This thesis examines issues surrounding route navigation. Emphasis is on the problems of elderly motorists. Elderly drivers have been said to avoid unfamiliar routes and may have wayfinding problems, but the extent and nature of these problems have not previously been investigated. This thesis aims to determine how drivers plan their routes and find their way in transit. It also seeks to investigate the prevalence and types of driver wayfinding problems, as well as their causes, consequences and psychological implications. Lastly, this thesis aims to measure the impact wayfinding problems have on mobility and identify potential solutions. Three studies were conducted, the first was a preliminary investigation into route navigation issues. Focus group discussions explored driver wayfinding strategies and problems. The second study consisted of a postal questionnaire survey of motorists. Results suggested the most common route planning method was to read a map and take notes of the route. For wayfinding on major roads, drivers stated a preference for road number, place name, and junction information. In cities, they requested information about street names, lane position and landmarks. More drivers under 60 years of age preferred landmark information than did elderly drivers. The most frequent wayfinding errors were: missing a road sign, choosing the wrong lane, and detecting a sign or a turn too late to respond safely. The most frequently reported causes of wayfinding errors were: insufficient, inaccurate, obscured or non-existent traffic signs; inattention or distraction; inaccurate directions; darkness; busy roads and road repairs. As hypothesised, elderly drivers reported more difficulties with wayfinding and this was related to reduced mobility. The third study explored different means of presenting route guidance information. An experiment was conducted to investigate the safety and efficiency of visual, auditory (speech) or a combined visual-auditory display. Driver performance, visual behaviour, subjective mental workload and preferences were recorded. For displaying simple route guidance information to drivers across ages, it is recommended that verbal displays be used as a primary source of guidance information and visual displays as a redundant reminder.

Denna kandidatuppsats behandlar wayshowing i en 3D-modell av Visualiseringscenter C, Norrköping. Syftet är att undersöka olika sätt att göra skyltar i virtuell miljö och vilket sätt som är mest lättarbetat för användaren som ska skapa dessa skyltar. Uppsatsen utgår från teori om wayshowing och om hur en bra skylt ska se ut för att uppfylla sitt syfte. Med hjälp av denna teori har skyltar skapats i en 3D-miljö. Det insamlade materialet som resultaten är baserade på kommer från två strukturerade observationer och en intervju. Deltagaren och observatören i observationerna var författaren själv och under intervjun hördes en student med liknande erfarenheter kring grafisk design och 3D som författaren. I observationerna testades två sätt att skapa skyltar; ett sätt där texturen gjordes innan skyltarna tillverkades i 3D-miljön och ett sätt där texturen gjordes efter det att skyltarna hade tillverkats i 3D- miljön. Resultaten från observationerna visar att det senare sättet är smidigast att använda eftersom det är lättare att anpassa texturen till skylten efter det att skylten har blivit modellerad i 3D. Observationerna undersökte även vilka digitala processer som användes och vilken tid de processerna tog. Under observationerna framkom att rendering var den digitala process om användes flest gånger. Den process som ansågs ta mest tid var så kallade tutorials, att ta reda på och införskaffa kunskap om hur ett moment kan utföras. Observationerna visade även att det är tidssparande att återanvända kameror, material och 3D-modeller. / This bachelor thesis is about wayshowing in a 3D model of Visualiseringscenter C, Norrköping. The aim is to examine different ways to make signs in a virtual environment and which of these ways is the easiest to apply for the user. The essay is based on theory regarding wayshowing and how a good sign should look in order to fulfill its purpose. With the use of this theory, signs have been created in a 3D environment. The collected data which the results are based on comes from two structured observations and one interview. The participant and the observer of the observations was the author herself and the interview was done with a student who has similar experiences in graphic design and 3D as the author. The observations evaluated two different ways to create signs. One way in which the texture was made before the signs were made in the 3D environment and one way in which the texture was made after the signs had been manufactured in the 3D environment. The results of the observations show that the latter approach is more convenient to use because it is easier to adjust the texture after the sign has been created. The observations also considered the digital processes used and the time spent on these processes. The observations revealed that rendering was the most used digital process. The digital process which was most time consuming was the use of tutorials, i.e. to acquire knowledge of how an previously unknown digital process could be performed. The observations also revealed that re-use of cameras, materials, and 3D models was time saving.

The effectiveness of an emergency response during an incident is often affected by the lack of information provided to the people within the situation about the current conditions. Deaths in large-scale fires are often likely to have been caused by delays in the occupants receiving relevant information on the fire and egress routes. This is why pre-movement behaviour, which is defined as the behaviour which occurs before an alarm is sounded and includes the activities which occur between the alarm sounding and the occupants beginning to move towards an exit, is believed to be generally more important to survival than the actual movement speed. It is the unpredictability and complexity of human behaviour that is the most influential factor on the success / failure of an evacuation plan. Unfortunately, evacuation plans rely on the use of purposely designed egress routes which often are not the common everyday exits. These specifically designed egress routes, which an engineer may assume will be used during an evacuation, are often ignored by occupants due to the lack of information and noticeable distinguishing features. Having occupants moving in directions away from these intended routes may result in the increasing possibility of occupants finding themselves in a dangerous situation, ultimately leading to potential loss of life. The value of a sensor-linked fire model has been demonstrated and the potential for interpretation of human behaviour shown. However, there are many challenges in representing and interpreting data on human behaviour. Within most emergency evacuation situations, occupants will often walk past emergency exits without using them and exit through the main entrance or main exit, as displayed during an evacuation experiment held in IKEA in 1996. Problems occur because occupants will rely on the familiar exits over the closest emergency exit, which could be potentially overcome by the use of an information driven evacuation system. The main function of the Information Driven Evacuation System or I.D.E.S. is to provide occupants with information on the most appropriate egress paths within a building based on the development of the fire and the movement of other occupants. The system is a combination of real-time sensor data, a prediction modelling tool and the information driven way-finding tools. However, as all three processes are independent systems, a central server will be required in order to ensure that all the different processes are speaking the same language and that the information from one system can be understood by another. of the components within the system interact with each other. The basis of the system will combine the use of sensors within a building and specific way-finding tools to give the I.D.E.S. the ability to change the information provided by the way-finding tools by having the sensors within the building interfacing with a computer server. This server will incorporate a modelling program that will have ability to assess the data gathered by the sensors, and use the servers “intelligence” (i.e. predicting capabilities) to alter the information provided by the way-finding tools. The server will also have the ability to use the sensor data to predict the development of the fire and the movement / behaviours of the occupants. The way-finding tools used within the I.D.E.S. would have the primary goal of relaying the information to the occupants within the building through the use of both audio (e.g. directional speakers) and visual (e.g. flashing lights) capabilities. Basic audio and visual tools are already used as common features of an evacuation plan [9] and include exit signage and alarm bell/sirens. The computer model used as part of the “intelligence” of the server will need to have predicative capabilities that incorporate information provided in real time. It is believed that the combination of these tools will be able to provide the occupants with the information required to evacuate the building in a safe and efficient way without causing confusion, thus reducing the possibility of stress and anxiety. However, the solution will only work if the combination of the tools, sensors and systems are able to be integrated into a central control panel that can be understood and used effectively by fire service and/or security staff. The following is the Chapter breakdown of the thesis: Chapter 1 discusses the nature of the problem that is to be addressed by the I.D.E.S. as well as the proposed solution and the overall concept of the system. Chapter 2 provides an overview of the system to be developed as part of this thesis, via a graphical overview as well discussing the current status of the system and an higher level summary. Chapters 3, 4 and 5 discusses the background research and information gathered on the current code requirements for an evacuation design, the current theories and completed research focusing on the human behaviour of occupants during an evacuation, and the development of computer modelling programs and their historical implementation. Chapter 6 focuses and describes the development of predictive modelling, the limitations that dictates the modelling process, the requirements of the I.D.E.S. modelling programme and a review of the possible programmes for their ability to be used as part of the system. Chapter 7 covers each of the three evacuation experimental series that were conducted as part of this thesis. The purpose of each of the relevant experiment is covered, the results gathered, the analysis of the research, and how the results influenced the development of the simulation methodology. Chapter 8 focuses on the development of the modelling programme, based on the experimental data gathered, and presents a feasibility study that will demonstrate how the system would work during a simulated real life evacuation based on the information gathered from the experiments using the updated CRISP program and the hypothetical installation of the system within an existing building, located in Auckland, New Zealand. The possible further evolution of the system is discussed in Chapter 10.

Finding ones way in unknown and unfamiliar environments is a common task. A number of tools ranging from paper maps to location-based services have been introduced to assist human navigation. Undoubtedly, car navigation systems can be considered the most successful example of location based services that widely gained user acceptance. However the concept of car navigation is not always (perhaps rarely) suitable for pedestrian navigation. Moreover, precise localization of moving objects indoors is not possible due to the absence of an absolute positioning method such as GPS. These make accurate indoor tracking and navigation an interesting problem to explore. Many of the methods of spatial analysis popular in outdoor applications can be used indoors. In particular, generation of the indoor navigation network can be an effective solution for a) improving the navigation experience inside complex indoor structures and b) enhancing the analysis of the indoor tracking data collected with existing positioning solutions. Such building models should be based on a graph representation and consist of the number of ‘nodes’ and ‘edges’, where ‘nodes’ correspond to the central position of the room and ‘edge’ represents the medial axis of the hallway polygons, which physically connects these rooms. Similar node-links should be applied stairs and elevators to connect building floors. To generate this model, I selected the campus of University of Saskatchewan as the study area and presented a method that creates an indoor navigation network using ESRI ArcGIS products. First, the proposed method automatically extracts geometry and topology of campus buildings and computes the distances among all entities to calculate the shortest path between them. The system navigates through the University campus and it helps locating classrooms, offices, or facilities. The calculation of the route is based on the Dijkstra algorithm, but could employ any network navigation algorithm. To show the advantage of the generated network, I present results of a study conducted in conjunction with the department of Computer Science. An experiment that included 37 participants was designed to collect the tracking data on a university campus to demonstrate how the incorporation of the indoor navigation model can improve the analysis of the indoor movement data. Based on the results of the study, it can be concluded that the generated indoor network can be applied to raw positioning data in order to improve accuracy, as well as be employed as a stand-alone tool for enhancing of the route guidance on a university campus, and by extension any large indoor space consisting of individual or multiple buildings.

This PhD Thesis has been immersed in investigating the holistic experience of way-finding in buildings by people who have a range of visual ability. Previous research studies, spanning across a broad spectrum of disciplines, have focused on various characteristics of human way-finding (Arthur and Passini, 1992;Lynch, 1960;Downs and Stea, 1973). It is specifically recognised that the built environment is failing people with visual loss (Barker et al., 1995) and the strategic task and skill of way-finding within a building is a particular problem (Arthur and Passini, 1992). Under the social model of disability (Oliver, 1990) this is recognised as a form of architectural disablement (Goldsmith, 1997). There are few evidence-based studies of way-finding in a building. Furthermore, there are no studies of real-life experiences of way-finding undertaken by real-life participants who have a range of visual ability within the context of a real-life building. This leads to a research question: What are the design issues revealed by participants who have a range of visual ability as they way-find in a large public building? This doctoral research, based within the discipline of architecture, focuses on the holistic experiential components of a Journey (Myerson, 2001;Harper and Green, 2000). It coins and defines the term Way-finding Hot-spot as it explores the events [positive and negative] which are experienced and therefore impact on a Way-finding Journey around a building. To fill an important gap in the current knowledge a research enquiry, based on a user-centred design approach, was implemented. Exploratory in nature, the methodology was inductive and it evolved throughout the study. A series of Research Principles, borrowed from the established methodologies of Grounded Theory (Glaser, 1968) and Case Study (Yin, 2003a;Yin, 2003b), guided this study. Ten participants [with varying degrees of visual ability, different ages and other forms of disability] undertook a Way-finding Scenario designed to evaluate both existing memories of way-finding and present way-finding experience. This was composed of a Purposeful Conversation (Burgess, 1982) and a context specific Way-finding Task. The study has produced a large amount of data based on user experience in a real-world way-finding context – this has not been done before. Participant data contributed to a new Theory of Way-finding – The Experiential Charting of a Way-finding Journey – which derived from experiential data, was found to be composed of three elements: Journey Stages, Tasks Components and Communication Requirements. This thesis presents detailed findings which generate dialogue in the design of way-finding systems suitable for a diverse range of way-finders. It provides a research-based foundation to open the problem area and provide an insight into the issues people with different visual abilities encounter as they undertake a Way-finding Journey around a building. It generates a greater understanding of the problems and joys of way-finding in a building which will be of use in professional practice across disciplines of architecture and design as well as in areas of rehabilitation, policy-making and academia. This research is a start, but it is not the end. Future research questions have been revealed and these, combined with further reviews of literature and creative use of method, will further explore the phenomenon of way-finding within the context of buildings.

This work further develops the way-finding model first proposed by Pearson and Kosicki (2017) which examines the flow of information in the digital age. Way-finding systems are online systems that help individuals find information—i.e. social media, search engines, email, etc. Using a grounded theory methodology, this new framework was explored in greater detail. Way-finding theory was created using the context of the elaboration likelihood model, gatekeeping theory, algorithmic gatekeepers, and the existence of the filter bubble phenomenon. This study establishes the three basic pillars of way-finding theory: the user’s mindset when accessing way-finding systems, the perception of how popular way-finding systems function, and the perception of the information personalization process—particularly regarding algorithmic gatekeepers and their roles in creating the filter bubble phenomenon. These pillars and the relationships that exist between each constitute way-finding theory.

This study aims to test the effects of different way finding affordances on the usability of METU virtual campus built in Second Life virtual world in terms of users&rsquo / satisfaction, performance and mental workload. This study was conducted with 36 participants who are students at the Middle East Technical University. Participants were randomly put on of the five groups namely map, signboard, voice and agent groups and a control group. The participants were given navigational tasks in METU virtual campus within Second Life. In the experiment, the eye movements of the participants were examined with eye tracking tool in order to determine the areas which participants paid attention most. Also mental work load in their prefrontal cortex was examined with fNIR device. There was no significant difference among groups in terms of satisfaction, however / there were significant difference among groups in terms of task completion accuracy, time, length, navigation cue gaze duration and mental workload. Agent group has the highest accuracy score, map group has the highest time, length and navigation cue gaze duration score. Moreover, agent group has the highest mental workload but control group has the lowest mental workload. The results of the tests were used to provide guidance for the design of way finding affordances in METU virtual campus.

This thesis is about teaching and learning in way finding and map reading. The aim of the study is to investigate children’s ability to perceive the relationship between objects in the nature and map symbols in order to make a positioning. The aim is also to investigate what teaching might facilitate this ability. The study sets out to identify critical features related to the object of learning, that might constitute learning obstacles or problems, and then to discuss possible teaching methods to overcome these problems. The method used is a school based physical education intervention study de-rived from Learning Study principles. In a Learning Study, teachers collaborate in an iterative process to explore their students learning. The students’ ways of perceiving the object of learning is analysed through a phenomenographic ap-proach and the variation theory is used for planning and analysing the studied lessons. Three lessons were videotaped and field notes were taken along with some interviews. The sample consisted of three groups of ten-year-old pupils (n=53) and six teachers. Four critical features of the learning object were identified in the study: a) to perceive objects in nature and understand how these can be represented on the map: b) to perceive objects in nature to make a positioning on the map: c) to perceive objects in nature and its location to make a positioning in relation to the previous positioning and d) to perceive relationships between objects in nature and symbols on the map and take these into account when describing position. The study shows how children’s ability to perceive objects in the nature and map symbols to make a positioning can be improved when they have the possi-bility to discern the critical features in different ways. In conclusion, that what was taught seemed to be reflected in what the pupils learned. Furthermore, the analysis indicates that it is not sufficient merely to name the critical features to the pupils, instead they must be possible to be discerned by the pupils in order for learning to take place. A final reflection is that the theoretical framework used, variation theory, is a powerful tool for analysing lessons that contributed to the analysis of teaching and learning. / <p>Forskarstuderande Kerstin Nilsson har ingått i <em>Forskarskolan idrott och hälsas didaktik </em>(FIHD), en forskarskola som ingått i statens satsning på forskarutbildning av förskollärare och lärare. Satsningen beslutades våren 2011 och har varit ett led i att kompetenshöja verksamma lärare och, i förlängningen, stärka elevernas kunskaper. Forskarskolan har bedrivits som ett samarbetsprojekt mellan Gymnastik- och idrottshögskolan, Örebro universitet och Malmö högskola. Totalt har 15 forskarstuderande ingått i FIHD, och varje lärosäte har ansvarat för fem forskarstuderande var. Centrala mål för forskarskolan har varit att utgöra ett nav för ämnesdidaktisk kunskapsutveckling av ämnet idrott och hälsa, och att bidra till att bygga upp skolämnet idrott och hälsas didaktiska kunskapsbas med hjälp av praktiknära forskningsansatser.</p> / Forskningslinjen Utbildning