ASSISTIVE TECHNOLOGY FROM ADAPTED EQUIPMENT TO INCLUSIVE ENVIRONMENTS Assistive Technology Research Series The Assistive Technology Research Series (ATR) aims to disseminate and archive assistive technology research summaries widely through publishing proceedings, monographs, and edited collective works. The series aspires to become the primary world-wide source of information in assistive technology research, through publishing state-of-the-science material across all continents. ATR defines assistive technology (AT) as any tool, equipment, system, or service designed to help develop, maintain or improve a person with a disability to function in all aspects of his or her life. Assistive technology helps people of all ages who may have a broad range of disabilities or limitations. The ATR series will accept manuscripts and proposals for a wide range of relevant topics. Editor-in-Chief: Rory A. Cooper Editorial Board: Angel Gil Agudo, Geoff Bardsley, Robert Bingham, Christian Buhler, H.S. Chhabra, Gerry Craddock, Jin Dewen, Sten Ekman, Martin Ferguson, Shirley G. Fitzgerald, Antal (Tony) Huba, Jeffrey Jutai, Kiyomi Matsuo, Mounir Mokhtari, Johan Molenbroek, Hisaichi Ohnabe, Paul F. Pasquina, Marcia Scherer, Nigel Shapcott, Richard Simpson, Ronaldo de Souza Moraes Jr., Thijs Soede, Pierre Soto, Eric Tam, Osamu Tanaka, Julian Verkaaik, Howard Wactlar, Hans-Werner Wahl, Lloyd Walker, Jue Wang, Brian Woods, Lucas van der Woude, Yusheng Yang Volume 25 Recently published in this series Vol. 24. P. Topo and B. Östlund (Eds.), Dementia, Design and Technology – Time to Get Involved Vol. 23. M. Cabrera and N. Malanowski (Eds.), Information and Communication Technologies for Active Ageing – Opportunities and Challenges for the European Union Vol. 22. W.C. Mann (Ed.), Aging, Disability and Independence – Selected Papers from the 4th International Conference on Aging, Disability and Independence (2008) Vol. 21. A. Mihailidis, J. Boger, H. Kautz and L. Normie (Eds.), Technology and Aging – Selected Papers from the 2007 International Conference on Technology and Aging Vol. 20. G. Eizmendi, J.M. Azkoitia and G. Craddock (Eds.), Challenges for Assistive Technology – AAATE 07 Vol. 19. C. Nugent and J.C. Augusto (Eds.), Smart Homes and Beyond – ICOST2006, 4th International Conference On Smart homes and health Telematics ISSN 1383-813X Assistive Technology from Adapted Equipment to Inclusive Environments AAATE 2009 Edited by Pier Luigi Emiliani Laura Burzagli Andrea Como Francesco Gabbanini Institute of Applied Physics “Nello Carrara”, Italian National Research Council, Florence, Italy and Anna-Liisa Salminen Kela Research Department, Helsinki, Finland Amsterdam • Berlin • Oxford • Tokyo • Washington, DC © 2009 The authors and IOS Press. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, without prior written permission from the publisher. ISBN 978-1-60750-042-1 Library of Congress Control Number: 2009932268 Publisher IOS Press Nieuwe Hemweg 6B 1013 BG Amsterdam Netherlands fax: +31 20 687 0019 e-mail: [email protected] Distributor in the UK and Ireland Distributor in the USA and Canada Gazelle Books Services Ltd. IOS Press, Inc. White Cross Mills 4502 Rachael Manor Drive Hightown Fairfax, VA 22032 Lancaster LA1 4XS USA United Kingdom fax: +1 703 323 3668 fax: +44 1524 63232 e-mail: [email protected] e-mail: [email protected] LEGAL NOTICE The publisher is not responsible for the use which might be made of the following information. PRINTED IN THE NETHERLANDS Assistive Technology from Adapted Equipment to Inclusive Environments v P.L. Emiliani et al. (Eds.) IOS Press, 2009 © 2009 The authors and IOS Press. All rights reserved. Preface On behalf of the Association for the Advancement of Assistive Technology in Europe (AAATE) we are honoured to publish the proceedings of the 10th European Confer- ence for the Advancement of Assistive Technology. After The Netherlands, Sweden, Greece, Portugal, Germany, Slovenia, Ireland, France and Spain we are proud to host this conference so that we can all share and benefit from each others’ knowledge. The “Association for the Advancement of Assistive Technology in Europe” (http://www.aaate.net) is the interdisciplinary pan-European association that devotes itself to all aspects of assistive technology, such as use, research, development, manu- facture, supply, provision and policy. Its mission is to stimulate the advancement of assistive technology for the benefit of people with disabilities, including elderly people, through the following main areas of action: • the creation of an awareness of assistive technology; • the promotion of research and development of assistive technology; • the facilitation of an exchange of knowledge within the field; • the dissemination of information regarding assistive technology and related is- sues. As technology develops rapidly and an Information Society is approaching, the concept of Assistive Technology seems to be moving away from adopting the most appropriate device(s) for each user in order to overcome the limitations to her/his activ- ity to the design and set up of the total environment in which people live, supported by suitable functionalities (services) and, when necessary, by additional support devices integrated within the environment. At present, these two perspectives are deeply inter- twined, from both a technological and a social point of view. The relationship, coexis- tence and transition between them currently represent the first challenges for the world of Assistive Technology. This is coherent with the WHO-ICF model, which describes disability as resulting not only from a person’s intrinsic attributes but also from the context. Therefore, ac- cording to the emerging technological perspectives, inclusion of all citizens can be pur- sued by the creation of inclusive living environments in which the abilities to carry out necessary tasks are redefined, particularly with reference to the accessing of informa- tion, interpersonal communications, and environmental control. From this perspective, this approach is also coherent with the definition of eInclusion, as approved in the 2006 Riga Ministerial Declaration: “e-Inclusion means both inclusive ICT and the use of ICT to achieve wider inclusion objectives”. The main aim of the 10th European Conference for the Advancement of Assistive Technology is to bridge the gap between these two complementary approaches, by pro- viding an opportunity to clarify the differences and the common points between them and to better define a way for the future. A non-exhaustive list of relevant discussion topics related to the above transition and covered in the proceedings includes: vi • Technological innovation in Assistive Technology; • The need for interdisciplinary/multidisciplinary approaches to the develop- ment of integrated solutions; • The contribution of Assistive Technology and Design for All towards inclu- sion; • Equipment interconnectivity and compatibility, covering hardware, software and wireless, to favour integrated solutions to inclusion; • The need for standardization (formal, informal and de facto); • Cultural aspects: e.g. acceptance of different approaches, design and aesthetics of AT devices and inclusive living environments, high tech versus low tech, creative solutions for complex problems; • Social aspects: penetration of AT and integrated approaches, the role of Europe in building up inclusion competence in emerging and developing countries, etc.; • Technology transfer, towards not only AT industry, but also mainstream in- dustry. Pier Luigi Emiliani General Chairman Anna-Liisa Salminen AAATE President vii Conference Organisation Italian National Research Council, Institute of Applied Physics “Nello Carrara”, E-Inclusion Laboratory Pier Luigi Emiliani Laura Burzagli with the support of Fondazione ASPHI – Avviamento e Sviluppo di Progetti per ridurre l’Handicap mediante l'Informatica Luigi Rossi Cerpa Italia – Centro Europeo di Ricerca e Promozione dell’Accessibilità Piera Nobili Centro Regionale Ausili Emilia Romagna Evert-Jan Hoogerwerf Fondazione Don Carlo Gnocchi Renzo Andrich Associazione GLIC – Gruppo di Lavoro Interregionale dei Centri ausili Claudio Bitelli INAIL – Istituto Nazionale per l’Assicurazione contro gli Infortuni sul Lavoro – Centro Protesi Angelo Davalli SIE – Società Italiana Ergonomia Oronzo Parlangeli DET – Dipartimento di Elettronica e Telecomunicazioni Università di Firenze Dino Giuli IT-EDeAN – Italian European Design for All e-Accessibility Network Pier Luigi Emiliani viii Local Organising Committee P. L. Emiliani Chair L. Burzagli Co-Chair F. Gabbanini Manager of Conference Management System A. Agostini M. Billi A. Como M.T. De Monte P. Graziani E. Palchetti ix Scientific Committee Bob Allen Ireland Renzo Andrich Italy Andras Arato Hungary John Arnott UK Luis Azevedo Portugal Stig Becker Sweden Serenella Besio Italy Åse Brandt Denmark Jane Brodin Sweden Christian Bühler Germany Gerald Craddock Ireland Dominique Burger France Gorka Eizmendi Spain Jan Ekberg Finland Jan Engelen Belgium Alena Galajdovà Slovakia Juan Carlos Garcia Spain Evert-Jan Hoogerwerf Italy Harry Th. P. Knops Netherlands Joseph Lane USA Margita Lundman Sweden Niels-Erik Mathiassen Denmark Ruth Mayagoitia-Hill UK Klaus Miesenberger Austria Lawrence Normie Israel Helen Petrie UK Mantevz Pustisék Slovenia Cristina Rodriguez-Porrero Spain Anna-Liisa Salminen Finland Caren Sax USA Cecilia Sik Lányi Hungary Dusán Šimšík Slovakia Mathijs Soede Netherlands Constantine Stephanidis Greece Osamu Sueda Japan Claes Tjäder Sweden Hans van Balkom Netherlands Nadine Vigouroux France Erland Winterberg Denmark Wolfgang L. Zagler Austria
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