A Research team from Global Disability Innovation Hub, a London based NGO, along with a team each from University College London, and Indian Institute of Technology Delhi have collaborated to develop wheelchair accessible maps of Delhi called Street Rehab.
The teams are analyzing the needs of the disabled population, available technology, and the accessibility of the city, and the cost required to develop. It was found that in order to check how wheelchairs or tri-cycle users push or drive themselves towards a particular road, Low-cost sensors were identified to be connected to their mobile phones.
The teams have decided to talk to wheelchair users from across the city, after which based on the feedback, the project will move on.
“Infrastructure in India can often make pushing a wheelchair or tricycle difficult. We are trying to identify how people are currently getting around in Delhi, to find new ways of facilitating rehabilitation and identifying ways to improve infrastructure,” said Catherine Holloway, the academic director of the Global Disability Innovation Hub (GDI Hub).
The various sensors identified have helped create wheelchair accessible maps in Delhi. Now, the research team is focussing to develop a larger version for various groups of people to consume. Afterward, they will identify the necessary changes and deliver proper services during rehabilitation.
The Cost for the whole Street Rehab project was £10 million, which was funded by the UK’s Department for International Development (DFID), called AT2030.
The GDI Hub’s AT2030 project is being spread to Nairobi, Kenya, this year, and various discussions are conducted with colleagues in Delhi to identify opportunities for an innovation hub in India.