flexiblefullpage
billboard
interstitial1
catfish1
Currently Reading

TOTO tests universal design at the AIA conference

TOTO tests universal design at the AIA conference


May 25, 2011

If you could be 80 years old for 30 minutes—and have to readjust everything you think you know about your own mobility—would you do it?

That was the idea behind TOTO’s Universal Design experience at the AIA National Convention, in which participants donned Velcro bands intended to mimic muscle and joint stiffness. Once assembled, the suit challenged participants to do simple bathroom tasks like get out of a wheelchair and onto a toilet, or wheel up to a sink to wash their hands. Weights around the ankles, stiff bands around the major joints and torso, vision-impairing goggles, and ear plugs that muffled high-frequency sounds ensured that even the act of turning around proved difficult.

Full story

Source: AIA

Related Stories

Building Team | Jun 13, 2022

A mixed-used building to rise above Fort Lauderdale, with views of downtown and the ocean

ODA, a New York-based architecture and design studio, recently released renderings of Ombelle, a project including two residential towers in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. 

Office Buildings | Jun 13, 2022

San Antonio’s electric utility HQ to transform into a modern office building

In San Antonio, Tex., the former headquarters of CPS Energy, the city’s electric utility, is slated to transform into 100,000 square feet of office and retail space on San Antonio’s famed River Walk.

Cultural Facilities | Jun 10, 2022

After 10 Years, Taiwan’s new Taipei Music Center Reaches the Finish Line

RUR Architecture has finished the Taipei Music Center (TMC), turning a 22-acre (9-hectare) site into a new urban arts district.

Building Technology | Jun 9, 2022

GSA Green Proving Ground program selects six innovative building technologies for evaluation

The U.S. General Services Administration’s (GSA) Green Proving Ground program, in collaboration with the U.S. Department of Energy, has selected six innovative building technologies for evaluation in GSA’s inventory.

University Buildings | Jun 9, 2022

IDEA Factory at U. of Maryland defies gravity

The E.A. Fernandez IDEA Factory at the University of Maryland’s A. James Clark School of Engineering has a gravity-defying form: The seven-story building’s solid upper floors emerge above the lighter, mostly glass base.

Multifamily Housing | Jun 9, 2022

Cityview's Adam Perry on multifamily housing innovation in the Western U.S.

Adam Perry, SVP of Development and Construction Management with developer Cityview, chats with Multifamily Design+Construction Editor Rob Cassidy about the latest design and construction innovations for multifamily housing in the West. 

Libraries | Jun 8, 2022

Welcome to the hybrid library

Libraries have grown to become the intellectual and social hubs of campus, where, prior to March 2020, students, researchers, and faculty gathered to collaborate and connect.

Building Team | Jun 8, 2022

Alastair MacGregor to lead WSP USA Property and Buildings Business

Alastair (Aly) MacGregor has been named the executive business line leader for Property and Buildings at WSP USA, one of the nation’s largest engineering and professional services consultancies.

Codes and Standards | Jun 8, 2022

Florida Legislature passes bill requiring stricter condominium inspection

The Florida Legislature recently passed a bill to beef up building inspection requirements for many of the state’s condominiums.

Office Buildings | Jun 8, 2022

Former L.A. Times newsroom/printing plant remade into office campus

Phase 1 of The Press, an adaptive reuse project that is converting an old Los Angeles Times facility into a modern office campus, was recently completed in Costa Mesa, Calif.

boombox1
boombox2
native1

More In Category



Urban Planning

The magic of L.A.’s Melrose Mile

Great streets are generally not initially curated or willed into being. Rather, they emerge organically from unintentional synergies of commercial, business, cultural and economic drivers. L.A.’s Melrose Avenue is a prime example. 


Curtain Wall

7 steps to investigating curtain wall leaks

It is common for significant curtain wall leakage to involve multiple variables. Therefore, a comprehensive multi-faceted investigation is required to determine the origin of leakage, according to building enclosure consultants Richard Aeck and John A. Rudisill with Rimkus. 

halfpage1

Most Popular Content

  1. 2021 Giants 400 Report
  2. Top 150 Architecture Firms for 2019
  3. 13 projects that represent the future of affordable housing
  4. Sagrada Familia completion date pushed back due to coronavirus
  5. Top 160 Architecture Firms 2021