Citation

Stahl A, Newman E, Dahlin-Ivanoff S, Almén M, Iwarsson S. Disabil. Rehabil. 2009.

Affiliation

Faculty of Engineering, Department of Technology and Society, Lund University, Lund, Sweden.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2009, Informa - Taylor and Francis Group)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

19852708

Abstract

Purpose. The overall purpose was to study whether and how persons with blindness detect warning surfaces with a long white cane in a real pedestrian environment after following a natural guidance surface to the warning surfaces. Of particular interest was the importance of kerb, depth, and structure of the warning surfaces. Method. A concurrently mixed methods approach, with a combination of observation using a structured form together with 'think aloud' and a structured interview, was used. It was done with well-defined samples and study sites in an inter-disciplinary research context. Results. The results show that the most important design characteristic for detection of the warning surfaces with a white cane is the structure of the surface, while the depth of the surface and availability of a kerb do not have any impact on the detection. A precondition was that there is a distinct natural guidance surface leading up to the warning surface. Conclusions. The probability among pedestrians with blindness to detect a tactile surface is not higher if the design solution has a kerb. This study also confirms the complexity of being a blind pedestrian in the traffic environment. The results can be used for evidence-based physical planning. The study also has implications for development of more efficient vision rehabilitation.

Language: en