler kullanılmıştır. Baca-masa, seri üretime uygun olacak şekilde tasarlanmıştır. Ayrıca cihaz; bireyin tedavi etkisini artırmada daha etkili olan, çocuk gelişiminde kritik dönemlerin fazla ve fiziksel büyümenin daha hızlı olduğu ilk ve son çocukluk gelişim dönemleri seçilerek, boy uzunluğu 65-130 cm tasarlanmış engelli bireyler için uzun süreli kullanımı sağlayan ayarlanabilir fonksiyonellikte düşünülmüştür. Aynı veya farklı engel gruplarında, benzer şekil bozuklukları olan bireylere özel baca-masa tasarımlarıyla; fonksiyonel ve ergonomik boyutlarda insan verimliliğine ve sağlığına etkileri ile bilinen mobilyanın bu tarz cihazlar için üretiminin faydalı olabileceği düşünülmektedir.

Universal product design involving elderly users: a participatory design model

Applied Ergonomics, 2004

Recent studies have shown that people prefer to age in their familiar environments, thus guiding designers to provide a safe and functionally appropriate environment for ageing people, regardless of their physical conditions or limitations. Therefore, a participatory design model is proposed where human beings can improve their quality of life by promoting independence, as well as safety, useability and attractiveness of the residence. Brainstorming, scenario building, unstructured interviews, sketching and videotaping are used as techniques in the participatory design sessions. Quality deployment matrices are employed to find the relationships between the elderly user's requirements and design specifications. A case study was devised to apply and test the conceptual model phase of the proposed model. r

Disability + Relevant Design: A portfolio of approaches

2013

This paper discusses a multi-methodological approach to integrating the voice and experience of our diverse population (e.g. people with disabilities) into Industrial Design curricula. There is much to gain for all concerned by design students developing deeper insights and understanding of potential users, especially when we consider the shift in demographics (e.g. people are living longer, increase in population with disabilities). The role of the designer has changed, from the purveyor of taste, to one where gaining an empathic understanding of authentic human needs is critical. Empathy helps to ensure more effective design outcomes. Within the classroom we are integrating diverse voices into the designing process, by providing an interdisciplinary environment, which is also supported by empathic design research strategies ('Disability + Relevant Design' course). Outcomes of this new course have led to a major design award and have been exhibited at the Smithsonian Institution's Folklife Festival in 2012 at the Mall in Washington, D.C. The authors will present a number of case studies, including course content, exhibition, design awards, and teaching aids, in order to promote this activity amongst the design community.

Usage Problems and Social Barriers Faced by Persons With a Wheelchair and Other Aids. Qualitative Study From the Ergonomics Perspective in Persons Disabled by Rheumatoid Arthritis and Other Conditions

Reumatología clínica, 2013

Objective: The objective of this study was to identify the usage and accessibility problems faced by the disabled (whether in pain or not) users of assistive devices (conventional wheelchairs), identify physical barriers that limit their mobility, and recognize the socio-cultural practices excluding them from the design process of such devices. Another main purpose of this paper is to improve the ergonomic criteria that influence the design and manufacture of assistive devices. Materials and methods: Study population: 15 patients with any of the following diagnoses: ankylosing spondylitis, rheumatoid arthritis, or amputees using wheelchairs in Mexico and Colombia. Design: Qualitative study. Thematic analysis with a theoretical industrial design approach for employing usability testing for ergonomic analysis. Results: We identified 6 issues associated with usability problems from the patient's standpoint: barriers for use of wheelchairs (usability and acceptability), creative adaptations, potential use of technical devices, independence, body perception and assistive devices, and architectural barriers. The ergonomic and usability requirements and the resulting level of independence vary across wheelchair users with chronic pain and those whose disability does not involve pain. The latter are more independent in their movements and decisions. Conclusions: User input is essential in the design of assistive devices. The proposal of "design from and for the user" must rely on both engineering and medical perspective on the ergonomy as well as the user interpretation of the environment and the experience of the disease. Thus we can arrive at a "usercentered design".

Comparative study on design and functionality requirements for senior-friendly furniture for sitting

2021

Furniture manufacturers’ response to the demographic challenge of aging nations is an important issue. The number of seniors is rising worldwide. The aging process often results in multiple health implications, including weaker mobility, decrease in muscle mass, and change in anthropometrical dimensions of the human body. Thus, the furniture offered should be adjusted to the needs of an increasing group of senior customers. To identify seniors’ preferences in relation to characteristics of sitting furniture, international surveys with 627 respondents aged 60+ years were conducted in Poland, Germany, Denmark, Finland, Latvia, and Lithuania. The implementation of this data in the design process may result in creation of the market offer meeting seniors’ needs. Design and functionality features were examined to provide guidance for seniorfriendly development of furniture for sitting. Among the most important findings is the clear preference of having an armchair with the high backrest ...

Designing from disability experience

Proceedings of the 15th Participatory Design Conference: Short Papers, Situated Actions, Workshops and Tutorial - Volume 2, 2018

This paper describes a participatory workshop as part of a larger process to design an inclusive museum space. The workshop covers a number of sessions that go from mutual introductions, over idea generation, to synthesis of an architectural concept. We discuss the participants' experience of the process that is set up to allow for a balanced exchange between architects and user/experts living with an impairment. We also discuss the outcome of the process in terms of its expression of inclusive museum architecture. 1