Hierarchical Path Search with Partial Materialization of Costs for a Smart Wheelchair

In this paper, the off-line path planner module of a smart wheelchair aided navigation system is described. Environmental information is structured into a hierarchical graph (H-graph) and used either by the user interface or the path planner module. This information structure facilitates efficient path search and easier information access and retrieval. Special path planning issues like planning between floors of a building (vertical path planning) are also viewed. The H-graph proposed is modelled by a tree. The hierarchy of abstractions contained in the tree has several levels of detail. Each abstraction level is a graph whose nodes can represent other graphs in a deeper level of the hierarchy. Path planning is performed using a path skeleton which is built from the deepest abstraction levels of the hierarchy to the most upper levels and completed in the last step of the algorithm. In order not to lose accuracy in the path skeleton generation and speed up the search, a set of optimal subpaths are previously stored in some nodes of the H-graph (path costs are partially materialized). Finally, some experimental results are showed and compared to traditional heuristic search algorithms used in robot path planning.Comisión Interministerial de Ciencia y Tecnología TER96-2056-C02-0

A Hierarchical Extension of the D ∗ Algorithm

In this paper a contribution to the practice of path planning using a new hierarchical extension of the D ∗ algorithm is introduced. A hierarchical graph is stratified into several abstraction levels and used to model environments for path planning. The hierarchical D∗ algorithm uses a downtop strategy and a set of pre-calculated trajectories in order to improve performance. This allows optimality and specially lower computational time. It is experimentally proved how hierarchical search algorithms and on-line path planning algorithms based on topological abstractions can be combined successfully

Mobile Interface for a Smart Wheelchair

Smart wheelchairs are designed for severely motor impaired people that have difficulties to drive standard -manual or electric poweredwheelchairs. Their goal is to automate driving tasks as much as possible in order to minimize user intervention. Nevertheless, human involvement is still necessary to maintain high level task control. Therefore in the interface design it is necessary to take into account the restrictions imposed by the system (mobile and small), by the type of users (people with severe motor restrictions) and by the task (to select a destination among a number of choices in a structured environment). This paper describes the structure of an adaptive mobile interface for smart wheelchairs that is driven by the context.Comisión Interministerial de Ciencia y Tecnología TER96-2056-C02-0

Mobile Communication for People with Disabilities and Older People: New Opportunities for Autonomous Life

The fast diffusion of mobile telephony is opening a vast diversity of new opportunities for people with different levels of physical restrictions, these due to disability or ageing. For this people mobile technology not only allows ubiquity for communications but also anytime access to some services that are vital for their security and autonomy. Together with the numerous advantages, remote services can also mean important social and ethical risks for this group of users making indispensable that these risks are detected, analysed and avoided. Therefore, this paper analyses the novelties that mobile technology has introduced into the lives of users with disabilities and older people, points out some dangers and challenges arising from the use of these technologies and revises some future applications of the present mobile technologies

Universal access to mobile telephony as a way to enhance the autonomy of elderly people

The rise of mobile telephony has opened a vast diversity of new opportunities for older people with different levels of physical restrictions due to ageing. Mobile technology allows not only ubiquitous communications but also anytime access to some services that are vital for elderly people's security and autonomy. Nevertheless, with the numerous advantages, remote services can also introduce important social and ethical risks for this group of users. This paper tries to analyse the novelties that mobile technology may introduce into the lives of older users, points out some dangers and challenges arising from the use of these technologies and revises some future applications of the present mobile technologies.Ministerio de Ciencia y Tecnología TIC2001-1868-C03-0

Mobile Communication for Older People: New Opportunities for Autonomous Life

The fast diffusion of mobile telephony is opening a vast diversity of new opportunities for older people with different levels of physical restrictions due to ageing. Mobile technology not only allows ubiquitous communications but also anytime access to some services that are vital for their security and autonomy. Together with the numerous advantages, remote services can also mean important social and ethical risks for this group of users making indispensable that these risks are detected, analysed and avoided. Therefore, this paper analyses the novelties that mobile technology has introduced into the lives of older users, points out some dangers and challenges arising from the use of these technologies and revises some future applications of the present mobile technologies

Opportunities and Risks of the Information and Communication Technologies for Users with Special Needs

The fast developing of information and communication technologies has aroused the hope of P new society in which all people would kwe the same opportunities to access -through diverse eservices- to knowledge, work, leisure, etc. Information society has also offered a promising opportunity for social inclusion of people with disabilities. The combination of technological advancer (such as wireless personal area networks, wearable computing, etc.) with social advances (such as new inclusive legislation and social awareness) would make the social inclusion of people with special needs possible. Nevertheless, this will not automatically happen. It is necessary to apply inclusive design methods and to identify and avoid technological, ethicnl and social risk. This paper analyses the opportunities that information technology can offer to disabled people and the main risks that must be avoided. As a conclusion some guidelines to avoid these risks are outlined.Ministerio de Ciencia y Tecnología TIC2000-0087-P4Ministerio de Ciencia y Tecnología TIC2001-1868-C0

Inclusive design guidelines for HCI

Let us say you wish to design and develop a new product or technology. You want to ensure that as many people as possible are able to use it—not only is it politically and in some countries legally correct but with our ageing population it makes good economic sense. You want to follow existing design advice, of which you have been told there is much around. But where is the best place to look, and who do you go to for more specific information? You may decide to look for published materials, such as design guidelines. However, when you find guidelines, you cannot always be sure that they will be applicable to your specific product or technology. If you follow these guidelines, can you be sure that your product will be usable by more people

A source book for accessibility guidelines

A source book for accessibility guideline