Users helping users: User generated content to assist wheelchair users in an urban environment

Abstract

For wheelchair users and their care workers activities that are part of the daily fabric of life can be distressing. Taking a short trip to the local shopping center, post office or bus station can be filled with problems; obstacles that may not cause any hindrance to a pedestrian will cause problems or even hinder progress all together for a wheelchair user. The ubiquity of mobile phones coupled with the success of user generated content has seen use in a range of applications including problem solving, news and data sharing. In this paper we explore a self sustainable system that utilizes this winning combination to allow wheelchair users and their care workers to report accessibility issues related to an urban environment in real time. We envisage that the information gathered could be used by town planners in order to evaluate current planning policies and develop more 'wheelchair friendly' policies in future. This information would also allow wheelchair users or care workers for physically constrained users to plan routes which may enable more active engagement within the city centre and when accessing public services. © 2010 IEEE.