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

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 computer-based communication devices.

What is Assistive Technology?

The International Standards Organisation (ISO 9999)

Home  Adaptations

Telecare

Home  telehealth

Smart  homes

“Ambient Assisted Living” (AAL)

‘Welfare  Technology’

Assistive Technology

Home and Everyday Life

Education

Employment

Overview of Assistive Technology Domain

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

Home/community (Health & Social Services)

Employment EducationPublic-private mix HSE-NGO cooperation

Quality improvement and other measures

StandardsSpecialist

AT expertiseAT skills forfrontline staff

Information &awareness

User choice

Monitoring &evidence-base

Market functioning

AT provision system

Coordination and continuity across settings, transitions and the stages of lifecycle

Synergies &Market

opportunities

RelatedFields

‘Welfare technology’industries

Telecare, Telehealth‘AAL’Etc.

Modern systems in provision of Assistive Technology (AT)

to support independent living 2012

Report Available @ www.nda.ie

Average Disabilities per Person 2.6

National Disability Survey 2006

http://www.cso.ie/en/media/csoie/releasespublications/documents/otherreleases/nationaldisability/National,Disability,Survey,2006,First,Results,full,report.pdf

http://www.esri.ie/UserFiles/publications/BKMNEXT274.pdf

ESRI/NDA: Lives of children with Disabilities March 2015

Disability Remember & Concentrate

Intellectual Speech EPMH and Speech

Seeing 74% 80%

Hearing 66% 68%

Speech 73% 91%

Dexterity & Mobility

73% 83%

Remember & Concentrate

94% 42%

Intellectual 80% 43%

EPMH 75% 91%

Presence of other Disability by Disability Type

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 Braille reading materials

16,100

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

Modified from Gregg C Vanderheiden Ph.D.

•  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.”

ICT Trends Impacting on AT

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 Internet-based places and services.

A Paradigm Shift – World Report on Disability (2011) – WHO + World Bank

Universal design: Enables independence and social participation for all through continual improvement.

Accessibility: Provides basic access and usability of facilities, products and services for people with disabilities

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

UNIVERSAL DESIGN (FOR ALL PEOPLE)

Traditional ‘Medicalised’ Model of Home Adaptations

Courtesy Alison Wright www.easylivinghome.co.uk

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

HTTP://UNIVERSALDESIGN.IE/UDSITEFILES/UNIVERSAL_DESIGN_AND_THE_ICF-GUIDANCE_SUMMARY.PDF

Common Framework – PAE Person – Activity - Environment

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)

1. Discover 2. Define

3. Develop 4. Deliver

People

7 Principles

Universal Design Process

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)

©  CAST  2011  

www. CAST. org

Universal Design for Learning

©  CAST  2011  

Tim Berners-Lee

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