Alessia Brischetto

The design of the interface that mediates people's interaction with devices is a crucial general feature of interaction design. This is often referred to as the user interface (UI) and consists of all those aspects of the system that come into physical, perceptual and conceptual contact with people. The essay deals with this topic through the exposition of methodologies and theoretical foundations useful for the development of accessible and usable user interfaces. Interface design that mediates people's interaction with devices is a crucial general feature of Interaction design, which is often referred to as the User Interface (UI) and consists of all aspects of the system that come into physical, perceptual and conceptual contact with people. The essay deals with this topic through the exposition of methodologies and theoretical foundations useful for the development of accessible and usable user interfaces.

The specificity and innovative value of the ergonomic approach to design lie in its ability to assess the multitude of variables that define the interaction between people and what they come into contact with (i.e. the characteristics and abilities of users; the characteristics of the product and the activities for which it is, or may be, used; the characteristics of the physical, social and organisational context), their mutual relationships and their possible modification over time, identifying and interpreting, from time to time, the needs and expectations that people express or may express with regard to this interaction. The design intervention is thus based on the ability to understand, interpret – and imagine the different realities and possibilities with which people can, or could, interact with the system, identifying the multiplicity of variables at play and the complexity with which their mutual relationships are determined, defining the system of requirements for the product and the parameters and criteria necessary to evaluate and design the quality of the product. Ergonomic intervention methods make it possible to define and manage these relationships, organise the data collected during the design process, and define the intervention requirements in an integrated manner. In particular, methods for assessing usability and safety of use, as well as methods for assessing user experience, are based on the collection of information relating to the ways in which people interact with the products and systems they come into contact with within a given context of use. They also make it possible to identify and analyse the behaviour of people (or users), their needs (requirements, expectations and desires) and, finally, the type and frequency of errors they may make when performing the required tasks.

The essay focuses on the relationship between research, teaching and design as a founding value and engine of innovation both of the university teaching offer and the design culture within companies. The research activity of the Laboratory of Ergonomics & Design of the University of Florence is also presented. The essay focuses on the relationship between research, teaching and design as a founding value and engine of innovation both of the university teaching offer and the design culture within companies. The research activity of the Laboratory of Ergonomics & Design of the University of Florence is also presented.

The product falls within the research sector of Design for Inclusion/Design for All and Design for Accessibility. To date, outdoor game equipment and playground facilities worldwide are increasingly oriented towards a wide range of solutions in support to gaming activities for children of any age, independently from their motor, cognitive and social impairments. However, due to the complexity of variables interplaying between product demands and user capabilities, many efforts are still needed for making games and playgrounds as much as possible inclusive. The present work proposes a novel methodology useful to designers and other stakeholders for predicting the degree of user exclusion when performing play activities. User trials, focus groups, interviews together with the analysis of accessibility standards, disability descriptors by ICF, and Task Analysis were used for cross-correlating the required tasks with user capabilities. This led to creating an evaluation tool useful to get an immediate feedback and reliable information on the level of inclusiveness of any type of game equipment and user disability. It revealed to be also effective for assessing personal and environmental factors of interest and identifying design requirements. The work was developed within the PIU project - Progetto di Innovazione Urbana Comune di Cecina - financed by the Tuscany region/FESR 2014-2020 (D.R. n. 3197 del 10.07.2015).

This volume presents the results of two research programmes, born from collaboration between universities and businesses, developed on the theme of design innovation in the camper van sector, and aimed at raising the level of quality and innovation of the Camper system. This particularly effective line of work, developed over a period of about six years, was carried out by the University of Florence, in collaboration with the University of Siena and a group of companies active in the motorhome sector, led by Trigano S.p.A., with the participation and contribution of numerous and diverse academic and professional experts. Design plays a central role in the areas of innovation identified as essential to the relaunch of the camper sector: product innovation, increased versatility of the camper and its interior layout, the ability to respond to new profiles of potential users/buyers, the introduction of elements of adaptability and internal versatility, the environmental sustainability of the entire product life cycle and the reduction of consumption during use, and, finally, innovation in the services offered to motorhome owners, both by the company in terms of customer service and by the local tourism industry. The results achieved, presented in this volume, stem from the integration of the Human Centred Design approach and Design for Sustainability, which are now increasingly closely linked and mutually indispensable for the creation of solutions capable of raising the overall quality of the product system.

The collective Italian identity is the result of a way of life and culture so unique that it has spread a truly 'all-Italian' modus of living and inhabiting space. In our country, alongside the great cities of art that represent the central and pulsating hub of cultural heritage, there are a large number of small and medium-sized urban centres that deserve credit for contributing to the 'coherence' and cohesive strength of our territory's identity. It is true, however, that despite their precious past and their connection to a wider context, many small Italian towns today find themselves isolated and destined to be swallowed up by larger entities. The preservation of a historic centre cannot be achieved solely through the conservation of the surrounding architectural core, but must also take into account the balance between public and private space, work activities and the needs of individuals as citizens. This type of approach is the basis of the research presented in this article, which focuses on the project to enhance the historic centre of the town of Figline Valdarno, a small municipality in the province of Florence.

The product falls within research sector of Ergonomics in Design, and precisely addresses issues on the relationship among Human-Centred Design (HCD) and Design for Innovation methods in the field of Motor Caravans Systems. European Union suggests design as a key discipline and activity to bring new ideas to the market, transforming them into user-friendly and appealing products or services. Though still often associated solely with aesthetics, the application of design is much broader and can represent a concrete strategy for the growth of the market worldwide. A more systematic use of design as a tool for Human-centred and market-driven innovation in all sectors of the economy, complementary to R&D, would improve significantly European competitiveness. Bearing this in mind, the work presents the outcomes achieved in the framework of the POR CReO-FP7 project “TRIACA - Soluzioni Tecnologiche per la Riduzione dell'Impatto Ambientale del camper in fase di utilizzo” developed in partnership with Trigano SpA, an established company throughout Europe and leading in Italy in the motorhome sector. In Italy, the recreational vehicle sector has always been present and active, although in recent years the motor caravan industry recorded a strong decrease of orders due to the economic downturn and a flattened supply. In this scenario, the project is aimed at the development of innovative solutions in terms of environmental sustainability and quality of the user experience. The research is focused on the experimentation and testing of the HCD approach, especially its investigation methods, based on the direct involvement of users, and its evaluation methods for usability and safety. To sum up, TRIACA project produced significant outcomes in the field of interest, as it strongly contributed to the development of innovative solutions in relation to delicate issues, such as environmental sustainability and quality of use experience. The experimentation of the HCD methods and its iterative approach proved to be effective. It made possible to collect useful data, partly based on the direct and active engagement of the users, to create new use scenarios and to improve eco-efficiently the product. The design action and the multidisciplinary dimension of the research project allowed also to test and transfer formal, technological and environmental innovations of the Concept Open Space 230 project within the productive sector of Trigano SpA. These innovations are now available within the company offer. Finally, the “Concept Open Space 230” was marketed under the name “Triaca 230 TL” and recently, a new version, named “Triaca 232 TL” motorhome, has been proposed.

The essay deals with the evolution of the Human-centred design approach and the related methodologies for the development of serviced products and systems on a human scale. In addition, the topic of the UX and its theoretical foundations and its contact with the discipline of Ergonomics for design is addressed. The essay deals with the evolution of the human-centred design approach and the related methodologies for the development of serviced products and systems on a human scale. In addition, the topic of UX and its theoretical foundations and its contact with the discipline of Ergonomics for design is addressed.

The current urban regeneration projects must respect the peculiarity of social compactness that exist in a specific territory and that depend on the degree of relationship established between the inhabitants and the places in which they live. Especially in Italy, these peculiarity create an "urban identity" that is a very complex heritage: shared, peculiar, nourished by stories, characters, memories of places and which was built by a balanced and symbiotic society, aimed at product excellence and quality of life. The dynamic strength of this compactness has designed the appearance of cities with strong distinctive characteristics, signs of cultural authenticity. Today this force is projected from the urban center to the surrounding territories, while in the recent past it was in the opposite direction, that is from the surrounding territories to the center of the city. In this direction and thanks to the renewed productivity in the food and wine sector, in recent years some urban redevelopment projects in Tuscany have been very innovative: buildings integrated into the surrounding landscape, associated with innovative technologies and designed to respect the existing value. They are models of a successful attempt to preserve the territorial identity by integrating the past (buildings, streets, gardens, churches, etc.) with the recent past (industrial buildings, cellars, social housing, etc.). This work presents the results of the research in the identification of some "itineraries" within the Tuscan territory, to highlight the contribution of architecture and design to the maintenance of that ideal thread that links the best practices of the past with the cultural identity of the present.

Nowadays, Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) are considered a valuable tool for enhancing the residual abilities of vulnerable groups, including people with disabilities, and for compensating for 'shortcomings' in general. Alongside ICT, assistive technologies, such as hardware systems, mobile devices, computer screens, software and so on, are usually used to enable anyone to work in a healthy, effective manner and with equal access to technology, regardless of any impairment or disability. However, people do not always find it easy to perform predetermined tasks and activities, as the tools used to access information are often poorly designed and do not take into account people's actual needs. Starting from an analysis of the political and social context, the main objective of this article is to illustrate the advantages and critical issues of ICT for learning and, at the same time, to highlight how the adoption of universal design practices 'for all' can provide effective strategies and inclusive solutions to meet the needs of individuals in the learning process.