[Talk-GB] OpenStreetMap as a data source for visually impaired people

[Christian Ledermann]

http://www.maproomblog.com/2016/02/3d-printed-maps-for-the-blind-and-visually-impaired/
may be of help

On 25 January 2017 at 16:31, SK53 <sk53.osm at gmail.com> wrote:
> I'm not sure under-researched is the right term.
>
> A blind friend, now dead, was participating as a subject in a research
> project on the geographical awareness of blind people back in the 1960s.
> Using OSM for providing data and applications for the visually impaired has
> been an active subject since at least 2008: see for example
> https://wiki.openstreetmap.org/wiki/Category:Visual_Impairment.
>
> I don't have off-hand a list of recent research in the area. I'm sure there
> have been a number of undergraduate research projects using OSM data.
>
> However, the major issue generally is actually translating research into
> something usable in a practical way by visually impaired people.
>
> The practical constraints I'm aware of:
>
> OSM rarely contains enough consistent detail of things like tactile paving,
> existence of pavements, street furniture obstacles, boundary features of
> pedestrian ways etc.
> The difficulty of keeping the above information up-to-date.
> OSM generally maps centre lines not the edges of features. Many blind people
> make extensive usage of edges for navigation, but also to ensure their
> safety.
> The level of detail apparently needed is vast: well beyond what is feasible
> for ordinary mappers to collect.
> GPS accuracy whilst perfectly adequate for standard routing for pedestrians
> using OSM, may not be accurate enough when the two pavements of a road have
> very different characteristics.
>
> Additionally, as for wheelchair users, it may be that the specific
> requirements of each visually impaired user are different.
>
> Probably the area which is most immediately useful is the ability to produce
> tactile maps from OSM using 3-D printing. These can be used by people to
> gain an awareness of unfamiliar areas. Once again most examples I'm aware of
> one-off demonstrations by university researchers or hobbyists associated
> with hackspaces.
>
> Jerry
>
>
>
>
> On 25 January 2017 at 15:35, Dave Dowding <davedowding at gmail.com> wrote:
>>
>> Hi,
>> I'm studying Geographic Information Systems and am doing a dissertation on
>> whether OSM data is a good data sources for visually impaired people. The
>> evaluation of different geographic data sources for visually impaired people
>> seems to be under researched, though very important for those who need the
>> data.
>> I hope to be able to be able to come up with some ways to improve the OSM
>> data for visually impaired people and to create an map to show geographical
>> areas where more data is needed.
>> To help me with the project I would appreciate your help in filling in a
>> survey at
>> https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeVTB0m1CV6zJ_5ZG9dq0l-lAq7KkdsWrnlmdUPq6THoSR3Yw/viewform
>> More information about the project can be found at
>> http://dowd.in/diss.htm. Any advice or feedback appreciated.
>>
>> Many Thanks
>>
>> Dave
>>
>> _______________________________________________
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>>
>
>
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-- 
Best Regards,

Christian Ledermann

Newark-on-Trent - UK
Mobile : +44 7474997517

https://uk.linkedin.com/in/christianledermann
https://github.com/cleder/


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