Trends in Assistive Technology: Mind, Body & Social

Trends in Assistive
Technology:
Mind, Body & Social
Dr Ger Craddock
Centre for Excellence in Universal Design
National Disability Authoirity, Ireland
www.universaldesign.ie
What does a school do with 5- and 6-year-old kids?
In Kyoto Japan created a kindergarten that doesn't fight
against kids' natural impulses. It counts on them.
The roof is a giant ring of a playground. Why? Kids
love to run in circles.
This shows the rambling travels of one little boy over the course of just 20
minutes. Over the course of his entire morning, he covered 6,000 meters, or
3.7 miles!
Things are deliberately a little risky.
Designing the Future, but First....
“The future will be less about predicting it and
more about collaboratively designing it” Josephine Green
(Philips Design)
"We can chart our future clearly and wisely only
when we know the path which has led to the
present.”
Adlai Stevenson American statesman What is Assistive Technology?
Assistive Technology (AT) concerns the practical tools
that can support functional needs of people who
experience difficulties linked to disability or ageing.
It encompasses a broad spectrum of low tech and
high tech technologies, e.g. walking sticks/frames,
wheelchairs, to high end hearing, vision, and computerbased communication devices.
The International Standards Organisation (ISO 9999)
Overview of Assistive Technology Domain
Home Adaptations
Ho
me
Smart homes
an
d
“Am
bie
n
Ev
e ry
da
Assistive Technology y L i
Employment
fe
Te
tA
ssi
s
te d
Liv
ing
”
lec
a re
(AA
L)
Education
Home telehealth
‘Welfare Technology’
Research Study for NDA (2011-12)
Objec&ves §  map the system(s) of AT provision in Ireland §  iden7fy good prac7ce from other countries §  prepare guidance for further development of the Irish system Ø  AT service delivery systems in 3 se+ngs §  home / community / everyday life §  employment §  educa7on
Ø  Other countries covered
Denmark
Italy
Netherlands
Norway
UK
Germany
Different ‘Welfare’ Regimes & AT Service
Delivery Systems
Welfare regime / AT service delivery system Denmark Tax-­‐based funding, municipali7es, universal system Norway Social insurance funding, single agency (NAV), municipali7es, universal system Netherlands Compulsory private health insurance & municipali7es, universal system Italy Tax-­‐based funding (na7onal health system), universal system; also NGOs UK Tax-­‐based funding; universal system for na7onal health service, oMen income-­‐
related for AT provided under social service system Germany Social insurance funding of AT for employment; largely universal system Ireland Mainly tax-­‐based funding; public services & publicly-­‐funded NGOs; public-­‐private mix (income and age related) Cross-country analysis on some key themes
Ø 
policy importance given to AT
Ø 
universality and public-private mix
Ø 
coverage across settings and the lifecycle
Ø 
service quality standards
Ø 
availability of specialist AT expertise
Ø 
AT education and training
Ø 
information and awareness
Ø 
user / consumer choice
Ø 
performance monitoring and statistics
Aspects addressed
Policy: more attention and stronger strategic position for AT and related fields
AT provision system
Home/community
(Health & Social Services)
HSE-NGO
cooperation
Public-private mix
Related
Fields
Education
Employment
‘Welfare
technology’
industries
Coordination and continuity across settings, transitions and the stages of lifecycle
Synergies &
Market
opportunities
Quality improvement and other measures
Standards
Information &
awareness
Monitoring &
evidence-base
User choice
Specialist
AT expertise
AT skills for
frontline staff
Market
functioning
Telecare,
Telehealth
‘AAL’
Etc.
Modern systems in provision of
Assistive Technology (AT)
to support independent living
2012
Report Available @
www.nda.ie
National Disability Survey 2006
Average Disabilities per Person 2.6
http://www.cso.ie/en/media/csoie/releasespublications/documents/otherreleases/nationaldisability/
National,Disability,Survey,2006,First,Results,full,report.pdf
ESRI/NDA:
Lives of children with Disabilities March 2015
http://www.esri.ie/UserFiles/publications/BKMNEXT274.pdf
Presence of other Disability by Disability Type
Disability
Remember
Intellectual
&
Concentrate Seeing
74%
Hearing
Speech
73%
91%
Dexterity &
Mobility
73%
83%
94%
Intellectual
80%
EPMH
75%
EPMH and
Speech
80%
66%
Remember &
Concentrate
Speech
68%
42%
43%
91%
Assistive Technology Usage and Unmet Need
amongst People with Disabilities in Ireland NDA
Forthcoming 2015
AT use NDS 2006
Disability
AT use
Numbers
Dexterity
Walking aids
83,300
Dexterity & Mobility
Grab bars or bathroom
aids
64,500
Seeing
Magnifiers, large print or 16,100
Braille reading materials
Hearing
Hearing Devices
13,400
Intellectual
General devices: talking
books, computers
9,400
Remembering
Products or technology
such as automated
reminders
19,380
Assistive Technology Usage and Unmet Need
amongst People with Disabilities in Ireland NDA
Forthcoming 2015 Cont’d
• Age as a key factor in not having needs meet
• People with more than one disability,
'secondary' disability not covered
• Age of On set – younger better chance
• Severity of disability improved chances of getting AT
• No major differences regarding Region or Gender
Advantages of Everyday Technologies:
• Very “Cool”
• Less expensive
• Being cheaper can act as backup or secondary device
Disadvantages of Everyday Technologies:
• Will not be funded by Authority
• Designed for “average user”
Advantages of Specialised Devices:
They are likely to be paid by Authority
They are durable, can withstand being dropped, having moisture get inside
They have strong support services and warranties
They tend to work better for persons with complex needs
Disadvantages of Specialised Devices:
They can be large and heavy
They can be costly
Impact of Technology Trends
on e-Inclusion Policy and Practice
ICT Trends Impacting on AT
•  Increasing Tech power + decreasing size and costs;
•  New interfaces: virtual projected interfaces, speech input and output, Direct
Brain interfaces, multi modal interfaces, artificial intelligent agents that can act
as mediators, service robots;
•  Connected anywhere and anytime: technologies that soon will be wearable or
incorporated directly into clothing;
•  Creation of virtual places, service providers, and products that can enable a
person to shop, explore, learn, travel, socialize, and work in “cyber space.”
Modified from Gregg C Vanderheiden Ph.D.
Concerns going forward:
• Devices getting more complex before they get simpler.
• Increased use of digital controls (e.g., push buttons used in
combination with displays, touch screens, etc.)
• The shrinking size of products
•  Increasing use of automated self-service devices, especially in
unattended locations,
• decrease of face-to-face interaction, and increase in e-business,
e-government, e-learning, e-shopping, etc., services becoming
inaccessible to those who are unable to access these Internetbased places and services.
A Paradigm Shift – World Report on
Disability (2011) – WHO + World Bank
Accessibility:
Provides basic access and usability of facilities,
products and services for people with disabilities
Universal design:
Enables independence and social participation for
all through continual improvement.
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.
(Synopsis of the Irish Disability Act 2005)
An approach to promoting more accessibility and usability in
Built environment, Products, Services and ICT systems.
Centre for Excellence in Universal Design, CEUD
Established January, 2007 in the NDA
“Good” vs “Bad” design
•  After a century of rapid technological
innovation and development
Philips (2004) “The Philips Index: Calibrating the Convergence of Healthcare, Lifestyle
and Technology. “
Poor Design
Traditional ‘Medicalised’
Model of Home Adaptations
Courtesy Alison Wright
www.easylivinghome.co.uk
UNIVERSAL DESIGN
(FOR ALL PEOPLE)
Great Design
Royal Institute of Architects Ireland Annual
Architecture Awards 2013
2013 Winner (and
also Peoples
Choice Award) –
UCD Student
Centre
Residential Adaption and Extension wins 2014 RIAI
Universal Design Award
“It is a delight to live in and has greatly improved the quality of
life for the whole family”
Universal System – Environment/Service/Technology
“Whole Systems” Approach:
A Global Common Language
(Taxonomies and Classification Systems)
ICF – International Classification of Functioning
ISO – International Standards Organisation – Guide 71 – Guide to accessibility in
Standard Development
Common Framework – PAE
Person – Activity - Environment
HTTP://UNIVERSALDESIGN.IE/UDSITEFILES/
UNIVERSAL_DESIGN_AND_THE_ICF-GUIDANCE_SUMMARY.PDF
Designing with: (ProAm)
V
Designing for:
(Passive recipient)
Discover – Define – Develop - Deliver
Problem Solving -Linear
V
Human Centred Design - Fuzzy
Collaboration
(Crowdsourcing/Open Source)
V
Lone Ranger
(Narrow focus/Closed)
Universal Design Process
People
1. Discover
2. Define
4. Deliver
3. Develop
7 Principles
Universal Design for Learning
• UDL framework is based in the neuroscience of
learning, and its principles emphasise three key aspects
of pedagogy: Multiple Means of:
•  representing information,
•  expression of knowledge, and
•  engagement in learning
(Rose 2015 Rose, Meyer and Hitchcock, 2005; Meyer,
Rose, & Gordon 2014)
www.
© CAST 2011 CAST. org
Universal Design for Learning
Tim Berners-Lee
© CAST 2011 3 D Printing
Autonomous Vehicles' (AVs)
Wearable Technologies
Smart Home Technologies (IoT)
Building for Everyone – A universal Design Approach
The purpose in producing
Guidelines for Universal Design
(UD) Homes is to:
• Inspire people to think differently
about better quality homes for
everyone.
• Assist in the design and delivery of
UD Homes through practical
guidelines.
Research, Recommendations & Design Guidance for Home Design in
Ireland for people living with Dementia, their families and carers looking
at New Build and Retro-Fit Homes from a Universal Design approach
Completion 2st Quarter 2015
CEUD Universal
Design Challenges
Universal Needs to
Universal Designs
Universal Design Grand Challenge 2015
Thank you
www.universaldesign.ie