Immersive VR technologies as a means to empathizing with disabled users in the design-for-all process
VR4ALL
“Design for all” is an umbrella term that refers to designing products that are made accessible to all people regardless of age, disability or other factors. Understanding the special needs of disabled users or children is the first and fundamental phase of the design thinking methodology. This empathy phase aims to gain insight into the people who will use the end product, system or service, i.e. their special needs, limitations and motivations. However, “empathy” becomes a particular challenge for professional designers when it comes to disabled users.
Goals and Content
Virtual Reality (VR) can be an effective tool for simulating realistic experiences. The current proliferation of immersive VR technologies allows users to immerse themselves in an artificial environment that convincingly replaces the user's real environment. This enables, for example, developers of everyday objects to fully engage with the artificially created environment. Immersive VR can be used to simulate disabilities in a credible and relatable way. Simulations of disabilities can be implemented as virtual environments (VEs) with an avatar. The avatar can embody the disabled user to enable the developer to have a first-person perspective. The developer or user can take on the perspective of a disabled person through the avatar, for example, to see the environment from the perspective of a wheelchair user. The simulation of such disabilities can be made possible by programming special VR applications. This puts people without disabilities, e.g. developers, in situations that can realistically reflect the lives of people with disabilities. Compared to non-VR simulations, users here show more empathy for the disabled if they have previously used an avatar with a disability in VR. The use of VR simulations as a means of fostering empathy among developers in the design process has not been investigated so far, especially not in the context of “design for all”. The following objectives were defined for the project:
- Use of immersive virtual reality in inclusive product development.
- Fostering empathy for people with disabilities among product designers and students.
- Development of innovative teaching methods and materials for university teachers.
- Strengthening awareness of the needs of people with disabilities
Project Results
- VR environments to strengthen the empathy of design students and professionals towards people with disabilities. This involves modelling 3D environments and creating more realistic simulations of visual and motor disabilities. The aim is to enable the application of these simulations on a range of end devices.
- Training for trainers in the field of product design on how to use the VR environments in teaching. Training for teachers in the field of product design to learn about the design thinking methodology. The teachers will learn how to strengthen their students' empathy for the special needs of people with disabilities.
- Pilot testing of the VR environments to test the tools in an educational context.
