[accessibleimage] Re: maps for the blind

Dear All,

This discussion on detection of curves in the route is particularly
fascinating for me, as we have recently discussed this issue quite
extensively within the TIMP project. We made certain assumptions along
the lines of Rachel Magario's ideas, but were unable to find any
published literature to confirm or disconfirm this. We generally went on
anecdotal evidence from some of our participants who often reported not
being able to detect gentle curves in a route, and some related work on
haptic perception of curves.

I am now even more surprised that there doesn't seem to be any research
on this. I spent a few hours trying searches using various keywords, and
came up with some work on sighted perception of curves, but nothing
about this without vision.

Does anybody know of any published research on this that I may have
missed?

All the best,

Simon


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
SIMON UNGAR
Department of Psychology
University of Surrey
Guildford
Surrey GU2 7XH
U.K.

Tel: +44 (0) 1483 68 6895
Fax: +44 (0) 1483 68 6906

e-mail: s.ungar@xxxxxxxxxxxx

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

-----Original Message-----
From: accessibleimage-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
[mailto:accessibleimage-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Karen Gourgey
Sent: 29 December 2006 17:03
To: accessibleimage@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [accessibleimage] Re: maps for the blind

Hi Lori and All,

I too am a totally blind pedestrian, who has traveled both with cane and
dog.  I am blind from birth, and I have some asymmetrical hearing loss.
I can usually detect curves in a path, and I certainly think that
tactile maps depicting  routes should reflect the basic outline of the
route, including curves.  When we did our maps in the '90's of the New
York city Subway system, we produced one set of maps that were
overviews, i.e. they showed the ways in which the various subway lines
wove through the city and at times intersected with each other.  We also
produced strip maps for each individual subway line.  Here the goal was
to show and give information about all stops along a particular line.
The concept was similar to that used by Joe Wiedel when he did maps of
the Washington D.C. subway system. 
The strip maps are event maps, where we elected to leave out the shape
of the route, and concentrate on basic information regarding stops, and
characteristics of each station, such as whether one was leaving the
train on to a platform with tracks on one or both sides.  I think the
map maker and map user need to decide collaboratively what are the
information essentials to be communicated in any given situation.
Personally, I appreciate any uncluttered, simple map that gives me  the
basic shape of a route.  Once I have that, I can fill in my "points of
interest" and they become details of the cognitive map that lives in my
head.

Thanks for listening.

Best,

Karen


Karen Luxton Gourgey Ed.D
Director, Computer Center for Visually Impaired People Baruch College,
City University of New York
1 Bernard Baruch Way box H-0648
New York, NY 10010
Phone: (646) 312-1426
Fax: (646) 312-1421
http://www.baruch.cuny.edu/ccvip
----- Original Message -----
From: "Kaizen Program" <kaizen@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
To: <accessibleimage@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Friday, December 29, 2006 6:49 AM
Subject: [accessibleimage] Re: maps for the blind


> Hi Lori,
>
> You are not alone.
>
> I am now totally blind, although I had vision for the first 39 years
of my
> life, gradually decreasing from full vision to very little before
losing
> all. I travel with a cane. I can definitely detect changes in the 
> direction
> of paths most of the time. During the past few years I have
experienced
> some hearing loss, a little more in the right ear than in the left
ear,
> which interferes with my sense of direction, but doesn't stop me from
> noticing changes in direction of a path. It  just interferes with my
> figuring
> out where sounds are coming from. I, like you, find it  helpful to
have 
> maps
> that depict whether or not the path is straight or  angles. I also 
> generally
> appreciate knowing the basic layout of a route  so I can figure out
where 
> I
> am
> going more easily, even though I can be overwhelmed by cluttered
tactile
> maps, especially if they are not clearly labeled, or require moving
too 
> much
> from the map to a key to figure out the labeling code.
>
> I am not sure if valuing tactile maps of routes is something that is
more
> important
> for people who have previously had vision than  for those who never
saw. I
> also don't know if blind people who have learned to use maps to gain
an 
> idea
> of
> the overall layout of places find this relevant while those who aren't

> used
> to using tactile maps find it less helpful.
>
> I just finished reading the book, Touching for Knowing: Cognitive 
> psychology
> of haptic manual perception
> Edited by
> Yvette Hatwell
> Universite Pierre Mendes-France, Grenoble
> Arlette Streri
> Edouard Gentaz
> Universite Rene Descartes and Centre National de 7a Recherche
Scientifique
> John Benjamins Publishing Company Amsterdam/ Philadelphia
> Translated (and updated) from: Y. Hatwell, A. Streri and E. Gentaz
(2000).
> Toucher pour connaitre. Paris: Presses Universitaires de France.
> Toucher pour connaitre. Paris: Presses Universitaires de France.
>
> It is a very interesting book.
>
> One article in particular deals with tactile maps: The tactile reading
of
> maps and drawings, and the access of blind people to works of art by 
> Yvette
> Hatwell and Francoise Martinez-Sarrochi. They seem to say that people
with
> some vision and those with some previous vision might benefit most
from
> tactile maps.
>
> I think it can be a complex question because blind people often differ
> greatly in past experiences, past sensory capacities, current sensory
> capacities, including specifics of vision limitations, hearing 
> limitations,
> and tactal capacities, as well as age of onset of blindness (very
young,
> middle-life or older), etc. and kind and amount of developed skills.
>
> I don't think that laboratory tests can necessarily deal with all of
these
> complexities fully or adequately because they can be so interrelated.
>
> Personally, I really hope we will have more and more good tactile maps
of
> local areas as time goes on.
>
> Have a happy new year.
>
> Sylvie
>
> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: "Lori" <twilight2@xxxxxxxxxxxx>
> To: <accessibleimage@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
> Sent: Thursday, December 28, 2006 6:40 PM
> Subject: [accessibleimage] maps for the blind
>
>
> Hi all,
>
> My apologies if this has already been discussed here or if it isn't
> apropriate for the list, but after reading the messages about
production 
> of
> maps and someone mentioning in an article that they can't distinguish
a
> curve, etc, I thought I should post.
>
> I'm just curious. I'm a totally blind pedestrian who has traveled both

> with
> cane and dog guide. I would say a good percentage of the time I am
aware 
> of
> any alteration in direction of travel or even subtle changes. I find
it
> helpful to have maps that depict whether or not the path is straight
or
> angles. I'm not alone, am I?
>
> Lori
>
>
>
>
>
>

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