A mobile application to enhance mobility of people with permanent or temporary mobility disability : a case study in Portugal

This paper presents a mobile application developed in conjunction with the City Hall from Viana do Castelo, a city in the north of Portugal. This application targets people with permanent or temporary reduced mobility and intends to show them information about taxi points, parking spaces and reference points in the city with the possibility to navigate to them using an optimized algorithm, based on routes defined for each segment (deaf people, visually impaired people, etc.). The Dijkstra?s algorithm was used to implement the shortestPath given an origin, destination and segment. In this paper we present implementation details as well as final layouts of the prototype. At the current moment, the application is ended and will soon enter in usability tests with the users.5311-8814-F0ED | Sara Maria da Cruz Maia de Oliveira PaivaN/

Increasing User Motivation of a Mobile Health Application based on applying Operant Conditioning

In times of demographic change, especially in western countries, it’s getting more and more important to come up with cheap and efficient solutions to care for older people and their medical conditions. Now that smart phones are widely spread, they should be used to make life easier for their users. This characteristic can be achieved e.g. by developing mobile health applications for daily usage. In this bachelor thesis an approach is presented how the motivation of diabetes diseased people can be increased, to check for their own health, by applying concepts of operant conditioning. These concepts will be presented and how they result in a psychological impact on the user. Furthermore, an implementation of the designed concepts will be shown

Survey improving usability of the smartphones for elders

The focal point of this study is the usability of smartphones for elderly individuals. Notably, Android dominates the current smartphone market share at 72.72%. This prevalence is influenced by various factors, including affordability, a diverse array of manufacturers, and a multitude of options for users to choose from. The satisfaction of most Android users is underscored, and even in cases of dissatisfaction, the platform offers ample opportunities for easy customization of devices. The challenge lies in the reluctance of elderly individuals to embrace the latest technological trends, including social media platforms. It is evident that the elderly exhibit hesitancy in adopting new technologies such as smartphones and their features. This hesitation is attributed to a need for a user experience that is clearer and more understandable, especially when compared to younger users. Elderly individuals often find it challenging to independently navigate essential smartphone features, necessitating assistance from family members or friends who possess a better understanding of the device. This extends to basic tasks such as making calls, sending texts, setting up new devices, and various other functionalities. In this research, an effort is made to understand this barrier with the study of both user experiences and user interface design elements (text size, font, color, etc.) of Smartphones that affect the elderly population. Launchers have been made to overcome this problem but the aim of this research is to find the gap and analyze its solution. The research finds that the gap is because of the android operating system user experience & interface design, since android is developed and managed by google. The research shows how the operating system OS can be improved and make the elder user needs. The primary emphasis of this research is directed towards enhancing the comprehensive experience and interface across the entire operating system. Google's decision to make Android open-source, known as the Android Open-Source Project (AOSP), allows global developers to contribute improvements without the need for special licenses. The proposed idea within this research aims to elevate the AOSP to align with the distinct experience and design expectations of elderly users. This research details the customization of AOSP, resulting in a tailored version of the operating system that incorporates features such as a modified keyboard, audible feedback for actions, enhanced text and control elements, a simplified drag-and-drop experience, redesigned icons, and adjustments to the unlocking and welcome screens that will improves user experience and user interface for elders

Human Factors Considerations in Designing Home-Based Video Telemedicine Systems for the Geriatric Population

Telemedicine is the process of providing healthcare services when large distances separate the patient and the doctor, with the use of communication technology. Telemedicine serves as a substitute to in-person hospital visits and in large, reduces the need to travel and wait in line to visit the doctor. It is predicted to help the geriatric population in managing their healthcare requirements. In order for telemedicine to effectively help the older population, it is essential to understand their needs and issues in telemedicine systems. A study with 40 participants was conducted to understand the usability issues of telemedicine systems with the geriatric population. Four telemedicine video platforms 1) Doxy.me, 2) Polycom, 3) Vidyo and 4) VSee, were used to understand these issues using a between-subject experimental design. Participants completed a demographic survey, followed by a telemedicine session. This was followed by a retrospective think-aloud discussion session to understand their issues and needs concluding with a post-test survey. This survey included general questions about using the system followed by NASA-TLX workload measure and IBM-Computer System Usability Questionnaire (IBM-CSUQ). Some of the issues identified included lengthy email invitation with multiple web links, application download, registration and issues relating to icons used. A Cognitive Task Analysis (CTA) is a method for understanding the cognitive or mental demands involved in performing a task. A Cognitive Task Analysis was conducted for each platform to help identify potential cognitive issues when interacting with telemedicine systems. These solutions include providing a single necessary link in the email, eliminating the necessity to download and register, and, contrast, placement and appropriate labels for icons. As suggested by the participants, detailed step-wise instructions on navigating through a session will also be provided. Future work in this area would be to develop such a system, which theoretically, will increase the efficiency in using telemedicine systems

Usability Enhancement of SMS Interface for Illiterate Users

This article analyzes several User Interface (UI) designs and puts forward some more general design principles for interfaces designed for low-literate users. The results of this study highlight the importance of text-free interfaces compared to text-based interfaces for the illiterate and low-literate population. The study developed a Short Message Service (SMS) interface consisting of many design elements, including graphical icons, voice, and text reduction. The participants were more satisfied with the designed SMS interface as compared to the traditional text-based interface of SMS. We believe that if the user interface is appropriately designed, users will not need formal literacy, computer skills, or any external help to operate the application. It has been shown that an interface with minimal or no text but one or more graphics, audio, and digital components is helpful for users with low literacy rates

Tablet Applications for the Elderly: Specific Usability Guidelines

While the world population is aging, the technological progress is steadily increasing. Smartphones and tablets belong to a growing market and even more people aged 65 and above are using such touch devices. However, with advancing age normal cognitive, sensory, perceptual and motor changes influence psychological and physical capabilities and therefore the way the elderly are able to use tablet-applications. When designing tablet-applications for the elderly developers have to be supported in understanding these capabilities. Therefore, this thesis provides a comprehensive compilation of usability guidelines in order to develop user-friendly tablet-applications for older people. The development and testing of an exemplary tablet-application within this thesis shows how these guidelines can be brought into practice and how this realization is evaluated by test persons in this age group

Usability and feasibility of consumer-facing technology to reduce unsafe medication use by older adults

Background Mobile health technology can improve medication safety for older adults, for instance, by educating patients about the risks associated with anticholinergic medication use. Objective This study's objective was to test the usability and feasibility of Brain Buddy, a consumer-facing mobile health technology designed to inform and empower older adults to consider the risks and benefits of anticholinergics. Methods Twenty-three primary care patients aged ≥60 years and using anticholinergic medications participated in summative, task-based usability testing of Brain Buddy. Self-report usability was assessed by the System Usability Scale and performance-based usability data were collected for each task through observation. A subset of 17 participants contributed data on feasibility, assessed by self-reported attitudes (feeling informed) and behaviors (speaking to a physician), with confirmation following a physician visit. Results Overall usability was acceptable or better, with 100% of participants completing each Brain Buddy task and a mean System Usability Scale score of 78.8, corresponding to “Good” to “Excellent” usability. Observed usability issues included higher rates of errors, hesitations, and need for assistance on three tasks, particularly those requiring data entry. Among participants contributing to feasibility data, 100% felt better informed after using Brain Buddy and 94% planned to speak to their physician about their anticholinergic related risk. On follow-up, 82% reported having spoken to their physician, a rate independently confirmed by physicians. Conclusion Consumer-facing technology can be a low-cost, scalable intervention to improve older adults’ medication safety, by informing and empowering patients. User-centered design and evaluation with demographically heterogeneous clinical samples uncovers correctable usability issues and confirms the value of interventions targeting consumers as agents in shared decision making and behavior change