/vemi University of Maine Mon, 15 May 2023 15:01:46 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.8.5 /vemi/publication/experimental-evaluation-of-multi-scale-tactile-maps-created-with-sim-a-web-app-for-indoor-map-authoring/ Mon, 15 May 2023 15:01:46 +0000 /vemi/?post_type=publication&p=3524 In this article, we introduce Semantic Interior Mapology (SIM), a web app that allows anyone to quickly trace the floor plan of a building, generating a vectorized representation that can be automatically converted into a tactile map at the desired scale. The design of SIM is informed by a focus group with seven blind participants. Maps generated by SIM at two different scales have been tested by a user study with 10 participants, who were asked to perform a number of tasks designed to ascertain the spatial knowledge acquired through map exploration. These tasks included cross-map pointing and path finding, and determination of turn direction/walker orientation during imagined path traversal. By and large, participants were able to successfully complete the tasks, suggesting that these types of maps could be useful for pre-journey spatial learning.

]]>