Integrating the human factors characterization of disabled users in a design method. Application to an interface for playing acoustic music

International audienceUsers and uses inclusion in product design remains a challenge, especially when their characterization is very specific, which is the case with disabled persons. Many design methodologies integrating user exist, for example, User-Centered Design (UCD). The application of these methodologies results in custom product designs, but they haven't objective the motor activities characterization of stakeholders: people with disabilities. Our ambition is to characterize and model the motor specificities of these future users during the design process to adapt the man-machine interfaces to these motor performances. In this paper, we propose an adaptation of the UCD design process by integrating theoretical models and technological tools of motion capture. In conclusion an in response to identified needs of AE2M project (Ergonomic Adaptation of the Musical Material), we present an application of our approach in this context

Designing for physically disabled users: benefits from human motion capture – a case study

International audiencePurpose: The present study aimed to improve the design of an interface that may help disabled children to play a musical instrument. The main point is to integrate human motion capture in the design process. Method: The participant performed 20 pointing movements toward four selected locations. A three one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) was performed in order to determine the most efficient input location. For each button position, we compared (1) the reaction time (RT), (2) the movement time (MT), and (3) the spatial variability of the movements. Results: According to the results obtained for RT and MT, one position was the most efficient button location in order to produce efficient movements. Conclusions: As the case study showed, combining the 3D motion capture system and the statistical analysis led to help the designers their design methodology and crucial choices

Adaptive device for disease awareness and treatment adherence of asthma in children

International audienceAsthma is the first chronic disease in children: that concerns 10% of them. This is a real public health issue, because its frequency and gravity increase since 2000’s in this population. The major identified problem in asthma kids is the low rate of treatment adherence (50%). To increase adherence rate, there is some strategies as therapeutic education programs and numerical technologies as serious games or mobile applications but those learning systems are the same for all children, and it is proved that personalized program is more efficient than generic learning. In first step, we created a web responsive application composed by several interactive contents linked to asthma (based on criteria learnt in asthma therapeutic education) and displayed to different forms: learning activities with quiz, short games and videos. In a participatory design approach, the interfaces are tailored to children : they had been designed with iterative and user-centered methods. Moreover, asthma experts validated all the proposed content in the application and it was tested by asthma kids. In a preliminary study, we experimented usability, motivation and knowledge of few contents on 40 control children in choice/no-choice conditions. Observations showed KidBreath was easy to use, children were more motivated using it and acquire more knowledge in the choice condition rather no-choice. Later, to personalize learning activities linked to asthma, we have the objective to integrate learning optimization algorithm as an intelligent tutoring system in KidBreath

Utilisation de la conception centrée utilisateur dans les applications pour les enfants avec troubles du spectre autistiqueVers des outils d’inclusion en classe ordinaire

National audience— L'émergence des tablettes et des applications tactiles dans le milieu scolaire apparaît comme un levier supplémentaire pour inclure les enfants avec Trouble du Spectre Autistique (TSA) dans les classes ordinaires. Pourtant, ces outils restent sous-utilisés. De multiples raisons peuvent expliquer ce constat, et notamment des lacunes de conception de ces applications. Dans cet article, nous mettons en lumière les succès obtenus par les quelques études qui ont basé leur conception sur les méthodes centrées utilisateur menées auprès d'enfants avec TSA et des acteurs de leur scolarisation. Ces méthodes semblent permettre de concevoir des applications adaptées, utilisables, et utiles dans un contexte scolaire ordinaire, et in fine faciliter leur adoption par toutes les parties prenantes (élèves TSA, enseignants, AVS, praticiens, parents,etc.). Mots clés — Applications numériques, conception centrée utilisateur, design inclusif, design participatif, autisme, troubles du spectre autistique

Seventeen Projects Carried Out by Students Designing for and with Disabled Children: Identifying Designers' Difficulties During the Whole Design Process

International audienceThis article aims to identify the difficulties that may arise when designing assistive devices for disabled children. Seventeen design projects involving disabled children, engineering students, and special schools were analysed. A content analysis of the design reports was performed. For this purpose, a coding scheme was built based on a review of the literature. This was then improved through direct observation of the design reports. The coding scheme includes 17 categories, 7 of which stemmed from the direct observation of the reports: these 7 categories cover newly identified difficulties. Three important aspects emerged from the content analysis: (1) Difficulties identified in the literature arose in the context of this study. (2) Among the difficulties related to the practical barriers of involving disabled children, one new difficulty in particular was identified through the study, that is, that of partnering with special schools. (3) While existing literature focuses on the practical barriers, the results of this study show that not all difficulties are related to these barriers. In fact, understanding user needs proves to be especially difficult when the product to be designed targets several different disabled users

Methods for designing assistive devices extracted from 16 case studies in the literature

International audienceThis paper studies existing design methods for designing assistive devices. Publications discussing how to select a design method when designing for disabled people are rare. However, designers do design for disabled people and researchers do publish these case-studies. The aim of this paper is to extract the underlying design methods from design cases. Sixteen case-studies presenting the design of assistive device have been analyzed. A table summarizes the design methods identified in the case-studies. Unusual methods are described. Then, each method is discussed. Results show that user-Centred Design (UCD) tools are widely used for designing assistive device. UCD approach is expected to be helpful but evidences are lacking. Recently, some authors have adapted existing tools outside the disability world to use them in the context of design projects for disabled people (ABAB design, AD SWOT and AD TOWS and Fitts' law). More investigations of these tools would be needed to be able to evaluate their benefits and weaknesses. In addition, tools coming from the rehabilitation field have been reused by designers (joint range and muscle force measure, and psycho-motor tests). Since, those tools were created initially to measure disabled people's abilities, they seem totally relevant for designers in the disability field

Investigation of methods for the design of assistive device : UCD and medical tools

International audienceThis paper reports the results of a study about design methods for assistive device. Publications dedicated only to this question are rare. That is why fifteen case-studies presenting the design of assistive device have been analyzed: this paper extracts the underlying design methods and whenever possible their benefits and weaknesses. Unfortunately, information about the choice of design methods and their impact is often lacking in the literature. A table summarizes and classifies the design methods identified in the case-studies. Results show that User-Centered Design (UCD) tools are widely used for designing assistive device. Many authors stated or expected the UCD approach to be helpful in this field. Rarely designers use additional tools from other fields such as anthropometric values from ergonomics, joint range measure / psycho-motor tests from medicine and ABAB design from psychology, although they seem totally relevant

Integrating the human factors characterization of disabled users in a design method. Application to an interface for playing acoustic music

International audienceUsers and uses inclusion in product design remains a challenge, especially when their characterization is very specific, which is the case with disabled persons. Many design methodologies integrating user exist, for example, User-Centered Design (UCD). The application of these methodologies results in custom product designs, but they haven't objective the motor activities characterization of stakeholders: people with disabilities. Our ambition is to characterize and model the motor specificities of these future users during the design process to adapt the man-machine interfaces to these motor performances. In this paper, we propose an adaptation of the UCD design process by integrating theoretical models and technological tools of motion capture. In conclusion an in response to identified needs of AE2M project (Ergonomic Adaptation of the Musical Material), we present an application of our approach in this context

analyse de l'activité pour améliorer les pratiques des élèves ingénieurs en conception : application a l'adaptation ergonomiques du matériel musical

National audienceLes activités proposées dans le cadre de la collaboration entre le laboratoire de recherche G-SCOP, le Conservatoire de Musique, les instituts spécialisés et l'Association AE2M concerne la conception de solutions ergonomiques permettant à des enfants en situation de handicap de pratiquer la musique instrumentale. Ce travail nécessite la mise en oeuvre d'une forte complémentarité entre les trois compétences Ergothérapie / Musique / Ingénierie. Dans cet article, nous présentons premièrement ce contexte original et multidisciplinaire. Nous travaillons ensuite à sa validation en tant que conception centrée sur l'utilisateur en projetant ses activités dans le contexte théorique correspondant. Enfin, théorie à l'appui, nous proposons de mettre en avant certaines caractéristiques permettant aux acteurs du projet (élèves ingénieurs) d'améliorer les performances de ce travail, tant au niveau du management global qu'au niveau de l'adaptation des systèmes conçus aux utilisateurs spécifiques

Investigation of methods for the design of assistive device : UCD and medical tools

International audienceThis paper reports the results of a study about design methods for assistive device. Publications dedicated only to this question are rare. That is why fifteen case-studies presenting the design of assistive device have been analyzed: this paper extracts the underlying design methods and whenever possible their benefits and weaknesses. Unfortunately, information about the choice of design methods and their impact is often lacking in the literature. A table summarizes and classifies the design methods identified in the case-studies. Results show that User-Centered Design (UCD) tools are widely used for designing assistive device. Many authors stated or expected the UCD approach to be helpful in this field. Rarely designers use additional tools from other fields such as anthropometric values from ergonomics, joint range measure / psycho-motor tests from medicine and ABAB design from psychology, although they seem totally relevant