Thursday, September 17, 2015

Reflections Disabled Human User of Assistive Technologies


Reflections

·         Sensory Function As Related To Assistive Technology Use

Sensory functions play an essential role in the design and selection of assistive technology systems. One view of the role of the sensory system is to provide information regarding “Where the body ends and where the world begins.” As the major interface for many assistive devices, the sensory system plays a critical role in determining the effectiveness of assistive technology interventions.
 
·         Perceptual Function As Related To Assistive Technology Use

Perceptual adds meaning to sensory data. Assistive technology can affect perceptual experience in many ways, some positive and some negative. Because the use of technologies is often a new experience, a novice user who a difficulty is likely to have significantly different perceptions of events and device interactions than do either more experienced users or nondisabled assistive technology practitioners.

·         Cognitive Function and Development As Related To Assistive Technology Use

Cognitive performance plays an important role in the use of assistive technologies. There are several problems associated with adequately assessing the cognitive abilities necessary for the control of assistive technology systems. The most important of these is that the assistive technology often provides a function for which the person has no experience base.

·         Psychosocial Function As Related To Assistive Technology Use

Psychological factors have a significant influence on assistive technology usage. Psychological function is composed of both intrinsic and extrinsic factors. The intrinsic psychological characteristics of an individual are hard to separate from the influences of the person’s social environment.

·         Motor Control As Related To Assistive Technology Use

Many aspects of motor control are important in the use of assistive technologies. I order to perform a control task, the human operator must be able to locate a target, plan, a movement to that target, and produce a desired action once the target is reached. This process involves both sensory and motor components. Motor control refers to all the central processing functions that led to planned, coordinated motor outputs.

·         Effector Function As Related To Assistive Technology Use

The human operator controls the assistive technology through various effectors and they enable manipulation of the environment in a variety of ways. Several factors are important to keep in mind when considering effectors use for the purpose of controlling assistive technologies.

 

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