Top international design and architecture firm Perkins Eastman recently released its newest white paper, “A Handle on Accessibility: Designing for a Future of Limited Mobility,” co-authored by Associate Michael Schur AIA, LEED AP, and Joshua Bergman, both based in the firm’s Chicago office. The paper marks the culmination of a six-month-long, in-house exercise in which Perkins Eastman’s Chicago staff engaged in various “empathy experiments”—e.g. simulating the tactile and sensory challenges encountered daily by seniors—and then broke off into smaller teams to design and fabricate a diverse array of door handles using 3-D printing technology. By applying a user-centered approach to design, integrating user analysis, and studying the physical constraints associated with aging, “A Handle on Accessibility” from start to finish set out to create a more accessible door handle and develop a clear understanding of the empathetic design process.
There is an accessibility challenge facing the U.S. According to the most recent census data and studies conducted by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, an estimated 1 in 5 people will be aged 65 or older by 2040. “These statistics,” say the authors, “suggest that in less than 25 years, nearly a quarter of the U.S. population will be faced with the physical limitations that come with aging: reduction of mobility and dexterity, visual and hearing impairment, bone and muscle weakness, and immune and memory deterioration.” On the front lines of this challenge is the door handle, a ubiquitous product that often gets overlooked, or otherwise tends to be designed with a form-before-function approach.
Following the teams’ empathy experiments, in which participating design and thought leaders formed evaluations based on first-hand limited-mobility and sensory deprivation exercises, solutions for new types of door handles began to materialize. The resulting six prototypes fall into three categories: 1) handles that adapted/evolved traditional handle forms (the “Seed” and “Twist” handles), 2) handles that rethought the handle form (the “Hand Hold” and “Loop” handles), and 3) handles that rethought how doors can be operated (the “Long” and “Crank” handles).
“As the U.S. population continues to age,” write Schur and Bergman, “[we as designers] have the opportunity to advance design through the re-working of overlooked elements of everyday life … The range and variety of the final designs emphasize the power of recognizing others’ needs…these explorations illustrate that the value of what we design ultimately lies in how well we understand the end-user and how well we are able to design for them.”
“A Handle on Accessibility” is available for free download here.
Related Stories
| Apr 30, 2013
Tips for designing with fire rated glass - AIA/CES course
Kate Steel of Steel Consulting Services offers tips and advice for choosing the correct code-compliant glazing product for every fire-rated application. This BD+C University class is worth 1.0 AIA LU/HSW.
| Apr 24, 2013
Los Angeles may add cool roofs to its building code
Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa wants cool roofs added to the city’s building code. He is also asking the Department of Water and Power (LADWP) to create incentives that make it financially attractive for homeowners to install cool roofs.
| Apr 22, 2013
Top 10 green building projects for 2013 [slideshow]
The AIA's Committee on the Environment selected its top ten examples of sustainable architecture and green design solutions that protect and enhance the environment.
| Feb 25, 2013
10 U.S. cities with the best urban forests
Charlotte, Denver, and Milwaukee are among 10 U.S. cities ranked recently by the conservation organization American Forests for having quality urban forest programs.
| Feb 18, 2013
Top 10 kitchen and bath design trends for 2013
Gray color schemes and transitional styles are among the top trends identified by more than 300 kitchen and bath design experts surveyed by the National Kitchen & Bath Association (NKBA).
| Jan 3, 2013
8 trends shaping today’s senior housing
The ranks of those age 65 and older are swelling by the thousands every day. Is there an opportunity for your firm in the seniors housing market?
| Dec 9, 2012
AEC professionals cautiously optimistic about commercial construction in ’13
Most economists say the U.S. is slowly emerging from the Great Recession, a view that was confirmed to some extent by an exclusive survey of 498 BD+C subscribers whose views we sought on the commercial construction industry’s outlook on business prospects for 2013.
| Dec 5, 2012
Bernardon Haber Holloway designs new cottages that enable seniors to age in place
Environmental sustainability and easy campus connection were also priorities for expansion of Kendal at Longwood Retirement Community.
| Jul 9, 2012
Oakdale, Calif., Heritage Oaks Senior Apartments opens
New complex highlights senior preferences for amenities.