This course focuses on assistive technology as an engineering design product. That means we'll develop a technological solution to a very specific problem defined by a "client" with a disability. In this course's design process, we will treat the client as a "co-designer." It is important to remember that our co-designers are experts on the nature of their design problem and on what solutions will actually work to suit their own needs and abilities.
As the readings from this week highlight, it's important to remember that disability involves a complex interaction between a person and the society they live in. For
example, voice recognition software that would help someone use a computer hands-free might look a lot like personal assistant software that is widely used on smartphones. As another example, most people with prescription glasses probably wouldn't consider that an example of assistive technology, even if they couldn't drive, bike, or participate fully in a classroom setting without them. These observations are related to the role that society play's in determining what is a disability and what is assistive technology.
You might also notice that assistive technology solves problems that might be prevented from happening again through changes in industry, law, or social norms. While these social solutions to broad accessibility problems are necessary, this class will focus on more immediate solutions to personalized problems.
For example, a co-designer with one arm might be interested in a way to more easily use the zippers on their coats. A solution outside the scope of this class might be to work with clothing designers on making adaptable clothing options the norm in the fashion industry so that people with physical disabilities can shop in any store to find functional clothing they like. A solution we might focus on in this class would be to engineer a tool that someone can use with one hand to help close up the zippers on any article of clothing. It's important to note that both of these approaches would be important parts of addressing accessibility issues in fashion long-term: an engineer might be able to show that creating an accessible zipper is possible, and someone trying to change the fashion industry might help spread that engineering solution more widely.
In this class, we hope to help you develop engineering skills you can use to address issues that people with disabilities face today. By the end of the class, we hope you feel more comfortable working on issues related to disability and analyzing whether the products you design in the future are accessible to people with disabilities. These skills will help you work on assistive technology projects in the future, as well as strengthen your design skills to be a better engineer overall.