TACK-TILES

Empowering the visually impaired.

TEAM

Oliver Frohlich, Reginald Oke, Tom Clarke, Patrick Brennan

TIMELINE

12 Weeks

ROLES

Product Design, UX Design, User Research, Interaction Design

TOOLS

Adobe Illustrator, Adobe Photoshop, 3DS Max, After Effects, Arduino,

METHODS

Think-aloud testing, Questionnaires, Interviews, Affinity diagramming, Hardware Programming, Sketching, Prototyping, Observational Research, Personas, Storyboarding

Overview

Tack-Tiles is a piece of smart pavement infrastructure, alerting pedestrians about roadside traffic conditions. Tack-Tiles improve existing ground surface indicators to better define hazards and communicate changes within an environment to those who live with a visual impairment.

Design Brief

It is estimated nearly 4 million or 20% of Australians live with some form of disability. With the growth of cities across the nation, it has become increasingly important that infrastructural developments are built with accessibility in mind to help those with disabilities feel 
safe and included in our communities.

Our vision was to construct a physical product, providing innovative and feasible solutions to improve the quality of life for those who live with a visual disability.

Haptic communication

Have you ever felt unsure of your safety when navigating over crossings? We’ve designed an intuitive system that converts traffic data into distinct haptic-based messages to tell you when to walk.

Visual indication

If you rely on high contrasting colours on your daily commute, we’ve got you covered. Tack-tiles use embedded LEDs to tell you when it’s safe to walk.

Audio reassurance

To assure your safety, we’ve introduced spoken instructions to further warn you when vehicles are inbound.