Developing a Touchscreen-based Domotic Tool for Users with Motor Disabilities

Abstract

Domotics refers to the set of informatics and electronics systems able to automate, control and monitor a home. Accessibility can be defined as the users' potential for interaction, regardless of their technical, cognitive or physical abilities. Domotics usually focuses on the "intelligent home" concept, without explicitly considering the benefits that accessible services can provide for people with special needs. The paper presents the developing process of a domotic tool prototype that allows users with motor disabilities to control the surrounding artifacts of their home through the use of a touch screen-based mobile device. The prototype was developed using a user-centered design process, which explicitly includes usability and accessibility issues. The validation of the tool was conducted through analysis that involved (1) usability specialists, (2) physical therapists, and (3) real users from Teleton Foundation, a Chilean institution focused on rehabilitation and integration into society of children and adolescents who have motor disabilities.