Functional Reach Abilities of Wheeled Mobility Device Users: Toward Inclusive Design
By D'Souza, Clive; Steinfeld, Edward; Paquet, Victor; Proceedings of Include 2009: 5th International Conference on Inclusive Design,Publication Date: 2009
Paper documents the functional reach abilities of 257 wheeled mobility device users in the United States as part of a large anthropometric research study. Participants were a portion of 320 manual chair, powered chair, and scooter users aged 18 to 94 years, 61 percent of whom were males. Participants were asked to reach out and place an empty cylindrical canister on a target shelf at the maximum possible distance. This group of 257 participants was capable of performing a functional grasp while moving the cylinder beyond the anterior-most and lateral-most aspects of their mobility devices. Reach envelopes generated from environmental simulations of object movement tasks were combined with three-dimensional static digital human models constructed from anthropometric landmark data to produce interactive anthropometry models for establishing functional reach capabilities. Study findings showed that only about two thirds of participants could reach beyond the anterior-most point of their body or mobility device at the height ranges recommended by the ADA Accessibility Guidelines for Buildings and Facilities (ADAAG). The study findings were prepared to provide accurate and reliable information for two activities: (1) revision of accessibility standards to be more representative of intended user populations and the tasks encountered in daily living and (2) development of design tools that help designers adhere to these standards while also providing flexibility to expose solutions beyond minimum requirements for standards compliance.
Published by:
Helen Hamlyn Centre for Design (Web Site: http://www.hhc.rca.ac.uk/ )
This publication is included in the library of the National Rehabilitation Information Center (NARIC), accession number O18057
