FUNCTIONAL INTERIORS FOR SPECIAL NEEDS 4(2+2)

Lesson 22 : Principles of Designing Interiors for the Visually Impaired

Tactile ground surface indicators

Tactile Ground Surface Indicators should be placed on the floor at the top and bottom of the staircase. These should be the width of the staircase and a minimum 600mm in depth.

Potential hazards should be signalled. Tactile Ground Surface Indicators should be placed at the top and foot of stairs and free-standing pillars or poles should be away from circulation routes or buffered by hand rails or furniture or surrounded by Tactile Ground Surface Indicators.

Floor to ceiling glass walls and glazed doors are a potential hazard. If used, they should be marked at eye-level with a system that is visible against the area on the other side of the glass.

• The internal acoustics of a building should enable people with vision impairment to utilize their listening for orientation and identification of sounds.
• In negotiating a building, people with vision impairment gain important information from the environmental sounds around them, from the feedback they receive from listening to their own footsteps and the sound of their long cane as it makes contact with surfaces.
• Intrusive levels of background noise can make interaction with others and orientation more difficult. Buildings with sound-reflective surfaces may need sound dampeners like carpet, curtains, ceiling tiles etc. to help reduce the noise level. Care must be taken however, not to completely “deaden” the sound within a building with the over-use of carpets and soft surfaces. Carpets can mask the necessary feedback from footsteps, so buildings should contain a balance between sound-reflecting and sound-absorbing surfaces.
• Foyers and stairwells can create acoustic problem areas because they usually contain harder surfaces. Also, the ceilings of stairwells and many foyers are often more than single-storey height. Carpets should not be used on staircases and may be inappropriate for many foyers, so acoustic control may need to be managed with wall hangings, ceiling tiles, curtaining etc.