Adaptation of Work Places and Homes for the Disabled Using Computer-aided Design

Summary, in English

When adapting environments for the physically disabled, it is important to encourage and activate not only the person concerned, but also other people involved or affected. A computer aided planning tool has been developed to support the participation of all persons involved, as well as supporting the planner’s (e.g. an occupational therapist) design of the environment. The prototype development and evaluation were based on 6 case-studies, which also provided experience of the needs and requirements in real-life planning situations. The tool was found useful in the planning process, and it was mainly positively evaluated by the persons involved. It seemed to enhance understanding and participation, support an iterative planning process, and aid the design in e.g. checking the accessibility, clearance and reach, concerning an individual’s size and abilities. However, effectiveness was in most cases not satisfactory, since modelling is still relatively time-consuming.

• Author: Gerd Johansson; Joakim Eriksson
• Department/s: Ergonomics and Aerosol Technology
• Publishing year: 1994
• Language: English
• Pages: 301-303
• Publication/Series: Proceedings of the 12th Triennial Congress of the International Ergonomics Association
• Volume: 3
• Full text: - 258 kB; Download statistics
• Document type: Conference paper
• Publisher: IEA
• Topic: Production Engineering, Human Work Science and Ergonomics
• Keywords: adaptation; computer-aided design; disabled: work places; homes
• Conference name: 12th Triennial Congress of the International Ergonomics Association
• Conference date: 1994-08-15 - 1994-08-19
• Conference place: Toronto, Canada
• Status: Published
• ISBN/ISSN/Other: ISBN: 0-9698544-2-0