Indoor Navigation / Wayfinding Issue Paper
Introduction
This document is an issue paper about indoor navigation. It helps people orient themselves, explore, and navigate through buildings such as museums, hospitals, airports, and public transportation stations. Indoor navigation has come to be known as wayfinding. It is separate from outdoor navigation, such as via global positioning systems (GPS), primarily because GPS do not function inside buildings. See [reference and link to GPS navigation issue paper].
Challenges for people with cognitive disabilities
Difficulty with wayfinding by people with cognitive disabilities ranges from minimal to extreme. They may need minimal help to navigate an indoor location, or they may need more help, such as detailed, step-by-step directions. This can have an impact on people with impairments of:
- memory;
- executive function;
- attention;
- perception processing; and/or
- knowledge.
Memory
People with cognitive disabilities may have to:
- recall where they have been to orient themselves to where they are (spatial awareness);
- review a proposed route many times to understand how to follow it;
- repeat aloud or otherwise reiterate a route multiple times to retain it; and/or
- return to reviewing parts of a route when difficulties mean they cannot retain information.
Executive function
People with cognitive disabilities may not:
- sufficiently process / understand proposed routes;
- understand part of a route because they did not understand the part that preceded it;
- be able to plan how to follow a proposed route despite instructions and clues;
- reorient themselves after having their planned route interrupted; and/or
- have a sense of spatial visualization and awareness (where person is and wants to go).
Attention-related limitations
People with cognitive disabilities:
- may not attend to important instructions, clues, and relevant details; and/or
- may be significantly distracted by stimuli occurring around them.
Language-related functions
People with cognitive disabilities may not understand proposed routes because they:
- are confused by instructions presented in their language, but written with vocabulary from a different culture;
- are stymied by too-complex instructions written in their native language; and/or
- may have comprehension problems exacerbated by instructions presented in a non-native language.
Perception-processing limitations
Many people with cognitive disabilities may not:
- understand instructions because they are not literal and presented plainly; and/or
- comprehend instructions sufficiently to adequately follow them.
Reduced knowledge
Some people with cognitive disabilities may not be able to navigate indoors because:
- they are unfamiliar with navigation symbols and terminology;
- they do not have relevant background knowledge; and/or
- background concepts are not explained simply.
Use cases for ...
Other use cases include:
- mall?[a]
- Hospital?
- restaurant
Scenario 1: Mall
"Trevor is a
Step | Challenge | Solutions | Comments |
1. Activate / open the map on phone. | Remember how to start the web browser. |
|
|
2. See if location is on map. | Recall the web address and know how to invoke it with the web browser. | Enter the web address. |
|
3. Familiarize orientation of map | Determining gps accuracy isn’t necessarily easily apparent. The location pin may visually appear to be exactly accurate but deviation figure not easily accessible or apparent showing range. Also the direction (compass) of map relative to device may not be apparent dependent on settings. |
|
|
4. Navigate the map. | Familiarize / recall how to use it; and understand icons/text labels and navigation menus. |
|
|
5. Determine route on map | Comprehend the content without being distracted by advertisements, extraneous content, etc.. | Increase font size and/or activate the print view of the web browser. | The solutions may be mutually exclusive.
|
Scenario 2: Hospital
"Trevor is a br
Scenario 3: Restaurant
"Trevor is a br
Proposed solutions
Sample Apps
Ease-of-use ideas
Alternative technologies
- BlindSquare - “Pioneering accessible navigation - indoors and outdoors. Know where you are, know where you're going, travel with confidence.”
- Aira -
Research Sources
- Wayfinding news articles - latest research, products, etc. (John Rochford, 2011 - Now)
- Accessible Way-Finding using Web Technologies (W3C, 2014)
- Accessible Way-Finding Using Web Technologies Symposium Home (W3C, 2014)
- Accessible Way-Finding using Web Technologies Online Symposium 3 (W3C, 2014)
- Way-finding systems (W3C, 2014)
- Extended Abstract for the RDWG Symposium on Accessible Way-Finding Using Web Technologies, Accessible Wayfinding Ontologies for People with Disabilities (W3C, 2014)
- Geo-fencing (to address wandering, a problem for people with dementia, autism, ID, ...)
- Wearable trackers, e.g., LoJack (study on how to obtain insurance coverage)
- John Sanchez, IBM Engineer - Has been working on Wayfinding for years (i.e, w/ RFID)
- Aura Ganz, UMass Amherst Engineer - Pilot using NFC at MBTA Arlington Street Station
- Possibility: http://www.clickandgomaps.com/
Information To Incorporate
The following text is copied from Accessible Way-Finding Using Web Technologies Symposium Home (W3C, 2014).
Increasingly web technologies are used to provide such way-finding applications and services. This allows them to make use of web-based maps, location information, crowd-sourced reviews, and real-time data about the weather, traffic conditions, and other relevant aspects. It also allows the integration with and use of web-enabled sensors and actuators, and deployment on web-enabled devices such as mobile phones, televisions, overhead signage, glasses, watches, and other gadgets. Way-finding using web technologies enables new paradigms in many areas including mobility, travel, and tourism, and unprecedented opportunities for everyone.
In particular people with disabilities can greatly benefit from such way-finding applications and services, to gain more independence and self-determination. Examples of web-based maps, crowd-sourced information, and public data with accessibility information demonstrate the use of the Web to augment the physical world. Similarly, examples of specially created navigation and orientation systems, smart wheelchairs, smart canes, and other devices and applications demonstrate the potential of connecting the physical world with information on the Web to improve accessibility.
Also mainstream developments, including in the areas of near-field communication, open linked data, and self-driving vehicles, provide the potential for more versatile and cost-effective way-finding applications and services. However, it is unclear how well such mainstream way-finding applications and services address the accessibility needs of people with disabilities. This includes aspects such as:
- Data about the physical accessibility of places and routes;
- Capabilities to use this data to select accessible routes;
- Capabilities to present the information in accessible modes;
This symposium explores the current state-of-the-art, gaps, challenges, and opportunities in providing accessible way-finding using web technologies.
Scope
The scope of the symposium includes but is not limited to the following aspects:
- Users Interfaces: Using web technologies to display spatial, orientation, and navigational information in ways that are accessible for people with different types of disabilities. Some particular questions include:
- What are the main challenges in providing accessible user interfaces for way-finding systems, and how can web technologies help to address them?
- How do technologies such as WAI-ARIA and IndieUI address accessibility requirements in way-finding systems, and what gaps exist, if any?
- Which additional Techniques for WCAG 2.0 could be proposed to help support more rapid development of accessible way-finding systems?
- Data Sources, Formats, and Standards: Exploring existing and new data sources, formats, and standards to describe, review, and annotate the accessibility of places. Some particular questions include:
- How are or can semantic web technologies be used to describe accessibility of physical places and objects?
- What kinds of vocabularies and taxonomies exist, such as those found in building codes, and how can they be reused in the web context?
- What types of data sources and data collection methods provide or can provide accessibility-related information? What types of formats and APIs do they use?
- Integration with Mainstream Developments: Reviewing mainstream applications, devices, and systems that can contribute to accessible way-finding using web technologies. Some particular questions include:
- What kinds of technologies, systems, and applications entail potential benefits for accessible way-finding using web technologies?
- What kinds of web-enabled sensors, devices, and gadgets entail potential benefits for accessible way-finding using web technologies?
- What is the role of standards, policies, and market forces to enable more mainstream accessible way-finding applications and services?
The following text is copied from Accessible Way-Finding using Web Technologies (W3C, 2014)
- C. Anagnostopoulos, V. Tsetsos, P. Kikiras, and S.P. Hadjiefthymiades (2005) OntoNav: A Semantic Indoor Navigation System. Proceedings of the 1st Workshop on Semantics in Mobile Environments (SME’05), Available: :http://ceur-ws.org/Vol-165/paper14.pdf
- B. Corona, and S. Winter (2001a) Guidance of Car Drivers and Pedestrians. Institute for Geoinformation, Technical University of Vienna. Vienna, Austria. Available: http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download?doi=10.1.1.26.4982
- B. Corona, and S. Winter (2001b) Approaches to an Ontology for Pedestrian Navigation Services. Institute for Geoinformation, Technical University of Vienna. Vienna, Austria. Available: http://nav.spatial.maine.edu/oispacewiki/images/6/66/F.pdf
- B. Corona, and S. Winter (2001c) Datasets for Pedestrian Navigation Services. Proceedings of the AGIT Symposium, edited by J. Strobl, T. Blaschke, and G. Griesebner, 84–89. Salzburg, Germany.DOI:10.1.1.17.8990
- P.M. Dudas, M. Ghafourian, and H.A. Karimi (2009) ONALIN: Ontology and Algorithm for Indoor Routing. Tenth International Conference on Mobile Data Management: Systems, Services and Middleware, 720–725. DOI:10.1109/MDM.2009.123
- C. Jacquet, Y. Bourda, and Y. Bellik (2005) A Context-Aware Locomotion Assistance Device for the Blind. Proceedings of HCI 2004, People and Computers XVIII - Design for Life, 315–328 DOI:10.1007/978-3-540-27817-7_64
- H.A. Karimi and M. Ghafourian (2010) Indoor Routing for Individuals with Special Needs and Preferences. Transactions in GIS 14(3):299–329. DOI:10.1111/j.1467-9671.2010.01198.x
- M. Kavouras, and M. Kokla (2008) Theories of Geographic Concepts: Ontological Approaches to Semantic Integration . Boca Raton, FL: CRC Press, Taylor and Francis Group.
- T. Sarjakoski, P. Kettunen, H. Halkosaari, M. Laakso, M. Rönneberg, H. Stigmar (2013). Landmarks and a Hiking Ontology to Support Wayfinding in a National Park During Different Seasons. In M. Raubal, D. M. Mark, and A. U. Frank (Eds.), Cognitive and Linguistic Aspects of Geographic Space, Lecture Notes in Geoinformation and Cartography. Berlin, Heidelberg: Springer Berlin Heidelberg.DOI:10.1007/978-3-642-34359-9
- G. Schreiber (2008) Knowledge Engineering. In Handbook of Knowledge Representation, edited by F. van Hamelen, V. Lifschitz, and B. Porter, 929–946. Elsevier B.V.
- R. Studer, V. Richard Benjamins, and D. Fensel (1998) Knowledge engineering: Principles and methods. Data and Knowledge Engineering, 25(1-2):161–197. DOI:10.1016/S0169-023X(97)00056-6
- M.C. Suarez-Figueroa, and A. Gomez-Perez (2012) Ontology Requirements Specification. In Ontology Engineering in a Networked World (pp. 93–106). Springer Berlin Heidelberg. DOI:10.1007/978-3-642-24794-1_5
- U.S. Access Board (2010) ADA Guidelines, http://www.access-board.gov/guidelines-and-standards/buildings-and-sites/about-the-ada-standards/guide-to-the-ada-standards
The following text is copied from Extended Abstract for the RDWG Symposium on Accessible Way-Finding Using Web Technologies, Accessible Wayfinding Ontologies for People with Disabilities (W3C, 2014)
- Li, Y., Draffan, E.A., Glaser, H., et al. RailGB : Using Open Accessibility Data to Help People with Disabilities. Proceedings of the Semantic Web Challenge co-located with ISWC2012, (2012), 1–8.
- Prandi, C. Accessibility and Smart Data : the Case Study of mPASS. Proceedings of 13th International Web for All Conference - W4A ’14, (2014), 9–10.
- Holone, H. and Misund, G. People helping computers helping people: Navigation for people with mobility problems by sharing accessibility annotations. Computers Helping People with Special Needs, (2008).
- Ding, C., Wald, M., and Wills, G. A Survey of Open Accessibility Data. Proceedings of 13th International Web for All Conference - W4A ’14, ACM (2014), 73–80.
- Bizer, C., Heath, T., and Berners-Lee, T. Linked data-the story so far. International Journal on Semantic Web and Information Systems (IJSWIS) 5, 3 (2009), 1–22.
- Tim Berners-Lee. Linked Data - Design Issues. 2009. http://www.w3.org/DesignIssues/LinkedData.html.
- Ding, C., Wald, M., and Wills, G. Open Accessibility Data Interlinking. Proceedings of The 14th International Conference on Computers Helping People with Special Needs (ICCHP), (2014), 73–80.
This table placed here temporarily.
Name | Purpose | Use | Environmental Features | Definition of Accessibility | Source of knowledge |
Walk Ontology (Paepen and Engelen 2006) | To create language and direction independent navigation instructions Map route? | To translate instructions into new languages and reverse the direction of instructions | Landmarks | Not focused on accessibility | Walk guides |
Landmark Ontology for Hiking [9] | To formally represent landmarks for hiking | To automate use of landmarks in the ( memorization of multiple landmarks Terrain Navigator application | Landmarks, hiking trails | Focus on older adults (limited walking, using wheelchair) | Interviews, empirical study with hikers, map legends |
Pedestrian Ontology [2, 3, 4] | To define pedestrian information needs and service and data specifications | To identify the core elements of route instructions for pedestrians | Conceptual: distance, landmarks, map. Physical: streets, buildings, green areas | None: they note adaptive services for ‘handicapped persons’ as future work | Existing car navigation services and investigate => literature on human cognitive maps for pedestrians |
Indoor Navigation Ontology (INO) [1] | To describe navigation paths | To enable reasoning for route selection | Hallway paths, points-of-interest, obstacles | Based on physical and perceptive capabilities of individual users (insert reference to cognitive disability) - chunking of info | Unknown |
ONALIN [5, 7] | To model indoor networks and features | To provide routes within a building that meet the special needs and preferences of individuals | Hallway paths, points-of-interest, transitions | Based on ADA criteria – focus on mobility and vision communities | ADA Standards |
Ontology for Structure Description [6] | To describe a structure (building) | To allow users to point a device at an object and receive a semantic description | Floor, wall, room, building |
|
|
Source: Extended Abstract for the RDWG Symposium on Accessible Way-Finding Using Web Technologies, Accessible Wayfinding Ontologies for People with Disabilities (W3C, 2014)