The document summarizes a 2-week universal design bench/seating design workshop conducted at National Taiwan University of Science and Technology (NTUST). The workshop used a participatory process to teach 24 students universal design concepts through designing benches for the NTUST campus. Students worked in teams, using activities like role-playing and persona development to understand users' needs while overcoming language and cultural barriers. The workshop aimed to implement inclusive and sustainable design solutions for the NTUST landscape.

1. Ricardo Gomes, Professor and Chair, Design and Industry Department
Inclusive
Table/Bench
Design
Workshop
for
the
Na;onal
Taiwan
University
of
Science
and
Technology
(NTUST)
Campus
Landscape
Ricardo
Gomes,
Professor
and
Chair
Design
and
Industry
Department
ricgomes@sfsu.edu

2. Ricardo Gomes, Professor and Chair, Design and Industry Department
Abstract
The
case
study
project
documents
the
development
and
implementaGon
of
an
intensive
2-­‐week
Universal
Design
Bench/SeaGng
Design
Workshop
that
was
conducted
in
the
College
of
Design
at
Na;onal
Taiwan
University
of
Science
and
Technology
(NTUST).
The
workshop
highlights
the
teaching
methodologies
and
techniques
that
were
uGlized
in
facilitaGng
language
and
cultural
differences
in
uGlizing
the
NTUST
campus
as
a
case
study
in
creaGng
universal
design
concepts
for
an
inclusive
environmental
landscape.

3. Ricardo Gomes, Professor and Chair, Design and Industry Department
Introduc;on
This
year
2010
will
mark
and
important
milestone
celebraGon
of
the
20th
Anniversary
of
the
landmark
passage
of
the
Americans
with
Disabili;es
Act
(ADA)
in
1990,
one
of
the
USA’s
premier
civil
rights
laws.
The
Landscapes
for
All
project,
started
in
the
early
1990’s
on
the
San
Francisco
State
University
campus,
aimed
to
quesGon
the
status
quo
of
disabled
accessibility
standards.

4. Ricardo Gomes, Professor and Chair, Design and Industry Department
Tex
The
Open
Bench
The
Universal
Sea;ng
Design
Studio
is
part
of
SFSU’s
ongoing
process
to
maintain
a
sustainable
&
accessible
campus
The
Open
Bench
is
an
answer
to
the
constraints
of
tradiGonal
fixed
benches.

5. Ricardo Gomes, Professor and Chair, Design and Industry Department
Tex
My
Table
2
My
Table
2
is
designed
to
be
easily
adjustable
using
an
electrical
motor
powered
by
solar
energy.

6. Ricardo Gomes, Professor and Chair, Design and Industry Department
Workshop
Methodology,
Development
Process
and
Ac;vity
Modules
The
Workshop
Objec;ves
were
to
implement
universal
design
concepts
and
applicaGons
through
the
introducGon
of
an
“in-­‐situ”
case
study
project
that
uGlized
the
NTUST
campus
environment
in
designing
an
Inclusive
&
Sustainable
Bench
Design
for
NTUST
Accessible
Landscape.

7. Ricardo Gomes, Professor and Chair, Design and Industry Department
The
“CharreVe-­‐like”
Workshop
consisted
of
24
undergraduate
and
graduate
product
design
students
that
were
grouped
into
Teams
of
3
students.
The
contact
hours
were
from
9:30
AM
–
4:30
PM,
Monday
–
Friday
for
a
total
of
60
contact
hours
for
the
2-­‐week
period.
Workshop
Methodology,
Development
Process
and
Ac;vity
Modules

8. Ricardo Gomes, Professor and Chair, Design and Industry Department
NTUST
Workshop
Format
• DISCOVERY
• OBSERVATION
• UNDERSTANDING
(Empathy)
• INTERPRETATION
• VISUALIZATION
• IMPLEMENTATION
(Rapid-­‐prototyping)
• EVALUATION
(Feedback
&
ReflecGon)

9. Ricardo Gomes, Professor and Chair, Design and Industry Department
NTUST
Workshop
Format
The
Use
of:
1. ParGcipatory
Peer-­‐supported
Group
AcGviGes
and
Exercises
2. Role-­‐playing
Scenarios
helped
to
bridge
language
and
cultural
barriers,
as
well
as
sGmulate
acGve
and
engaged
project
research
and
exploraGon.
3. Use
of
Personas
and
Scenarios
helped
to
formulate
and
develop
user
and
environmental
empathy
for
the
students.

10. Ricardo Gomes, Professor and Chair, Design and Industry Department
Workshop
Curriculum
Procedures
and
Methodology
a. Special
EdiGon
on
Asian
Universal
Design
Network
(AUDN)
Published
on
Newslefer
of
Design
for
All
InsGtute
of
India,
February
2009,
edited
by Mr.
Tony
KM
Chang,
CEO
of
Taiwan
Design
Center
b.
Universal
Design
in
2008
Taiwan
Expo
c. Taiwan
Universal
Design
Award,
organized
by
Free
Universe
EducaGon
FoundaGon
d. UD
Taipei
City
Explore
Team-­‐
UD
Taipei,
2008
Contact
and
Liaison
with
Taiwan
Design
Center
in
San
Francisco
and
Taipei,
Mr.
Yu
Hsiu,
Yang,
Director
Discovery

11. Ricardo Gomes, Professor and Chair, Design and Industry Department
Workshop
Curriculum
Procedures
and
Methodology
UD
Taipei
City
Explore
Team
(2008)

12. Ricardo Gomes, Professor and Chair, Design and Industry Department
OBSERVATION/UNDERSTANDING/EMPATHY:
Visit
to
Taiwan
Design
Center
and
Universal
Design
SimulaGon
Lab

13. Ricardo Gomes, Professor and Chair, Design and Industry Department
UNDERSTANDING
is
the
first
and
primary
stage
that
we
encouraged
the
students
to
look
at
to
finding
the
problem,
understanding
the
problem
thru
discovery.
For pictures

14. Ricardo Gomes, Professor and Chair, Design and Industry Department
NTUST
Workshop
Format
DISCOVER:
Ac;vity
#
1:
“How
did
we
get
so
much
stuff?”
“Break
the
Ice”
and
establish
a
casual,
interacGve,
posiGve
and
energeGc
tone
for
the
course
–
in
English!
Ac;vity
#
2:
Conduct
“Day-­‐in-­‐the-­‐Life”
Family
Persona
Group
Scenarios:
• A
trip
to
Shin
Kong
Mitsukoshi
Life
Square
shopping
mall
• A
Sightseeing
to
Yangming
Park
or
NaGonal
Park
Taipei
• A
trip
to
the
NaGonal
Palace
Museum
• A
trip
to
Miramar
Entertainment
Park
• A
trip
to
Taipei
Zoo
• A
trip
to
Taipei
Story
House
1.
Par;cipatory
Peer-­‐supported
Group
Ac;vi;es
and
Exercises

15. Ricardo Gomes, Professor and Chair, Design and Industry Department
Ac;vity
#
2:
Conduct
“Day-­‐in-­‐the-­‐Life”
Family
Persona
“A
Day
in
the
Life
Family
Scenario…June
30th,
2009”
1. 4-­‐6
Personas
(20
students:
4
“Family”
Groups
of
5
family
member
Personas)
2. AcGvity
Day:
7
AM
–
7
PM
(12
hours)
3. Develop
an
AcGvity
or
“Event”
for
each
hour
of
the
day
relaGve
to
your
Family
AcGvity
(12
Hours=12
AcGviGes/”Scenarios”)
4. Select
“Top
Ten”
AcGviGes
5. Determine
what
is
the
three
(3)
“Easiest”
and
“Most
Difficult”
AcGviGes
for
the
Family
to
do
together
6. Select
“Top
Three”
most
possible
“Inclusive”
AcGviGes/Tasks
and
how
they
may
be
facilitated
7.
Select
“Best”
AcGvity
and
Product
SoluGon
that
may
best
facilitate
this
AcGvity/FuncGon/Task

16. Ricardo Gomes, Professor and Chair, Design and Industry Department
Ac;vity
#
2:
Conduct
“Day-­‐in-­‐the-­‐Life”
Family
Persona
Infant 1 month to 1 year Yellow
Toddler 1 year to 2 years Dark Blue
Preschooler 2 years to 6 years Dark Green
School age 6 years to 12 years Orange
Adolescent 12years to 20 years Purple
Young adult 20 years to 40 years Red
Middle aged adult 40 years to 60 years Light Blue
Young-old adult 60 years to 80 years Lime
Old-old adult 80 years and beyond Magenta
1. A
trip
to
Shin
Kong
Mitsukoshi
Life
Square
shopping
mall
2. A
Sightseeing
to
Yangming
Park
or
NaGonal
Park
Taipei
3. A
trip
to
the
NaGonal
Palace
Museum
4. A
trip
to
Miramar
Entertainment
Park
5. A
trip
to
Taipei
Zoo
6. A
trip
to
Taipei
Story
House
Scenarios:

17. Ricardo Gomes, Professor and Chair, Design and Industry Department
Ac;vity
#
2:
Conduct
“Day-­‐in-­‐the-­‐Life”
Family
Persona
Family
Member
“Persona”
Iden;ty
Card
Students
should
rate
their
level
of
ability
with:
0=
Full
Ability/No
disability
5=
Severe
Impairment

18. Ricardo Gomes, Professor and Chair, Design and Industry Department
NTUST
Workshop
Format
PHASE
I:
OBSERVATION
(Empathy)
Review
of
ExisGng
Campus
Public
SeaGng/Tables
Designs
PHASE
II:
VISUALIZATION
(Prototyping
SoluGon)
Inclusive
Table/Bench
Design
Concept
PHASE
III:
FEEDBACK
(ReflecGon
&
EvaluaGon
of
SoluGon)

19. Ricardo Gomes, Professor and Chair, Design and Industry Department
DISCOVER-­‐OBSERVE-­‐UNDERSTANDING-­‐INTERPRETATION:
PHASE
I:
OBSERVATION
(Empathy)
Review
of
ExisGng
Campus
Public
SeaGng/
Tables
Designs

20. Ricardo Gomes, Professor and Chair, Design and Industry Department
OBSERVATION
is
the
second
stage
that
we
have
the
students
employ
aver
they
have
established
a
clear
understanding
of
the
problem.
ObservaGon
can
be
done
in
a
variety
of
manners
and
approaches
such
as:
•
arGfacts
reviews
•
looking
at
the
exisGng
market
•
looking
at
the
user
profile
•
site
observaGon
•
user
observaGon
•
media
documentaGon
•
interview
•
shadowing
For pictures

21. Ricardo Gomes, Professor and Chair, Design and Industry Department
3.
Use
of
Personas
and
Scenarios
helped
to
formulate
and
develop
user
and
environmental
empathy
for
the
students.

22. Ricardo Gomes, Professor and Chair, Design and Industry Department
INTERPRETING
is
the
third
stage
which
will
be
translaGng
the
research
data,
realizing
they
are
not
the
experts
and
they
need
to
be
very
narraGve
and
interpretaGve
and
in
their
own
words
understand
the
situaGon.
For pictures

23. Ricardo Gomes, Professor and Chair, Design and Industry Department
PHASE
II:
VISUALIZATION
(Prototyping
SoluGon)
Inclusive
Table/Bench
Design
Concept
Prototyping
SoluGon
Inclusive
Table/Bench
Design
Concept

24. Ricardo Gomes, Professor and Chair, Design and Industry Department
VISUALIZING/REALIZING
Once
they
have
established
all
of
these
areas,
then
at
that
Gme
can
they
begin
to
start
to
visualize,
realizing
their
design
idea,
their
design
approach
through
conceptualizaGon
and
soluGon
development.
For pictures

25. Ricardo Gomes, Professor and Chair, Design and Industry Department
EVALUATING
&
REFINING
is
that
tesGng
and
refining
process
of
design
that
is
paramount.
The
whole
design
problem
solving
process
must
engage
in
the
tesGng
and
refinement
of
design
soluGons.

26. Ricardo Gomes, Professor and Chair, Design and Industry Department
EVALUATING
&
REFINING
is
that
tesGng
and
refining
process
of
design
that
is
paramount.
The
whole
design
problem
solving
process
must
engage
in
the
tesGng
and
refinement
of
design
soluGons.

27. Ricardo Gomes, Professor and Chair, Design and Industry Department
EVALUATING
&
REFINING
is
that
tesGng
and
refining
process
of
design
that
is
paramount.
The
whole
design
problem
solving
process
must
engage
in
the
tesGng
and
refinement
of
design
soluGons.

28. Ricardo Gomes, Professor and Chair, Design and Industry Department
2.
Role-­‐playing
Scenarios
helped
to
bridge
language
and
cultural
barriers,
as
well
as
s;mulate
ac;ve
and
engaged
project
research
and
explora;on..

29. Ricardo Gomes, Professor and Chair, Design and Industry Department
Pictures here
Pictures here
Title
IMPLEMENTATION
is
the
final
stage
in
area
number
six
would
be
the
implementaGon
stage:
the
tangible
soluGon.

30. Ricardo Gomes, Professor and Chair, Design and Industry Department
IMPLEMENTATION
is
the
final
stage
in
area
number
six
would
be
the
implementaGon
stage:
the
tangible
soluGon.

31. Ricardo Gomes, Professor and Chair, Design and Industry Department
IMPLEMENTATION
is
the
final
stage
in
area
number
six
would
be
the
implementaGon
stage:
the
tangible
soluGon.

32. Ricardo Gomes, Professor and Chair, Design and Industry Department
ReflecGon
&
EvaluaGon
PHASE
III:
FEEDBACK

33. Ricardo Gomes, Professor and Chair, Design and Industry Department
Title
Pictures here
Pictures here
Title
Overview
of
the
works
from
Universal
Design
Workshop
at
the
Na;onal
Taiwan
University
of
Science
and
Technology
Machi
Sakata,
VisiGng
Scholar,
Japan
Patent
Office

34. Ricardo Gomes, Professor and Chair, Design and Industry Department
Asia/U.S
Collabora;ve
and
Comparison
Ms.
Machi
Sakata
as
a
VisiGng
Scholar
in
the
Design
and
Industry
Department
at
SFSU
from
the
Japan
Patent
Office,
worked
on
the
development
of
a
new
guideline
/
checklist
for
Universal
Design
at
Chiba
University,
called
the
“C-­‐System.”
This
concept
was
iniGally
presented
at
the
InternaGonal
Conference
for
Universal
Design
2002,
Yokohama,
Japan.
“C-­‐System”
is
a
guideline
/
checklist
in
Universal
Design.
This
guideline
augmented
the
Seven
Principles,
advocated
by
R.
L.
Mace
of
the
Center
for
Universal
Design
at
North
Carolina
State
University.

35. Ricardo Gomes, Professor and Chair, Design and Industry Department
Title
Pictures here
Matrix
of
C-­‐System
and
the
conceptual
models
•
Basic
Need
• Social
Need
• Comprehensive
Need
C-System

36. Ricardo Gomes, Professor and Chair, Design and Industry Department
Title
Pictures here
Matrix
of
C-­‐System
and
the
conceptual
models
Fascina;on
and
Affinity
C-System

37. Ricardo Gomes, Professor and Chair, Design and Industry Department
For pictures
BASIC
NEED
•
Safety
Using
sov
material
to
prevent
injury
•
Understanding
Offering
lights
for
illuminaGng
area

38. Ricardo Gomes, Professor and Chair, Design and Industry Department
Easy
to
move
or
extend
For pictures

39. Ricardo Gomes, Professor and Chair, Design and Industry Department
Title
Pictures here
•
Offering
areas
for
easily
gripping
table
and
seaGng
surfaces
• Offering
seats
in
the
several
different
heights
Feature
of
Body

40. Ricardo Gomes, Professor and Chair, Design and Industry Department
Conclusion
&
Post-­‐Workshop
Compara;ve
Review
Although
the
NTUST
UD
Workshop
was
only
for
two
weeks,
compared
to
a
similar
five
week
class
conducted
at
San
Francisco
State
University
in
the
Summer
of
2007,
the
final
results
from
the
NTUST
Workshop
proved
to
be
more
producGve
and
comprehensive.

41. Ricardo Gomes, Professor and Chair, Design and Industry Department
Acknowledgements
&
Credits
•
Na;onal
Taiwan
University
of
Science
and
Technology
(NTUST)
College
of
Design,
Department
of
Industrial
and
Commercial
Design,
Professor
Pin-­‐Chang
Lin
and
Professor
Jeng-­‐Neng
Fan
•
NTUST
DT2614
Prac;ce
of
Product
Design
Students,
UD
Workshop,
Summer2009
•
Accessible
Landscapes:
Designing
for
Inclusion,
San
Francisco
State
University,
Phil
Evans,
Director,
Campus
Buildings
&
Grounds,
hfp://plopws.sfsu.edu/accessible_landscape/design_book.html
•
SFSU
Design
&
Industry
Universal
Sea;ng
Design
Studio
Students
(1998
–
2007)
• Ms.
Machi
Sakata,
SFSU
VisiGng
Scholar,
Japan
Patent
Office

42. Ricardo Gomes, Professor and Chair, Design and Industry Department
THANK
YOU
Ricardo
Gomes,
Professor
and
Chair
Design
and
Industry
Department
ricgomes@sfsu.edu