An increasing number of designers wish to conceive innovative products or services for older adults with special needs and family caregivers. Both groups have distinct but overlapping needs that require good understanding and close working between designers and these intended end users. However, little practical knowledge is available in efficient and attractive ways to integrate them into the design process.
The DATcares (Designing Assistive Technology that cares) workshop that took place at the Schlegel-UW Reasearch Institute for Aging in June 2017 thanks to funding received from AGE WELL, CIHR, SCA and QRNA, highlighted this problem and introduced an innovative bottom-up approach that showed how relevant design principles could be identified by a transdisciplinar effort gathering caregivers, researchers, occupational therapists, designers, technology developers, industries and policy makers. Following these findings, it was decided to replicate this approach at a bigger scale in order to share successful design principles throughout the design community.
The aim of the SHADE project is to define, disseminate and support a set of design heuristics and user-centered methods to globally improve the quality of assistive technologies by encompassing caregivers' and care-recipients' holistic needs to bring:
In order to help project designers to better solve these problems, we propose to define reference principles that can guide designers and developers in the creation of a products and services that better support the fundamental needs of both caregivers and care-recipients and their relationships.
Heuristics will be conveyed to industry and practitioners through a deck of cards and a reference booklet, providing definitions of design principles, best practices and concrete examples. These products will be downloadable for free and premium printed versions will be available at production cost.
For more information about the project, read this overview document.
Hélène Pigot, Domus laboratory, Université de Sherbrooke
Sylvain Giroux, Domus laboratory, Université de Sherbrooke
Jennifer Boger, University of Waterloo
Arlene Astell, University of Toronto
Nathalie Bonnardel, Université Aix-Marseille
Maxime Parenteau, Technological coordinator, Domus laboratory, Université de Sherbrooke
Marie-Michèle Rosa-Fortin, Administrative coordinator, Domus laboratory, Université de Sherbrooke
Ariane Tessier, Administrative coordinator, Domus laboratory, Université de Sherbrooke
Célia Lignon, Designer, Domus laboratory, Université de Sherbrooke
Michelle Plante, Ergothérapeute, Université de Montréal
Damien Lockner, Domus laboratory, Université de Sherbrooke
Josie D'Avernas, Executive director, Schlegel-UW Research Institute for Aging
Ron Beleno, Proche-aidant
Fabrice Pincin, Designer, Président de Marseille Design Méditérannée
Yves Voglaire, Designer, Président de DesignEnjeu
To come