House-of-Quality Approach for the Design of a Minibus to Transport Visually Impaired and Wheelchair-bound Passengers

Abstract

In the modern era, machinery designed to assist people should satisfy the requirements of all users, including people with disabilities. This study aims to design an ergonomic vehicle that is comfortable and safe for people with mobility needs (wheelchair-bound passengers) or visual impairment. First, we conducted a literature survey on the definitions of terms such as disability, ergonomic design, house of quality (HOQ), and safe transportation. Next, we gathered anthropometric data of people with mobility needs or visual impairment, and their requirements for safe and comfortable transportation. We used HOQ to capture the voice of consumers and design a suitable technical response to their needs, and utilized computer-aided design (CAD) to convert all the designs into 3-D prototype vehicle models. Based on the needs of people with disabilities and on the results of anthropometric calculations, the vehicle should include a lift wheelchair (15.7%), four folding passenger seats (15%), a handrail dimension (11.4%), and a handle pole (10.4%) for people with visual impairment. This ergonomic vehicle design will result in increased overall user satisfaction.

Keywords

• computer-aided design (cad)
• ergonomic transportation
• house of quality (hoq)
• mobility of people with disabilities
• wheelchair, infrastructure for people with disabilities