Virtual reality in the rehabilitation of people with intellectual disabilities

Virtual reality (VR) possesses many qualities that give it rehabilitative potential for people with intellectual disabilities, both as an intervention and an assessment. It can provide a safe setting in which to practice skills that might carry too many risks in the real world. Unlike human tutors, computers are infinitely patient and consistent. Virtual worlds can be manipulated in ways the real world cannot be and can convey concepts without the use of language or other symbol systems. Published applications for this client group have all been as rehabilitative interventions. These are described in three groups: promoting skills for independent living, enhancing cognitive performance, and improving social skills. Five groups of studies are reviewed that utilize virtual technology to promote skills for independent living: grocery shopping, preparing food, orientation, road safety, and manufacturing skills. Fears that skills or habits learnt in a virtual setting would not transfer to the real world setting have not been supported by the available evidence, apart from those studies with people with autistic spectrum disorders. Future directions are in the development of more applications for independent living skills, exploring interventions for promoting motor and cognitive skills, and the developments of ecologically valid forms of assessment

How a Diverse Research Ecosystem Has Generated New Rehabilitation Technologies: Review of NIDILRR’s Rehabilitation Engineering Research Centers

Over 50 million United States citizens (1 in 6 people in the US) have a developmental, acquired, or degenerative disability. The average US citizen can expect to live 20% of his or her life with a disability. Rehabilitation technologies play a major role in improving the quality of life for people with a disability, yet widespread and highly challenging needs remain. Within the US, a major effort aimed at the creation and evaluation of rehabilitation technology has been the Rehabilitation Engineering Research Centers (RERCs) sponsored by the National Institute on Disability, Independent Living, and Rehabilitation Research. As envisioned at their conception by a panel of the National Academy of Science in 1970, these centers were intended to take a “total approach to rehabilitation”, combining medicine, engineering, and related science, to improve the quality of life of individuals with a disability. Here, we review the scope, achievements, and ongoing projects of an unbiased sample of 19 currently active or recently terminated RERCs. Specifically, for each center, we briefly explain the needs it targets, summarize key historical advances, identify emerging innovations, and consider future directions. Our assessment from this review is that the RERC program indeed involves a multidisciplinary approach, with 36 professional fields involved, although 70% of research and development staff are in engineering fields, 23% in clinical fields, and only 7% in basic science fields; significantly, 11% of the professional staff have a disability related to their research. We observe that the RERC program has substantially diversified the scope of its work since the 1970’s, addressing more types of disabilities using more technologies, and, in particular, often now focusing on information technologies. RERC work also now often views users as integrated into an interdependent society through technologies that both people with and without disabilities co-use (such as the internet, wireless communication, and architecture). In addition, RERC research has evolved to view users as able at improving outcomes through learning, exercise, and plasticity (rather than being static), which can be optimally timed. We provide examples of rehabilitation technology innovation produced by the RERCs that illustrate this increasingly diversifying scope and evolving perspective. We conclude by discussing growth opportunities and possible future directions of the RERC program

Implications of the Information Technology Revolution for People with Disabilities

The paper focuses on opportunities for the integration of persons with different types of disabilities in the information technology (IT) labour market. Recent IT developments are identified and examined for their potentially harmful or beneficial effects on access to the IT labour market for persons with disabilities. The opportunities created by new job creation, new forms of training, teleworking, and the role of assistive technologies in facilitating workplace accommodations are briefly described. The focus is on new options for the design and implementation of computer-related assistive technologies in the workplace, and the impact of teleworking and the World Wide Web on employability and work-related training of persons with disabilities. The paper closes with a brief discussion of the roles that government agencies, business firms, labour unions, non-governmental organisations and education can play to help people with disabilities join the IT revolution and share its benefits

Include 2011 : The role of inclusive design in making social innovation happen.

Include is the biennial conference held at the RCA and hosted by the Helen Hamlyn Centre for Design. The event is directed by Jo-Anne Bichard and attracts an international delegation

Combining brain-computer interfaces and assistive technologies: state-of-the-art and challenges

In recent years, new research has brought the field of EEG-based Brain-Computer Interfacing (BCI) out of its infancy and into a phase of relative maturity through many demonstrated prototypes such as brain-controlled wheelchairs, keyboards, and computer games. With this proof-of-concept phase in the past, the time is now ripe to focus on the development of practical BCI technologies that can be brought out of the lab and into real-world applications. In particular, we focus on the prospect of improving the lives of countless disabled individuals through a combination of BCI technology with existing assistive technologies (AT). In pursuit of more practical BCIs for use outside of the lab, in this paper, we identify four application areas where disabled individuals could greatly benefit from advancements in BCI technology, namely,“Communication and Control”, “Motor Substitution”, “Entertainment”, and “Motor Recovery”. We review the current state of the art and possible future developments, while discussing the main research issues in these four areas. In particular, we expect the most progress in the development of technologies such as hybrid BCI architectures, user-machine adaptation algorithms, the exploitation of users’ mental states for BCI reliability and confidence measures, the incorporation of principles in human-computer interaction (HCI) to improve BCI usability, and the development of novel BCI technology including better EEG devices

Assisting individuals with autism and cognitive disorders: An augmented reality based framework

Individuals with autism require systematic assistance while dealing with the surrounding environment and its objects. The project aim is to develop a framework that could be of substantial help to people with autism and cognitive disorders. The framework is based on common mobile devices and freely available Augmented Reality (AR) applications. The Augmented Reality used in our approach is marker-based AR that employs a camera and a visual marker to trigger and present media content on the mobile device's screen. The developed framework allows parents and teachers to easily create educational augmented environments for children with autism and cognitive disorders by populating a real-world space with visual markers of favorite cartoonish helpers that can evoke helpful AR content and embed it in the real-world environment. The paper analyzes and discusses the use of the proposed framework from conceptual and technological points of view. - 2019 Kassel University Press GmbH.Scopu

Futuristic Smart Solutions for People of Determination in Schools and Universities

In this project, future smart solutions for people of determination in schools and universities were discussed. The background was presented on the topic, as the issue of integrating people of determination in schools and then integrating them into society still takes a wide range of societal, family, and institutional attention, and it undoubtedly deserves much attention that befits this dear group in our society. The literature has shown the existence of previous studies and applications similar to those proposed in the project, which sought within the framework of this advanced vision to enable people of determination to provide quality services that meet their healthcare and rehabilitation requirements, and to provide an educational and educational system that ensures their full integration into society, and ensures their access to the same opportunities of education as their peers in various educational institutions, qualifying them to obtain employment opportunities appropriate to their potential (Augusto, Kramer, Alegre, Covaci, & Santokhee, 2018). The methods related for gathering information and data collection for this study will include a three-step approach wherein the first step is to design a set of structured open-ended questions that are answered from previous experience, knowledge gathered during field visits to schools and universities that the researchers (we) undertook of during the graduation years. The second step involves situation analyses of the general map of a public school in UAE followed by a design of a new map that contains the layout of a smart center for people of determination and is to be placed within the school premises along with a budget plan for the new ICT lab specifically for the people of determination. Then the third step is the analysis of data using SPSS. The result of this project will show the level of awareness of the UAE educational institutions and its staff in using Information and Communications Technology (ICT) and the gap that exists in the UAE education process in the information technology context. It will represent the real situation that the people of determination live in their academic life, this attempt to enhance it. The importance of ICT lies in its ability to open a wide range of services, transform existing services, and create greater demand for access to information and knowledge, particularly in underserved and excluded populations, such as persons with disabilities. The ICT opportunity for persons with disabilities can be better assessed by analyzing how each type of access technology contributes to the different dimensions involved in the social and economic inclusion of persons with disabilities (Lawrence,2004). The main benefit that this project would generate is to increase the teachers’ and principals’ awareness of the new technologies, devices. Such as e-Braille, smart elevators programmed with face ID, and virtual assistants (Blindness students). Robots to enhance communication for people with autism. The application between the guardian of the people of determination and the teacher to follow up everything related to behavior, degree, and development. A smart wheelchair that contains emergency buttons connected to the nurse and administration. Methods that can be used in the educational process will direct the people of determination and the normal students as well. These questions provide several suggestions to be used in the educational institution. Without conducting this project, the educational institutions, principals, and teachers will not know the state of the art in modern methods and tools that can be indulged in used to enhance its education system remains lagging behind the other countries if they don’t think of improving their systems using these suggestions and ideas that we generated from our literature review

Impact of Virtual Reality on Modern Education

Virtual reality in education is at its center stage. For students to gain relevant skills there is a need to introduce a virtual world so that one can achieve the practical aspect needed in the workplace environment. Memorizing facts makes students bored; hence, the need for virtual reality that will help students gain expertise. The paper seeks to discuss the impact of virtual reality in modern education. To understand the effects of virtual reality in the education sector, the theoretical approach and quantitative research have been used. The results of the study show that virtual reality assists students with special education needs and ensure skills are obtained. Virtual reality improves student self-esteem

Exploring computer-generated line graphs through virtual touch

This paper describes the development and evaluation of a haptic interface designed to provide access to line graphs for blind or visually impaired people. Computer-generated line graphs can be felt by users through the sense of touch produced by a PHANToM force feedback device. Experiments have been conducted to test the effectiveness of this interface with both sighted and blind people. The results show that sighted and blind people have achieved about 89.95% and 86.83% correct answers respectively in the experiment

Future bathroom: A study of user-centred design principles affecting usability, safety and satisfaction in bathrooms for people living with disabilities

Research and development work relating to assistive technology 2010-11 (Department of Health) Presented to Parliament pursuant to Section 22 of the Chronically Sick and Disabled Persons Act 197