Raising Awareness of Accessibility Barriers

Disabled individuals face many challenges in their daily lives, especially when it comes to moving around and accessing public spaces. Most people who are not disabled do not think about these challenges, which can make it harder for everyone to work together to make places more accessible.

#The Need for Awareness

People with disabilities often struggle to get around due to obstacles in their environments. These can include things like stairs without elevators, busy sidewalks blocked by scooters, or confusing Public Transport systems. Many laws now recognize the need for accessible environments, but still, it can be tough to get everyone involved in making changes.

In the past, some efforts have tried to raise awareness about what it is like to have a disability. One method involves putting non-disabled individuals in situations where they can experience some of the challenges that disabled people encounter. This is done through Simulations, both in person and with technologies like Virtual Reality (VR). However, many advocacy groups have criticized these simulations. They argue that putting someone in a temporary situation doesn’t truly reflect what living with a disability is like. It can even lead to confusion or negative feelings, as those without experience might not fully grasp the challenges.

#Virtual Reality as a Tool

There’s also evidence that VR can help people reflect on various topics, such as parenting or education. Rather than trying to simulate a disability, this approach focuses on highlighting the Barriers that disabled people face every day.

In our work, we developed a VR simulation of a busy traffic hub in Karlsruhe, Germany. This location was chosen because it is well-known for having many access barriers. The goal is not to simulate the experience of being disabled but rather to point out the obstacles that people encounter in real life. By emphasizing these barriers, we hope to encourage discussions about what makes an environment accessible.

#Designing the VR Simulation

The VR simulation aims to recreate a familiar location to the local community and to showcase common barriers that occur in public spaces. The selected area is called Durlacher Tor. It is a busy spot where various forms of public transport meet, making it chaotic and often crowded. Our local ties to this spot allowed us to frequently test and compare both the real site and our simulation.

As users enter the VR environment, they find themselves on the sidewalk at this busy junction. They can move around and interact with their surroundings. Visual markers guide them to different barriers. Once they reach a barrier, they receive guidance to the next one, continuing this process until they explore several key areas of concern.

#Identifying Barriers in the Environment

Durlacher Tor was chosen for its complexity and the many access issues it presents. With trams, buses, cars, cyclists, and pedestrians all crossing paths, there are significant obstacles to navigate. Many people in the local community have discussed these issues, making it a great location to focus our efforts.

Here are some examples of barriers included in the simulation:

1. Tactile Guiding Strip: At ground level, there is a tactile guiding strip meant to assist individuals who are blind or have low vision. However, this strip ends unexpectedly without providing further guidance.

2. Cluttered Sidewalk: The sidewalk often has scooters blocking the way. This creates obstacles for many users, including those in wheelchairs or those with vision impairments. In the simulation, these scooters can move aside when users approach.

3. Broken Elevator: One elevator at the station, which helps individuals with limited mobility, is out of order. The simulation alerts users when they reach this barrier, directing them to another functioning elevator.

These barriers were chosen based on existing knowledge about pedestrian navigation and community discussions. In future updates, we hope to include more barriers that can arise from changing situations, like crowded areas or distracting noises.

#Technical Setup of the VR Simulation

We built the VR simulation using a platform called Unity 3D. This allowed us to create a detailed virtual environment based on real geographic data from the city. For the behavior of pedestrians and vehicles, we included a traffic system that handles traffic lights and navigation. The simulation includes 3D models to represent different people and types of cars.

The VR system runs on a desktop computer equipped with a high-end graphics card. The VR headset used in the simulation allows for an immersive experience, making it feel real for the users.

#Demonstrating the VR Experience

At an upcoming conference, we plan to showcase this VR experience. People attending the event will have the opportunity to try out the demo or watch as we demonstrate it. Each participant will spend around five minutes in the VR setting. We’ll set up a computer and VR headset in a designated space for this purpose.

#Encouraging Reflection and Discussion

Through this demo, we want to ignite conversations about how to design more inclusive public spaces. We invite everyone, especially those with disabilities and researchers in the field of human-computer interaction, to join us. Some questions we hope to explore together include:

• What kinds of barriers exist in our public spaces?
• Which barriers are often overlooked by those without disabilities?
• What lessons can we learn from the VR simulation that apply to real-world situations?
• How can we effectively communicate about barriers in a way that is respectful yet insightful?
• Are there risks in our approach to highlighting these barriers?

By using VR, we hope to promote a deeper understanding of the obstacles that many people face and inspire joint efforts to create a more accessible world. This simulation isn't about pretending to experience a disability; it’s about making sure everyone sees the barriers that need to be addressed.

#Conclusion

In summary, this VR simulation serves as a tool to raise awareness about the challenges faced by disabled individuals. By concentrating on the barriers rather than trying to mimic the experience of being disabled, we aim to foster understanding and encourage collaborative efforts for change. We hope our work will lead to meaningful discussions and actions that help make public spaces more accessible for everyone.