IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/teinso/v68y2022ics0160791x21002803.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Assistive technology in smart cities: A case of street crossing for the visually-impaired

Author

Listed:
  • Huang, Chun-Yao
  • Wu, Chang-Kang
  • Liu, Ping-Yu

Abstract

Visually-impaired people encounter a series of challenging tasks in their daily life that are easy to the majority of society. For example, crossing a street, which is a critical task for a pedestrian traveling in a city, actually involves a set of orientation and navigation sub-tasks. The typical form of assistive technology as a solution today for street crossing relies upon an accessible pedestrian signal (APS) usually in the mode of audio signals broadcasted at a cross street. As popular as such APS is, there are various pain points to visually-impaired users who are trying to rely on conventional APS when crossing a street. Given the prevalence of smartphones among the visually-impaired around the world, there is still a vacuum in the literature as to the possibility of providing them, through a smartphone, a safer solution to address those pain points so that users can more confidently walk across a street. In this paper we look at how mobile technology relevantly helps the visually-impaired to cross streets more comfortably and confidently by presenting an action-research-based case of developing and deploying a smart accessible pedestrian signal system (SAPSS) in Taiwan. Originated from an ability-based design principle so as to ensure accessibility, the system integrates hardware, software, and a user-side mobile app into an enhanced solution for the visually-impaired to comfortably cross a street. Two field tests by 19 visually-impaired end users help modify the system and confirm its usability. From the positive feedbacks of these test participants, SAPSS has been formally deployed in three cities in Taiwan. This case study reports the development, the tests, and the deployment of the system in detail and also discusses implications of such a new generation assistive technology in the development of smart cities.

Suggested Citation

  • Huang, Chun-Yao & Wu, Chang-Kang & Liu, Ping-Yu, 2022. "Assistive technology in smart cities: A case of street crossing for the visually-impaired," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 68(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:teinso:v:68:y:2022:i:c:s0160791x21002803
    DOI: 10.1016/j.techsoc.2021.101805
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0160791X21002803
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.techsoc.2021.101805?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Michelfelder, Diane P., 2018. "Risk, disequilibrium, and virtue," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 52(C), pages 32-38.
    2. Brown, Suzana & Vairis, Achilles & Masoumifar, Ali M. & Petousis, Markos, 2020. "Common problems with the conventional design of crutches: Proposing a safer design and discussing the potential impact," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 60(C).
    3. Wang, Mengmeng & Zhou, Tao & Wang, Di, 2020. "Tracking the evolution processes of smart cities in China by assessing performance and efficiency," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 63(C).
    4. Temple Jones, Chelsea & Rice, Carla & Lam, Margaret & Chandler, Eliza & Jiwon Lee, Karen, 2021. "Toward TechnoAccess: A narrative review of disabled and aging experiences of using technology to access the arts," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 65(C).
    5. Oostveen, Anne-Marie & Lehtonen, Pinja, 2018. "The requirement of accessibility: European automated border control systems for persons with disabilities," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 52(C), pages 60-69.
    6. Sarma, Sumita & Sunny, Sanwar A., 2017. "Civic entrepreneurial ecosystems: Smart city emergence in Kansas City," Business Horizons, Elsevier, vol. 60(6), pages 843-853.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Perperidis, Giannis, 2023. "The politics of the city: Critical theory of technology and urban design(s)," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 74(C).
    2. Kim, Justine Jihyun & Lee, Jongsu & Shin, Jungwoo & He, Meihan, 2022. "How are high-tech assistive devices valued in an aging society? Exploring the use and non-use values of equipment that aid limb disability," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 70(C).

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Kim, Justine Jihyun & Lee, Jongsu & Shin, Jungwoo & He, Meihan, 2022. "How are high-tech assistive devices valued in an aging society? Exploring the use and non-use values of equipment that aid limb disability," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 70(C).
    2. Liu, Kai & Mahmoud, Haitham A. & Liu, Liqun & Halteh, Khaled & Arnone, Gioia & Shukurullaevich, Nizomjon Khajimuratov & Alzoubi, Haitham M., 2024. "Exploring the Nexus between Fintech, natural resources, urbanization, and environment sustainability in China: A QARDL study," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 89(C).
    3. Sabina Baraniewicz-Kotasińska, 2022. "The Scandinavian Third Way as a Proposal for Sustainable Smart City Development—A Case Study of Aarhus City," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(6), pages 1-24, March.
    4. Nasrollahi, Maedeh & Ghadikolaei, Abdolhamid Safaei & Ghasemi, Rohollah & Sheykhizadeh, Morteza & Abdi, Mehdi, 2022. "Identification and prioritization of connected vehicle technologies for sustainable development in Iran," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 68(C).
    5. Izabela Jonek-Kowalska & Radosław Wolniak, 2022. "Sharing Economies’ Initiatives in Municipal Authorities’ Perspective: Research Evidence from Poland in the Context of Smart Cities’ Development," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(4), pages 1-22, February.
    6. Franciely Velozo Aragão & Daiane Maria de Genaro Chiroli & Fernanda Cavicchioli Zola & Emanuely Velozo Aragão & Luis Henrique Nogueira Marinho & Ana Lidia Cascales Correa & João Carlos Colmenero, 2023. "Smart Cities Maturity Model—A Multicriteria Approach," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(8), pages 1-20, April.
    7. Francesco Schiavone & Francesco Paolo Appio & Luca Mora & Marcello Risitano, 2020. "The strategic, organizational, and entrepreneurial evolution of smart cities," International Entrepreneurship and Management Journal, Springer, vol. 16(4), pages 1155-1165, December.
    8. Baudier, Patricia & Ammi, Chantal & Deboeuf-Rouchon, Matthieu, 2020. "Smart home: Highly-educated students' acceptance," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 153(C).
    9. Parul Gupta & Sumedha Chauhan & M. P. Jaiswal, 2019. "Classification of Smart City Research - a Descriptive Literature Review and Future Research Agenda," Information Systems Frontiers, Springer, vol. 21(3), pages 661-685, June.
    10. Zhengrong Liu & Jianping Wu, 2023. "A Review of the Theory and Practice of Smart City Construction in China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(9), pages 1-22, April.
    11. An Kosurko & Melisa Stevanovic, 2023. "Beyond Utterances: Embodied Creativity and Compliance in Dance and Dementia," Social Sciences, MDPI, vol. 12(5), pages 1-21, May.
    12. Theodoraki, Christina & Dana, Léo-Paul & Caputo, Andrea, 2022. "Building sustainable entrepreneurial ecosystems: A holistic approach," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 140(C), pages 346-360.
    13. Seker, Sukran, 2022. "IoT based sustainable smart waste management system evaluation using MCDM model under interval-valued q-rung orthopair fuzzy environment," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 71(C).
    14. Wang, Mengmeng & Zhou, Tao, 2023. "Does smart city implementation improve the subjective quality of life? Evidence from China," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 72(C).
    15. Maria del Mar Alonso-Almeida, 2022. "To Use or Not Use Car Sharing Mobility in the Ongoing COVID-19 Pandemic? Identifying Sharing Mobility Behaviour in Times of Crisis," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(5), pages 1-14, March.
    16. Miguel Manjon & Zineb Aouni & Nathalie Crutzen, 2022. "Green and digital entrepreneurship in smart cities," The Annals of Regional Science, Springer;Western Regional Science Association, vol. 68(2), pages 429-462, April.
    17. Mora, Luca & Gerli, Paolo & Ardito, Lorenzo & Messeni Petruzzelli, Antonio, 2023. "Smart city governance from an innovation management perspective: Theoretical framing, review of current practices, and future research agenda," Technovation, Elsevier, vol. 123(C).
    18. Elena B. Mudrova & Nelly N. Murawiowa, 2021. "Digitalization in public administration in the housing and utility sector and the human factor," Upravlenets, Ural State University of Economics, vol. 12(4), pages 92-105, September.
    19. Perperidis, Giannis, 2023. "The politics of the city: Critical theory of technology and urban design(s)," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 74(C).
    20. Liyuan Liu & Yen Hsu, 2022. "Motivating factors behind the public’s use of smart recycling systems: perceived playfulness and environmental concern," Palgrave Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 9(1), pages 1-13, December.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:teinso:v:68:y:2022:i:c:s0160791x21002803. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.journals.elsevier.com/technology-in-society .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.