Cacophonic architectural mobility : Designing space for people with cognitive or functional impairments

• Often described as frozen music, architecture functions as a fixation agent for contemporaneous or past thinking on appropriate space for embarking on or ending a journey. This type of architecture becomes visual to its essence. It interacts with the human capacity of seeing in order to be perceived correctly. The spatial design describes the progression from the immobile built environment, which surrounds the embarkation space, to the means of transportation: air planes, buses or trains.Orientational cues inside the embarkation space may give people with cognitive or functional disabilities some indication on how to access the infrastructure. These cues include colour coding, tactile cues, illumination and signage. These are supposed to facilitate way-finding from various key points in the embarkation space like from the entrance to the check-in counter, or to assisted services. Sound insulation is often overlooked as an orientational cue, thus, creating a vibrant soundscape of callouts, voices and mechanical installations.Tactile cues may inhibit or promote this user group’s independent use of this type of space: Fixed to the built environment, tactile cues become subject to conflicting interests due to maintenance and usage of the embarkation space. The present study investigates the effectiveness of orientational cues in architecture for mobility. The study was based on a literature review of 200 scientific papers. These papers were extracted by use of key word searches in four databases (Ebsco, Jstor, Sciencedirect and Scopus). The study proposes a set of conclusions, which tactile cues in architectural space for mobility have to respect in order to be useful for people with visual impairments.

Ämnesord

HUMANIORA  -- Konst -- Arkitektur (hsv//swe)

HUMANITIES  -- Arts -- Architecture (hsv//eng)

Nyckelord

orientational cues

architecture

person-environment-fit

universal design

Arkitektur

Architecture

Publikations- och innehållstyp

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