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ATLAS |
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Assistive
Technology Laboratory at Stanford |
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Technology
and design benefitting individuals with disabilities and older adults in the
local community |
January 13, 2017 |
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Perspectives is the newsletter of the
Stanford course, Perspectives in Assistive
Technology.
Happy Martin Luther King Jr
Day
This issue invites you to
attend the first guest lecture and encourages your participation in the
course's Assistive Technology Faire and solicits project suggestions for
Mobility and Older Adults.
Perspectives in Assistive Technology is a Winter
Quarter Stanford course - now starting its eleventh year - that explores
the design, development, and use of assistive technology that benefits people
with disabilities and older adults. It consists of semi-weekly classroom
discussions; lectures by notable professionals, clinicians, and
assistive technology users; tours of local medical, clinical, and
engineering facilities; student project presentations and demonstrations; an
assistive technology faire; and a film screening. |
Tuesday, January 17th at
4:30pm:
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Needfinding and Assistive
Technologies Gayle Curtis
UX Design Consultant |
Abstract: When we look at the drivers of
innovation we see two complementary themes emerging: new technologies or
methods that open the way to new solutions, and new insights or experiences
that bring a better understanding of the problem. With a design thinking
approach, we first look to build empathy with the user and the situation, then
we use ideation, prototyping and iteration to explore, formulate, and test
solutions.
This class session will go into more depth with the
candidate projects and to build an understanding of the problem areas with the
objective of learning more about the user needs, goals, and values around the
problem, as well as the constraints and requirements of the situation itself.
One goal for this session is for students to identify a set of questions to
address through interview and observation with real users of assistive
technologies, as well as some good ideas about people that student teams might
talk to and work with to inspire both innovation and relevance for the team
project.
Biosketch: Gayle Curtis is a design
consultant in the San Francisco Bay Area, specializing in user interface
architecture and design strategy for online ventures and interactive products.
Recently he was Principal Interaction Designer at Yahoo!, where he developed a
practice area in strategic ideation and disseminated it through workshops in
the US and Asia. At Stanford he has taught courses in HCI and Product Design.
Gayle is a graduate of the Engineering Product Design program at
Stanford.
Attend a lecture - The
schedule of guest lectures has been finalized.
Class sessions will be held on Tuesdays and Thursdays from
4:30 to 5:50pm and are open to the greater
Stanford community. You are most welcome to sit in on any class sessions that
interest you. You need not be a Stanford student and there is no required
signup, enrollment, or charge. The class will meet in a large, tiered,
accessible classroom on campus in the Thornton Center, adjacent to the Terman
Fountain and near the Roble Gym, the same venue as last year. Here are the
parking options, maps, and directions to
the classroom. |
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Participate in the Assistive Technology Faire -
This fifth annual course event will provide an opportunity for students
and community members to get an up-close look at a variety of assistive
technology devices and learn about available services. Users of assistive
technology products as well as small companies and agencies
serving individuals with disabilities and older adults are encouraged to bring
assistive technology devices and information to display, demonstrate, and
discuss. Please browse to the Call for Assistive
Technology Faire Participants webpage and contact me if you would like to
be a part of this event as a user or vendor of assistive technology products or
services. Everyone is welcome to attend the faire.
The
Faire starts at 4:30pm on Tuesday, February
14th just outside the classroom, Thornton 110.
Here
are Dave's photos from last year's
Faire. |
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Solicitation for Mobility Projects for Older
Adults
A
capstone course is the academically integrative experience of an
undergraduate educational program that gives students an opportunity to
demonstrate the knowledge and skills they have gained during their time in
college. This experience helps prepare them for their engineering
careers.
ME113
- Mechanical Engineering Design - is a capstone course for seniors in
Mechanical Engineering at Stanford. In this course, students pursue on
"real-world" engineering problems offered by a company or other organization
(project partner).
Starting from a description of project goals provided by the project
partner, a student team of four seniors will develop a design concept and
explore its practical feasibility by fabricating and testing a series of
increasingly refined working models. Each project will supervised by a faculty
member using information and advice supplied by the project partner.
The
course will be conducted in the 10-week Spring Quarter from April through
mid-June.
One of
the themes this academic year is Mobility for Older Adults with a focus
on automobiles and driving.
At
this time, the course is soliciting problems or challenges that could be
addressed by a team of students.
The
best suggestions will be those that represent real problems experienced by an
individual with a disability or older adult in the local community that affects
their ability to drive or otherwise access transportation. Other suggestions
that broadly affect one's ability to walk or move are also welcome.
Please
email me your suggestions describing the problem and important features of what
a solution should do, but not how to achieve them. Thank you for your
consideration. |
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Upcoming Local
Event
Join the Fun at the Avenidas Block Party - Join
the fun and help us kick off Building for the Future, an exciting
community project. Free and open to all. Bring your family & have
fun!
This
event
will be held on Saturday, January 14th, from 11am until 2pm at
Avenidas located at 450 Bryant St. in
downtown Palo Alto. |
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Support the course -
Funding in any amount for the course and student projects is always welcomed.
Monetary gifts support approved project expenses, administrative costs,
honoraria for guest lecturers, and the end-of-term celebration. Refer to the
Team Project Support webpage for more
information.
Email questions, comments, or
suggestions - If you have general questions, comments, or
suggestions about the course, email
David L. Jaffe, MS, the instructor. Thank you again for your interest in
the course.
Dave
To unsubscribe from this newsletter, please email
Dave. |
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