This programme ran from 2008-2010 at the Pervasive Media Studio. For more projects like these please visit the Studio website.

Projects 2010

Company Profile

Overlay Media provides technology and expertise in the creation of context-aware mobile experiences. Recently this has involved the licensing of Overlay Media LBS technology to companies such as Samsung.

Journal Authors

Cath Willcox

Ian Anderson

@HillsAreEvil

Hills are Evil!

by Overlay Media

How can digital tools help people with restricted mobility, find the best and easiest route between two places?

Overlay Media's ‘technical’ aim was the creation of a dynamic map overlay that provides people with restricted mobility, cyclists, skateboarders, the elderly, and people pushing pushchairs, the ability to identify the most appropriate route between two places. The route is determined based upon factors including gradients and surfaces.

Their ‘real world’ aim was to create a tool that can extend peoples’ independence by, for example, identifying routes between places that are optimised to suit individual circumstances, e.g. no hills or cobbles for wheelchair users.

Watch the project video on DShed

Journal Entries

Journal Entries

Visually communicating “this ain’t gonna be easy!”

Tue 19 Oct, 2010

Over time, various methods of conveying terrain have been developed to guide those tackling it. The Ordnance Survey, for example, communicates the shape and steepness of the land by using contour lines, that get closer as the gradient increases.

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What data do we need?

Fri 15 Oct, 2010

After yesterday’s workshops (and tasty meal at GBH) we’ve got some good ideas to go forward with. Central to our project is how we make the dataset meaningful, and to do this effectively we need to look at grading or rating things like gradient, paving surface and kerb height according to how difficult to pass they are.

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The issue of accessibility

Tue 12 Oct, 2010

To understand exactly where we're going to go with this project we need to look into what we need from an accessible route. Most commonly, the term 'accessible route' is used in reference to those with restricted mobility, such as wheelchair users. In such cases, a route would need to avoid: steep hills (both up- and down-ward); uneven surfaces like cobbles; unstable surfaces like sand; steps (including kerbsides) and cattle grids – so a route free from these 'no-goes' would be considered accessible.

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Meet the Team

Tue 28 Sep, 2010

So now you know where we're headed, each of the team would like to introduce themselves...

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Online mapping tools can be brilliant.

Wed 22 Sep, 2010

Brilliant if you’re in the car that is. Even fairly impressive if you’re cycling. But if you’ve got restricted mobility (whether that’s due to a wheelchair, skateboard, pushchair or just really impractical shoes) then they’re not much help at all.

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