Using Hadrian for eliciting virtual user feedback in 'Design For All'

Design for All' is an approach to product, environment or service design that aims to maximise the usability of a particular design. However, a key concept of this approach is not to tailor designs to the user in a bespoke fashion, but rather to provide a single solution that accommodates the needs of all users including those who are older or disabled. In order to support the designer / design team in ‘Design for All’ a computer aided design and analysis tool has been developed. The tool, known as HADRIAN, has been developed to address two critical factors. The first factor is the provision of accurate and applicable data on the target users including a broad spectrum of size, shape, age and ability. The second factor is an efficient and effective means of utilising the data for ergonomics evaluations during the concept stages of design. HADRIAN’s database and task analysis tool work in combination with the existing human modelling system SAMMIE. The system as a whole allows assessment of a design against the population in the database providing a means to elicit some of the feedback that might be gained by real user trials at a stage in the design process when physical mock-ups and user group selection would be prohibitively time consuming and expensive

HADRIAN: a virtual approach to design for all.

This article describes research into the area of ‘design for all’. The research addresses two common needs for designers working towards developing inclusive products and environments, namely, data on users that are accessible, valid and applicable, and a means of utilising the data to assess the accessibility of designs during the early stages of development. The approach taken is through the development of a combined database and inclusive human modelling tool called HADRIAN. Data were collected on 100 people, the majority of whom are older or have some form of impairment. These individuals provide a browsable resource spanning size, shape, capability, preferences, and experiences with a range of daily activities and transport-related tasks. This is partnered with the development of a simple, CAD-based task analysis system. Tasks are carried out by the virtual individuals in the database and accessibility issues are reported, allowing excluded people to be investigated in order to understand the problems experienced and solutions identified. HADRIAN is also being expanded to include a more accessible journey planner that provides accessibility information to both end users and transport professionals. Together, HADRIAN allows more informed choices to be made either in travelling, or in the designing of products and environments