Home & community

Check out the latest research in universal design, intelligent homes and other innovative areas of study—all focused on keeping people active and independent at home and in the community.

 

Homes that know when you have fallen. Kitchens that assess your nutritional intake and flooring that monitors your vital signs. And even a voice that politely reminds you where you’ve put your car keys. It’s all part of the “intelligent home environment” being developed by Toronto Rehab scientist Dr. Alex Mihailidis, whose pioneering work has earned him the new Barbara G. Stymiest Chair in Rehabilitation Technology Research at Toronto Rehab.

An unprecedented U.S.-Canada research partnership in universal design has earned a five-year renewal from the U.S. Department of Education’s National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research (NIDRR). “This is great news because it advances our efforts to turn universal design into a reality,” says Dr. Geoff Fernie, Toronto Rehab’s Vice President, Research. Universal design is all about creating products, homes and communities that are safe and user-friendly for everyone, including older people and those with disabilities.

Imagine a house that could find your eye glasses, remind you to eat your vegetables, monitor your blood pressure and heart rate as you walk across the bathroom floor, and prompt your 80-year-old mother who has dementia through the process of toileting and washing her hands. And if she fell down, the house could also call for help.

 

 

Easy to access, easy to use: the ultimate in common sense and livability. That’s what universal design is all about and it applies to everything created for the urban environment—from a cell phone to a house, and from an ice cream scoop to a pedestrian street crossing. Universal design opens up a world of possibilities by making products, homes and communities safe and user-friendly for all people, including seniors and those with disabilities.

Traditional roadside curbs often present a barrier to people who use walkers or wheelchairs. Research teams at Toronto Rehab are currently working to improve accessibility through a road design that will raise the height of the roadbed at intersections to the level of the curb.

Click on community

Majority rule may work in politics but less so in design. And that’s given rise to the concept of “universal design” where the goal is to create products and environments that everybody − not just the able-bodied majority − can use and enjoy.