From Assistive Technology to Industry and Back - Experiences with an Applied Domain Transfer

Conceptualization and development of assistive technology often differs greatly from industrial design and development. While assistive technology solutions are required to be highly individualizable to fit the needs of their diverse target group, industrial solutions need to be suitable for mass markets, which is also reflected by sales numbers and prices. While assistive technology often starts at human’s very basic needs such as the need for communication, industrial solutions are often intended to increase productivity and thus also financial gain. Nevertheless, development of assistive technology and of industrial components share several common grounds, especially in the area of Human-Computer Interaction (e.g., industrial workers have to deal with functional impairments). Although both domains could greatly benefit from a liaison, a transfer usually either does not take place at all or takes place at a late stage of development. This paper describes an applied domain transfer between assistive technology and industry during all phases of design and development of novel interaction solutions.