Alessia Brischetto

The present work is aimed at shedding light onto the relationship between available digital tools and training activities, accounting for possible caus- es of digital and social exclusion. In recent times, due to the covid-19 outbreak, the way we live, learn and communicate is suddenly changed, yielding a mutation from real to virtual. In the educational frame, Distance Learning (DL-FAD/DAD) has become the privileged way to hold lessons. Thus, if on the one hand we perceive new potentialities in the use of technologies to bridge the gap between teachers and students, on the other hand new forms of dis- crimination, isolation and social exclusion have been generated. If we will be able to take a con- structive approach and objectively evaluate this experience, we will be able to take this opportunity to explore and strengthen teaching methodologies no longer tailored or ad hoc but for all.

The specificity and innovative value of the ergonomic approach to design lies in its ability to evaluate the range of variables that define the interaction between people and what they come into contact with (that is, the characteristics and abilities of users; the characteristics of products and the activities for which they are, or can be, used; the characteristics of the physical, social and organisational context), their reciprocal relationship and what could change with time, by periodically identifying and interpreting the needs and expectations that people express, or can express, regarding this interaction. The design intervention, then, is based on the ability to understand, interpret—and imagine—the different situations and scenarios in which people can, or could, come into contact with the system, by identifying the range of variables involved and the complexity that defines their reciprocal relationship. This is achieved by defining the system of requirements that are needed for the product and the necessary parameters and criteria for evaluating and designing the quality of the product. Ergonomics’ intervention methods allow us to define and manage these relation- ships, organise the data collected during the design process and define the integrated intervention requirements. In particular, the methods for evaluating usability and safety of use, as well as the methods for evaluating the User Experience, are based on the collection of informa- tion about the interaction between people and products and systems they come into contact with within a given usage context. They also allow us to identify and analyse the behaviour of people (or users), their needs (needs, expectations and desires) and, finally, the type and frequency of the errors that they can make while performing the required tasks.

The human being was born to move and physical activity is one of the main functions of the human-being. According to WHO, the physical inactivity is identified as the fourth leading risk factor for global mortality and its levels are rising in many countries nowadays. Systemic and environmental factors, busy life, laziness and lack of time promote a sedentary lifestyle as opposed to a healthy lifestyle. Movement and physical activity contribute to improving all aspects of the quality of life, and they representing a strategic tool for healthy aging. WHO identifies the active ageing ad a “global demographic revolution”, which requires an immediate international action. In this context, the Horizon 2020 European Community for Research and Innovation Framework Programme aimes to the safeguarding of population health, including young and older people, and to the promoting lifestyle patterns which are able to preserve human independence over time, thus favouring a form of ageing being active, sustainable, inclusive and healthy as long as possible. The spread of physical activity, like common practice of everyday life, and the education to sport from an early age, are basic targets to improve quality of life both at individual and at social level. These objectives require the development of a conscious behaviour and an increasing empowering the people about their health status. Wellness challenge is directed at the innovation of the urban design, and in this context the design, like strategic factor of innovation, can contribute to generating innovative and inclusive products and services that support people in choosing an healthy and active lifestyle. The main objective is to propose new scenarios and product-systems that can promote physical activity outdoor. The role of design is essential to identify new solution and intervention strategies based on the knowledge and on the interpretation of persons’ needs and expectation. The research on this subject has been consolidated for years the collaboration between Technogym, company leader in this field, and Laboratory of Ergonomics & Design. The Ergonomics for Design, the methodological approach of Human-Centred Design and the potentialities of smart technologies allow to identify possible development scenarios and intervention solutions, focused on persons’ needs and expectations. These solutions can nudge people to an active life, promoting wellness and prevention in terms of commitment to themselves and social responsibility. The partnership between LED and Technogym has developed over years using research, experimentation and co-design activities. It produces several results in terms of actual products-services testing and in terms of design concepts for new products and services. Specifically, in the “wellness outdoor” area, they’ve been developed several concepts with innovative formal and functional features, that can improve the interaction between user and environment. These concepts are focused on training methods (and their diversity at multiple levels), on the possibility to have a group or an individual training supported by digital devices or services (such as mobile applications, local information systems, etc.). Design concepts have been developed during two workshops in which were involved young designers and students of the Master Degree in Design. Design concepts have been developed during two workshops, held in 2016 and 2017 by the LED, involving approximately 20 young designers. Main aim of the workshops was to develop a series of new outdoor fitness systems - for gardens, parks, campus, etc. – that could be more attractive for people thanks to their formal and communicational features. These systems allow people to train outdoor and aim to become a pole of attraction and sharing in the urban context.

Playing in its widest meaning involves physical, sensory and social/emotional aspects. With this in mind, designing play equipment as much as possible integrated throughout and inclusive is of great social importance but also a challenging issue, especially due to the complexity of variables intervening between product requirements and user capabilities. The research work presented proposes a novel methodology for assessing the level of inclusion when designing play experiences. A cross- correlating tool based on accessibility standards and disability descriptors was developed and validated with on field experiments and interviews. This approach allows to get an immediate feedback and reliable information on the level of inclusiveness of any type of game equipment and user disability. With the final aim of designing inclusive play experiences, the developed cross- correlation tool was also exploited for supporting the creation of novel design concepts of sensory/cognitive play, which are here presented.

The paper presents methods and results of a co-design process aimed at structuring a game intended to train undergraduate students on inclusive design. The process is accomplished in the framework of the wider project PudCad, Practicing Universal Design Principles in Design Education through a CAD-Based Game, supported by the UE program Erasmus+ involving HEIs and Research Centres. It’s aim is to create a gaming platform based on CAD software supporting interior architecture and design students to conceive accessible environments regardless of age, physical ability and/or user social condition. Essential for the implementation of EU social integration and non-discrimination goals, Universal Design is often marginal in students’ training. PudCad intends to fill this gap by developing a digital video game (a game for change), enriched with story and CAD features. Through playful dynamics, future designers will be able to assimilate inclusion principles and create concepts based on human diversity. The project develops itself through 4 students workshops and three international conferences on Universal Design, Ergonomics, Game and Education. In this paper we focus on the process and results of the third workshop. Building empathy and awareness for the Universal Design principles was decided to be the main drive of the game. Besides research and analysis on literature and use cases, tools like game engines, platforms and technologies (i.e. virtual reality and augmented reality) were checked out and tested. Before starting the production stage, the idea of having analog prototypes came up to support robust design decisions. To develop game concepts and produce paper prototypes, we execute a game jam workshop with the participation of interior architecture and design students as well as game design students leading the teams. The workshops is thus a breaking point to take solid decisions about the game design and production

The chapter describes the evolution of the User-Centred approach, from the theoretical and methodological body aimed at understanding and interpreting the needs of users in the use of the product/system, to the Human-Centred approach aimed at assessment and interpretation of the overall quality of the interaction between people and the products/systems with which they relate. It also dealt with the User Experience approach, the definition of which has spread in recent years in many different contexts and disciplines; However, this rapid adoption was not accompanied by a precise definition of the concept, which is therefore attributed to partially different meanings, all of which share an ambition to overcome the concept of usability and to study the experience systems-services. In particular, strategies considered most significant for the evaluation of perceptual and emotional experience in the use of products-systems-services are addressed. And how these aspects are strategic within the Human-Centred Design approach.

The product falls within the research sector of Ergonomics in Design and Inclusive Design and it is particularly focused on the Universal Design for Learning. In the specific, the work aims at finding and providing an opened and integrated approach to the disciplines of cognitive psychology, pedagogy and human-computer interaction for dealing with the aspects that favor autonomy and stimulate problem solving in learning processes and environments. Novel co-design practices based on the use of Human-Centered Design and Inclusive Design methods, enriched by field experiments and case studies in collaboration with professionals, end users and people with Specific Learning Disabilities, are presented. The final output of this experimentation was also the development of a hybrid pilot platform dedicated to the SLDs and to illustrate its operating rules. To sum up, the experimentation showed that doing "problem solving" means developing a critical sense (also through others). Active interaction with teaching material within a web container favors these practices and is a positive aspect from the pedagogical point of view. In this sense, the most significant tools are those for the development of concept maps that allow to rework concepts by strengthening key aspects, voice reproducers, tools for the organization and structuring of content and programs of temporal organization. Within this framework, the experimentation allowed identifying strategic aspects in order to support SLDs in the learning process, with a broader approach that addresses all, regardless of capabilities. Moreover, the research highlighted the need for systems based on social networking, as may support not only accessibility but also autonomy, socialization and the ability to collectively build new meanings. In the next future, the success perspective of this experimentation lies in its ability to be compatible with assistive technologies as well as supporting all teachers and students, regardless of their condition.

The richness of a region and its urban framework depend on the potential of innovation of own spaces, intrinsic ability of building up network and optimizing resources properly. The idea of accessibility is changing, and it has to be intended as the set of all factors able to generate well-being, promote independent mobility, guarantee safety and support socialization and collaboration among people. Under this new vision of accessibility, the approach of inclusive design may be conceived a valid and reliable operating tool, as it is based on the assessment of actual and potential needs of people, thus allowing to address designing issues that are needed for developing inclusive urban environments. In the present article, we present the preliminary results achieved during a research project carried out at the Laboratory of Ergonomics for Design of Florence University. The project aimed at investigating innovative solutions and at defining guidelines aimed at the objectives listed hereafter: 

• To develop a city "on a human scale", inclusive and accessible for all, even to the weakest people (disabled, elderly and children). A city oriented to prefer solutions that support sustainability, usability and ergonomics, intended as a user-system (or user-product) interaction both of architectural-urban structures and services. 

• To create services dedicated to physical activity and sport (fitness trails, wellness providers) in order to make each user, including those most vulnerable (namely disabled and elderly people), more sensitive toward a dynamic and active lifestyle as long as possible. 

• To investigate the possibility for including services connected to the urban-environment intelligence, able to collect information about the city and its citizens in real time, and to improve safety and social- policies based on citizens behaviors and needs.

The chapter covers the design areas of digital technology-based communication, training and learning systems. In a knowledge-based society, technology, from personal devices to the network, is increasingly the means to transmit, store and produce information. As a result, accessibility to technology becomes a fundamental requirement in the way we live, work and learn. Despite this, on several occasions, it has been observed that while ICT makes it possible to access what has hitherto been inaccessible, offering considerable opportunities, on the other hand they can at the same time generate exclusion problems vulnerable groups. The focus is on the design of user interfaces and design strategies aimed at their versatility and adaptability to different user profiles and different user contexts. Within this chapter special attention is paid to digital technologies for learning and the functional and cognitive aspects that are able to generate the condition of social inclusion.

Increasing physical activity and physical education are very important issues to overcome ageing population, but require the development of a conscious attitude of citizens towards their own health. Ergonomics for Design and methods of the Human-centred design and User Experience may allow outlining possible solutions for increasing human expectations towards active life, wellness and prevention. This paper presents the results of the Wellness Outdoor workshop, promoted by the Laboratory of Ergonomics and Design (LED) of the University of Florence in collaboration with Technogym, a leading-edge company that develops fitness equipment for any physical activity. Main aims of the workshop were to define and design novel scenarios and systems concepts for outdoor fitness. To this aim, we followed a first research step based on focus groups, personas methods, user observations and Task Analysis, which led to the definition of user needs and context-of-use. Then, brainstorming activities driven by scenarios-based design and parallel design sessions proved to be effective for outlining inputs and ideas generation. Finally, in the present work four system concepts, named S.O.Fiber, Hexagon Space, Outdoor Training and Develop, are presented.