promoting the use of accessible mobile...

© 2014 IBM Corporation

Promoting the Use of Accessible Mobile Technologies for the Workplace – Way finding Technologies

John Sanchez, Research Architect, IBM Human Ability and Accessibility Center June 2014

© 2014 IBM Corporation Slide 2 © 2014 IBM Corporation

Agenda

• Overview

• What is Accessible Location Services?

• What is the Access My Campus mobile app?

• What is the architecture enabling the app?

• What is the land marking workflow?

• Indoor navigation in action

This presentation discusses IBM research activities and technology visions not necessarily complete products. There is no commitment or obligation on the part of IBM to develop or release components of the presentation in future IBM products

Accessible Location Services

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Accessible Location Services

Navigating a workplace campus can be a challenge for everyone

Accessible Location Services attempts to improve the workplace navigation experience for all by providing personalized answers to the following questions:

• Where am I?

• How do I get where I want to go based on my capabilities?

• Where are you?

• Help me!

Mobile Way Finding for All

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Anywhere access creates situational challenges for everyone

Outside light Ambient noise Single hand

Eyes busy Aging eyes Public places

Bumpy road

Why Mobile is Different?

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Successful workplace navigation needs to know about you

• Tailor the user interface

• Find points of interest and accommodations specific to your needs

• Provide routes based on your abilities

• Favorites points of interests and routes

• Enable others to be prepared if you need assistance

You - Personalization

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Defines what the requirements are and why

Doors and Doorways

Controls and Operable Parts

Protruding Objects

Accessible Routes between Stories

Accessible Routes

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Defines data schemas which enables location-based

information services and applications:

• Mainstream/Para transit

• Municipal Infrastructure & point of interest Information

• Points of Interest on route to and from the workplace

• Hotels & Lodgings

• Restaurants

• Disability Services Organizations or Centers

• Health Care Services

Accessible Transportation

© 2014 IBM Corporation Slide 8 © 2014 IBM Corporation

Outdoor and indoor navigation – what are the challenges?

Mobile devices can navigate outdoors using GPS

How can we navigate indoors successfully where GPS is not available?

By leveraging several land-marking techniques:

• Wi-Fi

• Bluetooth/Low-Powered

• NFC

• Image recognition

The Physical Environments

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Incorporating the “now” into navigation from social media

Can we harvest the large amounts of disjoint data and put it in the context of where you are and what you are trying to do?

• Obstacles

• Alerts

• Crowds

• Emergencies

Live Data

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Introduce another layer of complexity

• Event overlay design introduces dynamic locations

• Cause situational impairments (many people, noise)

• Time is relevant because of event schedules

• Transient data but may be useful for future events

• Social media is relevant

Events

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• Tailor-able for any campus

• Locates relevant points of interest

• Provides real-time indoor directions (audible, visually)

• Creates routes based on your capabilities

• Wi-Fi Land-marking is used to determine your location

A mobile workplace campus guide

What is Access My Campus?

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Workplace Campus Events City Transportation

What is the architecture enabling the app?

Location Accessibility

Data

Accessible

Route Definitions

Accessible Transportation

Points of Interest

Landmark Data

Social Analytics External Data

You

Crowd-Sourced

GPS, NFC, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, etc. for Land marking

Mobile App • Data Collection • Workplace

navigation • Where am I? • Where are

you? • Help me!

Data Management

Alternate Formats

Official Public Private

Accessible Location Services

POI’s

Architecture

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• Use the Access My Campus app to create a

series of points of interest.

• The app uses Wi-Fi signals to landmark each

location.

• Points of interest data is stored on a server

and can be classified as Official, Public, Private

The Location Mapping Workflow

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This application can aid visually impaired

people by audibly indicating:

• The direction they are heading

• The point of interest that they occupy

Indoor Navigation In Action

© 2014 IBM Corporation Slide 15 © 2014 IBM Corporation

What Eddie had to say

“As long as I've been here, I didn't know that there was a room down there called "Barton Springs" room.

I didn't know that that was where the "Long Horn" room was …

Having something like that that can take me there … then that

would be a great thing”

Eddie Interview