Landmarks for navigators who are visually impaired

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Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: http://hdl.handle.net/1959.3/201056

Title: Landmarks for navigators who are visually impaired
Author(s): Tsuji, Bruce; Lindgaard, Gitte; Parush, Avi
Abstract: We are attempting to understand the benefits and limits associated with multi-media maps by following a human information processing research tradition that compares the performance of experts versus novices in a given domain. For navigation around the built environment we have documented the landmarks utilized by visually impaired participants and compared them to those used by sighted participants. Our preliminary data suggests that the landmarks enunciated by our sighted participants fall within a narrow visual cone associated with their sightlines. In contrast, our participants who are visually impaired enunciated landmarks that fell in a much broader field that included the textures and surfaces below their feet; the wind; sounds; and smells. These findings point to the elements that should be included in tactile maps and provides clues to our understanding of the cognitive maps that all of us create to navigate the world.
Publication type: Conference paper
Source: Paper presented at the International Cartographic Society (ICS) Conference, Coruna, Spain, 09-16 July 2005
Publication year: 2005
Keyword(s): Multi-media maps; Navigation
Publisher: International Cartographic Society
Publisher URL: http://icaci.org/icc
Peer reviewed