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This project addresses a common problem among elderly with memory disorders
which is the ability to navigation recognize places
A seamless mobile navigation solution might support the elderly pedestrians
reinforcing social inclusion and self-esteem
Vibrators are mounted on a belt to create a vibrotactile display
which is used as a navigational aid. The benefits of using the tactile modality
is that the system can be worn concealed under the users clothing, hiding their inability to navigate as opposed to visual navigation aids
Furthermore research has shown that the use of the tactile modality frees up cognitive resources
and enables the user to use their sight and hearing too look out for traffic, talk or enjoy the scenery
This project describes the development and initial examination of such a navigational aid
A prototype was developed and tested with elderly to examine the feasibility of using vibrotactile display for them
Looking in the previous efforts of vibrotactile navigational aids
these were found lacking in several areas. Therefore this project examined how to improve in some of these areas
several different approaches to designing vibrotactile signals
and encoding distance information in them
were examined through an experiment
Among other things, it was found that gradient changes in amplitude preferable
and a suitable method of encoding distance was identified
The developed signal was applied in a field study where an alternative to turn-by-turn navigation was examined
the alternative was based on showing directions to landmarks and letting the user
figure out the details of getting there themselves
It was found that this alternative approach
which was dubbed landmark-to-landmark navigation
provided an improveded sense of freedom but made the user more insecure
Landmark-to-landmark navigation is believed to improve the users spatial understanding
which could be beneficial for the elderly with memory disorders
but this has not yet been examined
The project has paved the way for improvements in wearable vibrotactile navigational displays
which can be applied to elderly with memory disorders, but there is still work to be done
for example the prototype needs to be completely integrated into a belt
to allow examination of social aspects of concealed navigational aids
Also further work is required to examine the performance of vibrotactile belt displays
when used by elderly with memory disorders
as opposed to the young and healthy subjects used in the field study of this project