Making Advanced Technology useable for Independent Living by Disabled people At Home MATILDAH

1. Making Advanced Technology useable for Independent Living by Disabled people At Home (MATILDAH) Space & Place Lecture Series Professor Jennifer Harris, Dr Fiona Bolik & Dr Thilo Kroll The Interdisciplinary Disability Research Institute (IDRIS)

2. Definition of advanced technology �Advanced technology� 1. Augmentative aids to communication � AAC 2. Aids to learning � Education AT 3. Security provisions � EAT 4. Alert technology � Community alarms 5. Monitoring technology � telecare 6. Medical/ health support technologies � telemedicine 7. Environmental controls � SMART homes 8. Personal Safety Technology � AT support (Dewsbury 2006) Advanced technology Advanced technology is understood as technological developments that have the potential to support independent living for disabled people in their own home environments. These technologies may have universal applicability and contrary to assistive devices may not have been developed with focus on disabled users in the first place. 'Advanced technologies' are devices (often electronic) that assist the disabled person or improve functioning. (Note: Dewsbury (2006) gives a summary of �advanced technology� as: 1. Augmentative aids to communication � AAC 2. Aids to learning � Education AT 3. Security provisions � EAT 4. Alert technology � Community alarms 5. Monitoring technology � telecare 6. Medical/ health support technologies � telemedicine 7. Environmental controls � SMART homes 8. Personal Safety Technology � AT support Our project, being focused on the home environment can eliminate most of these. We are looking at 7, with elements from 8 as our main focus.Advanced technology Advanced technology is understood as technological developments that have the potential to support independent living for disabled people in their own home environments. These technologies may have universal applicability and contrary to assistive devices may not have been developed with focus on disabled users in the first place. 'Advanced technologies' are devices (often electronic) that assist the disabled person or improve functioning. (Note: Dewsbury (2006) gives a summary of �advanced technology� as: 1. Augmentative aids to communication � AAC 2. Aids to learning � Education AT 3. Security provisions � EAT 4. Alert technology � Community alarms 5. Monitoring technology � telecare 6. Medical/ health support technologies � telemedicine 7. Environmental controls � SMART homes 8. Personal Safety Technology � AT support Our project, being focused on the home environment can eliminate most of these. We are looking at 7, with elements from 8 as our main focus.

3. Definition of �disabled� Union of Physically Impaired Against Segregation (UPIAS, 1976) describes disability as `the disadvantage or restriction of activity caused by a contemporary social organisation which takes no or little account of people who have physical impairments and thus excludes them from the mainstream of social activities'. People between the ages of 18 and 65 who have impairments (physical/sensory/learning difficulties/ mental health issues)

4. Situating disability in Space

5. Interdisciplinary conceptual Space