Accessibility is usability for people who interact with products differently. Your role is to help the team approach accessibility as a facet of user experience rather than checklist of requirements. - digital.gov
This week we looked at how we can make what we design more accessible by considering the needs of people with different disabilities. It was astonishing to learn that over a fifth of the working age population in Northern Ireland have a disability and reiterated why it is so important we consider accessibility when designing.
Accessible design includes creating content which has simple interactive features and is inclusive allowing as many people as possible to be able to use it. Some real life examples of where accessible design is used is the pedestrian crossing traffic lights making a sound or have the button that spins to alert the visually impaired when to cross the road or the use of subtitled when watching tv for those with hearing difficulties. This designs are targeted towards a specific audience of users with that specific disability however it doesn't stop others from using it too. An example of this is that 85% of Netflix users watch with subtitles despite not having hearing problems.
An example of good accessible design is the BBC website. At the BBC they want their products to be accessed by a large, diverse audience who are different genders, ages and have different technological abilities
In the UK population about one third of people are temporarily impaired due to illness, injury or circumstance so it is important that those people can still access the content they want. For example, considering how someone who is unable to hear audio will understand; how someone with arthritis can use the products or how visually impaired people will interact with things if they are unable to see. The BBC does this by using highly readable typography which is structed using a type scale creating a hierarchy of how we read as well as using colours of high contrast such as black and white and have the access to using a screen reader.
“Universal design is the design of products and environments to be usable by all people, to the greatest extent possible, without the need for adaptation or specialised design.” - Ronald L. Mac
Universal design is created to be used by everyone no matter their age, size, ability or disability. Some may refer to it as a way to design with empathy for users as everyone's needs are taken into consideration and the product or service is designed to be used by everyone no matter their technological ability or if they have a disability. We do this by incorporating tools into our designs such as screen readers, eye trackers, magnification or speech recognition.
Some examples of really good universal design I have seen is within public bathrooms and the positioning of higher sinks as well as one or two lower sinks for those in wheel chairs or children and the same for the hand dryers. They also round off corners and edges of their counters so they can act as a form of support and also prevent injury.
Another well known example is of course Apple who have from the beginning focused on how to make their designs and products accessible for all no matter their age or ability. This has resulted in mobile devices that are simple and intuitive to use and do not require a big instruction manual! Apple also introduced Siri to help meet requirements for the blind and visually impaired which is a Apple fan favourite for everyone not only the visually impaired. This simple and convenient usability was and is a central element in Apple’s success.
Universal design improves the use by everyone, children, people with disabilities, the aging population and everyone in between that. However, Accessible Design creates a more personal environment for a specific person and their needs and can be tailored to a specific audience such as visually impaired, deaf or other disabilities.
Within your home some universal design choices could be an open floor plan, lever door handles, multi height counters or a no step entry. This is just designed for an can be used by everyone. Where as accessible design choices take more personal touches such as slide open doors which take up much less space and movement than swinging doors, voice controlled Smart Home Features or Power Automatic Door Openers.
“Disabilities is an umbrella term, covering impairments, activity limitations, and participation restrictions. An impairment is a problem in body function or structure; an activity limitation is a difficulty encountered by an individual in executing a task or action; while a participation restriction is a problem experienced by an individual in involvement in life situations.”
When it comes to disabilities we can design for, there is 4 main impairments people can have; Visual, Audio, Motor or Cognitive. This could be using high contrast colours for those with vision issues such as blurring or spotted vision or using a specific colour palette or option for those with Deuteranopia or Tritanopia colour blindness.
Using a navigation bar allows the user to get where they want and access the content they want and then also go back and access different links. This is important as if people cannot get to where they want they will become frustrated and not use your product or service. A navigation bar should be displayed clearly at the top or bottom of the screen with clear and similar icons which are labelled clearly too to avoid having a mystery meat navigation.