COMPONENT I (Case study)

Case study 1
Remodeling a home to make it accessible for the physically limited.
For cooking appliance, Frigidaire makes a wall oven where the door opens sideways. This would allow someone in a wheel chair to get closer when inserting and removing items from the oven without them having to dodge the oven door. It can be mounted at a height that is appropriate.

For a stove top you may be able to find a unit that has only 2 burners. When mounted properly, it should allow someone with limited reach to get to both the burners and controls.
One TV show illustrated installing a 2 burner electric induction element cooktop in a drawer that could be pushed out of the way when not in use. The drawer was at such a height as to make both the burners and controls within easy reach of a wheel chair bound person.
An induction element cooktop would likely be the only safe product for this application because the cooking surface remains much cooler to the touch after use than regular surfaces do, thus
reducing any fire hazard.
For a refrigerator, you could consider a compact model that can be mounted at an accessible height. There are also numerous drawer refrigerator models available. These may be freestanding or able to be built right into cabinets to keep floor space clear.Such a design is ergonomically superior, incorporating the familiar kitchen sliding drawer concept, giving the user easier access, improved visibility and less movements to open, load and close.
Alternately, a side by side model will usually allow easier access to both the refrigerator and the freezer sections. The narrower doors will also not get in the way as much.
For a washer a front loading model with up-front controls is a good choice. Optionally, mounting it on a raised platform should provide greater accessibility. You could also consider a combination washer/dryer to eliminate the need to move wet laundry from one
appliance to the other.
For a dishwasher, you could purchase a small counter top model that can be mounted at any accessible height. Another option could be to mount it on a platform to increase accessibility. A unique design that could also be utilized is the Fisher & Paykel DishDrawer (pictured). It can be mounted in locations like other regular kitchen cabinet drawer.

Case study 2
Ensuring Accesss to Services and Facilities by Customers Who Are Blind, Deaf-Blind, or Visually Impaired
ADA Checklist for Hotels and Motels
The purpose of this pamphlet is to provide practical, cost-effective solutions concerning access to hotel services and facilities by your guests who are blind, deaf-blind, or visually impaired, as required by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The law mandates that individuals with disabilities shall have access to jobs, public accommodations, government services, public transportation, telecommunications--in short, participation in, and full access to, all aspects of society. Access can be accomplished by a variety of means including: making reasonable modifications in policies and procedures, removing architectural or structural communication barriers where it is readily achievable to do so, or providing auxiliary aids or services (such as reading a hotel bill to a guest who is blind) if it is not an undue burden and does not fundamentally alter the nature of the goods and services offered.
Although the information contained in this pamphlet is targeted to hotel managers and service employees, many of the issues addressed are also applicable to other places of public accommodation such as retail establishments, restaurants, and museums.
Accessibility checklists provided in this pamphlet illustrate methods of eliminating communications barriers impeding access to your guest services and facilities.For example, use of a passcard-type room key may be difficult for a guest who is blind, deaf-blind, or visually impaired. It is often not possible to determine by touch which way to place the card into the locking mechanism. One solution to this problem might be to place a small piece of tape on the card running in the same direction as the visual arrow.
The ADA was designed to ensure that individuals with disabilities are afforded an equal opportunity to participate in all aspects of society. At the same time, the law recognizes the burdens placed on business to provide such access, and further recognizes that what is an undue burden for a multinational hotel chain is different from what constitutes an undue burden for a ten-room, owner-occupied inn.
Case study 3
Accessible Housing
Whether or not a home is accessible depends upon the nature and extent of one's disability. As a practical matter, an accessible home is one which enables an individual to do what he or she needs and desires to do as independently as possible. For some, access may be as simple as adding grab bars and a tub seat in the bathroom. For wheelchair users, access may require ramping entrances, widening doorways, lowering counters, adding lever or loop-style hardware to doors and drawers, and modifying storage areas.
Individuals with sensory disabilities also require accessible housing, although their needs are different from those of people with mobility disabilities. Individuals with hearing disabilities require visual adaptations for such items as the telephone ringer, the doorbell, and smoke alarms. People who are blind may require tactile marking of changes in floor level and stair edges and braille markings on appliances and controls. People with low vision may be accommodated with large print markings and displays, contrasting colors to distinguish changes in level or transition from one area to another, proper lighting, and reduced glare from lighting and windows.
Adaptable design allows some features of a dwelling to be changed to meet the needs of a person with a disability. Essential design elements such as wider doorways and halls and barrier-free entrances are included as integral features, while provisions are made to allow other features to be added as needed. To qualify as "adaptable," it must be possible for changes to be made quickly without the use of skilled labor and without changing the inherent structure or materials. Adaptable design allows the house or apartment to meet the specific needs of the user, while maintaining the appearance of the dwelling until more obvious accessibility features are needed. For instance, bathroom walls may be designed with additional supports to allow for the installation of grab bars in the future. Cabinets under sinks can be designed to be removable, allowing the storage space to be provided until such time as the knee space is required by someone using a wheelchair. Similarly, closet rods and counter tops can be installed on adjustable glides, allowing them to be positioned for the needs of the user. Criteria for adaptable housing are included in the ANSI standards and UFAS.
Universal design addresses the need for access by creating designs usable by all people, whether or not they are disabled. This is accomplished by designing wider halls and doors, barrier-free entrances, elevated electrical outlets, lowered switches, adjustable closet rods and shelves, adjustable counters, touch switches, and other features as inherent elements in the building. This type of design makes the home usable by all family members, and recognizes that human abilities change over the life span.

Case study 4
The Universal Playground
The public playground is, by far, one of the most important settings for child development. It is one of the few environments where a child has the freedom to run and jump, climb, swing and leap. It is a microcosm for life lessons, from challenge and risk to conflict resolution and cooperation. When we design for these purposes and apply the Principles of Universal Design, they design for inclusive play where every child, regardless of ability or disability, is welcomed and benefits physically, developmentally, emotionally and socially from the environment. Prescriptive Design is the design of a piece of equipment or environment specific to a small user group or individual and based on a remedy to minimize or compensate for the group’s or individual’s functional limitation. For example, some say that children with Down Syndrome have smaller hands so handrails on the playground should be smaller in diameter. Children with wheelchairs should have swings that hold the wheelchair. Plastic slides short-circuit cochlear implants, therefore only metal slides should be provided. Children with autism need “quiet” spaces on the playground. Child development specialists have been recommending separation of spaces for active play and passive play for years. Principle of universal design are such as equitable use, flexibility in use, simple and intuitive use, perceptible information, tolerance for error, low physical effort also size and space for approach and use. Their role as recreation providers and advocates for children’s play is to ensure that each public play space is not only accessible, but welcoming and inclusive of the many children and adult caregivers that will use it. If we utilize a human-centered approach at the onset of the planning process and encompass the Principles of Universal Design, the result is likely just that, a playground that is welcoming, inclusive and FUN for everyone!

Case study 5
Visitable Home
An international effort heve make something different from others by make all new homes visitable by doing an inclusive home design. Firstly, they focus on homes, not government buildings, restaurants, etc… Secondly, all homes that is not just "special" homes being at the party, the meeting, the reunion (not isolation). Thirdly, narrowing the emphasis from a long list of possible or desirable access features to the most essential features by entering a home and fitting through the interior doors. So that widespread construction change is more likely to happen quickly.
People who use wheelchairs or walkers, or are impaired by stiffness, weakness or balance problems are blocked by steps at every entrance of a home. Wheelchair users are stopped by inches from fitting through the bathroom door in a friend or relative’s home. And basic access goes beyond visiting. It's also about the home of a person who develops a disability, whether child, middle-aged, or older. Without basic access in place, architecture forces severe choices like expensive renovations that if the home is even amenable to renovation. Or existing as a virtual prisoner in an unsafe, unhealthy house that the house unable to exit independently or enter one's own bathroom. Or the disruption, grief and high financial costs of moving out of one's community into an nursing home. To change that reality, three essentials can become routine that are One ZERO-STEP entrance, all main floor interior doors that including bathrooms with 32 inches of clear passage space, At least a half bath, preferably a full bath, on the main floor. In other words, get in and out of the house and be able to use the bathroom, the essentials for visiting, and for surviving in one’s home with a temporary or long-term disability.Constructing homes with these features is inexpensive and easy. But advocates are needed to change the status quo, builder by builder, city by city, policy by policy.