Accessible Design of Consumer Products

PART I - Introduction

Background

Beginning in 1984, joint government/industry efforts have attempted to address the accessibility of standard computer hardware and software by people with disabilities. One of the major results of these efforts was the development of design guidelines for use by computer manufacturers and software developers . These guidelines were prepared at the request of the computer companies to assist them in better understanding accessibility problems in computer design and to identify commercially practical strategies for making their products more accessible. The guidelines were developed using a cooperative industry-consumer-researcher-government consortium in order to provide the best information from all angles. The resulting guidelines (titled: Considerations in the Design of Computers and Operating Systems to Increase Their Accessibility to People with Disabilities) have been used by most major computer manufacturers in their ongoing efforts to make their products more accessible and usable by people with various types and degrees of disability. The Considerations document is a working document, and as such is continually evolving and improving (the current version is 4.2).

Purpose of This Document

This document represents a similar cooperative effort to develop design guidelines for the design of "consumer products." For this document, consumer products are defined as appliances and other electronic and mechanical devices available to the mass market for use in the home, school, office, or for use by the general public in the community. The purpose of these guidelines is 1) to point out problems encountered by people with various disabilities in using standard consumer products, and 2) to propose design alternatives which will result in increased usability of standard products by people with disabilities.

As with the computer guidelines, this document is designed to be purely informational in nature, and has been developed at industry's request to facilitate product designers' efforts to make their products more accessible. It represents the compilation of information from many sources and, as a working document, is under continual revision. To that end, comments and suggested revisions are solicited from all readers, particularly from product designers.

What is Accessible Design?

"Accessible Design" is the term used for the process of extending mass market product design to include people who, because of personal characteristics or environmental conditions, find themselves on the low end of some dimension of performance (e.g., seeing, hearing, reaching, manipulating). Accessible Design is not (or should not be) separate from standard mass market design. Rather it is an extension or elaboration of general design principles to cover a wider range of human abilities/limitations than has traditionally been included in product design.

Thus Accessible Design is a subset of what is termed Universal Design. Where Universal Design covers the design of products for all people and encompasses all design principles, Accessible Design focuses on principles that extend the standard design process to those people with some type of performance limitation (the lower ability tail of Universal Design).

Accessible Design is a balancing act. To begin with, we must acknowledge that it is not possible to design everything so that it can be used by everyone. There will always be someone with a combination of severe physical, sensory and cognitive impairments who will not be able to use it. However, it is equally unreasonable to rely on the existence (or development) of special designs for each major product to accommodate each one of the immense variety of disabilities (and combinations of disabilities). This makes it necessary to look toward a combination of approaches for meeting the needs of people with disabilities, ranging from the incorporation of features into products that will make them directly usable ("from the box") by more people with disabilities to the inclusion of features that make them easier to modify for accessibility.

Four Ways to Make Products More Accessible

Four different approaches to making products more accessible are discussed in this section and reflected in the Guidelines. In any one product, it may be necessary to use one or a combination of these approaches to achieve the desired level of accessibility. These approaches, in order of desirability, are:

1. Direct Accessibility
2. Accessibility via Standard Options or Accessories (from the manufacturer)
3. Compatibility with Third Party Assistive Devices
4. Facilitation of Custom Modifications

1. Direct Accessibility:

• For most types or degrees of impairment, there are simple and low cost (or no cost) adaptations to product designs which can significantly increase their accessibility and usefulness to individuals with functional impairments. By incorporating these design modifications into the initial product design, the standard product can be more accessible directly "out of the box."

• Inclusion of these design features or approaches in the standard product can be of substantial benefit to society as a whole to the extent it enables individuals with disabilities to lead more independent and productive lives. As an additional bonus, it has often been found that designs which are accessible to people with more limited abilities may benefit other users (without disabilities or impairments) as well by reducing fatigue, increasing speed, decreasing the number of errors made and decreasing learning time.

• Some examples.

  In the personal computer industry, particular attention has been focused on Accessible Design in recent years, and access features are beginning to show up as direct components of standard computer products. A "MouseKeys" feature, for example, is now a standard part of all Apple Macintosh™ computers shipped. This feature, which can be invoked directly from the keyboard, allows the user to move the cursor across the screen via the numeric keypad rather than the mouse. Individuals who do not have the motor control necessary to operate a mouse can use this feature (which is built into all Macintoshes) to access the Macintosh. Because the feature is implemented as an extension to the computer's operating system, it costs nothing to include as part of the product. Since "MouseKeys" became available, many able-bodied users have found it useful as well because of its capability for precise one-pixel positioning, which was not previously available.

  Other examples of direct accessibility include MacDonald's, who embossed braille characters on the tops of its soft drink cup covers along with the letters labelling the pushdown buttons on the lid that indicate whether the drink is diet, etc., and Proctor-Silex, who embossed braille characters on the bottom of some of its bowls indicating the size (quarts) of the bowl.

2. Accessibility via Standard Options or Accessories (from the manufacturer):

• Sometimes it is not possible to design the standard product to make it directly accessible for some disability populations. Alternatives to standard design may be identified, but offering all of them may not be practical due to some alternatives being mutually exclusive, too expensive, or awkward as a standard product.

• When this occurs, it may be more effective to make these adaptations or alternatives available as standard options or accessories from the manufacturer. These may be extra-cost, special order items, or preferrably, items available free on request. These special features or accessories should be listed and described in the standard documentation that comes with the product. They could also be listed in advertising for the product.

• An example.

  Microwave ovens are often made with smooth glass control panels. That is, there are no tactilely discernable buttons. This can present a problem for people with visual impairments. Ideally, the control panel should be designed with ridges around each button and some type of tactile identification of button function. If this is not possible, the manufacturer may make available either a raised letter or braille overlay. These could be available free upon request. (Information on how to order the optional accessories should then be prominently presented in the product installation and operating instructions). The Sharp Carousel II (TM) is one such microwave that offers a braille overlay as an option.

3. Compatibility With Third Party Assistive Devices:

3a. Compatibility with Special Interfaces or Accessories

• Sometimes direct accessibility, or even the use of standard options, is impractical for the mass market producer to provide for all disability types and degrees. This is particularly true for individuals with severe or multiple impairments (e.g., a person with a severe physical disability may be unable to use a standard keyboard even with accessibility features built in). In these cases, special interfaces or accessories may be available from third party assistive device manufacturers.

• Some examples.

  The mass market manufacturer can facilitate the efforts of third party manufacturers in a number of ways, including using standard approaches, providing appropriate connection points, providing advance access to new versions of products, and providing technical assistance in understanding and properly attaching accessories to the product. Consideration in the design of a keyboard, for example, could make it easier for third parties to develop keyguards and other keyboard accessories.

3b. Compatibility with General Purpose Assistive Devices

• In some cases, people with particular disabilities may already have general purpose assistive devices which they would like to be able to use in conjunction with a product (e.g., a person with an eye gaze communication aid would like to be able to use it in conjunction with home electronic appliances; an individual with artificial hands or a hook would like to be able to operate the handles on appliance doors; a blind person with a dynamic braille display would like to use it with home information systems). Unfortunately, it is often difficult or impossible to connect the assistive devices to standard products.

• Cooperation between mass manufacturers and assistive device manufacturers could result in standard or built-in product connection points (connectors or infra-red links) which facilitate the connection of special devices as well as properly designed hardware to facilitate the use of assistive manipulation devices.

• An example.

  Many people with physical disabilities cannot use standard computer keyboards. Some of these people would require more extensive modifications than would be possible using the first two accessibility approaches discussed. Currently, there are assistive device manufacturers who make alternative input devices to fit people with a variety of severe physical disabilities. However, the manufacturers of these assistive devices have always had problems ensuring that the devices would work with standard, commercially available computers. As part of the effort by the computer industry to cooperate with manufacturers of assistive devices, both IBM & Microsoft Corporation now distribute an extension to their operating systems (DOS & Windows) called "SerialKeys." This extension allows people to connect alternative input devices to the serial port of the standard personal computer in a way which makes input to the serial port look like it is coming directly from the standard keyboard and mouse. In this fashion, the user with a disability can completely access and control the computer and all of its software from an alternate input system without touching the standard keyboard or mouse.

4. Facilitation of Custom Modifications:

• There may be some cases where all the other approaches to Accessible Design prove to be impractical or uneconomical, most likely for people with combinations or severe disabilities.

• In such cases, custom modifications of the product, either by the product manufacturer or a third party, may be the best solution. Standard product manufacturers should facilitate this as much as they can. For example, leaving room for special attachments or labels, documenting hooks or places to patch into hardware or software, publishing information on safe or effective ways to modify products, or honoring warrantees for products which have been modified for accessibility but where the modification did not result in the problem.

• An Example:

  After-market adaptation of automobiles (particularly vans) for use by drivers with physical impairments is being facilitated in this way. As more standards are developed through cooperative efforts by auto manufacturers, adaptive specialists, and consumers, possibilities for help from the auto manufacturers will improve. Currently, Chrysler pays the first $500 for after-market adaptation of its vans for people with disabilities. General Motors now pays up to $1,000 reimbursement of adaptive equipment and installation costs on eligible vehicles, and provides listings of driver assessment facilities, mobility equipment dealers, and organizations offering services in transportation, as well as a GM wheelchair compatibility listing and resource video.

The Best Approach

Of the four approaches to Accessible Design, the first type, direct accessibility "from the box," is the best where it is possible. It allows the greatest access to products by persons with disabilities at the lowest cost. It also allows them to access products in public places where they could not otherwise modify the products to meet their particular needs. It also removes the stigma of "special" aids or modifications. This is especially important for older users who do not want to be labeled "disabled" even though their abilities are weakening.

It should also be noted that most of us become temporarily "disabled" in a number of ways throughout our lives. Sometimes it is by accident, such as a broken arm or eye injury. Sometimes it is by circumstance, such as operating things in the dark where we can't see well, in loud environments (vacuuming or teenagers) where we can't hear well, with things in our arms where we can't reach well, when we're tired or on cold medication and can't think well, etc. Only those products which were designed to be more easily used directly "from the box" (#1 above) will be of use to us then. As mentioned above, more accessible designs are also usually easier to use by everyone all the time - but only if the ease of use is directly built in.