Product Design: Independent Elevator Travel for People Who Are Blind

Design an elevator, or the experience of riding one, for passengers who are blind. ```hint Walk the trip without sight Before proposing features, trace every moment where a sighted rider relies on their eyes, from finding the call button to knowing which door has opened and on which floor. ``` ### Clarifying Questions - Are the target riders fully blind, or should the design also serve people with low vision? - Is this a new elevator product sold to buildings, or features that must be retrofitted into elevators already installed? - What kind of building matters most: an office or apartment block the rider uses every day, or public places such as hospitals, hotels and transit stations where they arrive as visitors? - Must the elevator keep working exactly as before for sighted riders who share it? ### What a Strong Answer Covers - The full trip, from reaching the lobby to stepping out on the right floor, including lobbies with several cars and emergencies, not only the button panel - A justified choice of rider segment and building context, with the pain points specific to making that trip without sight - Solutions that go beyond tactile labels, prioritized by impact, cost and whether they can be retrofitted - Effects on sighted riders and the building: noise, waiting time, privacy and maintenance - Success metrics based on unaided, correct trips, and how they would be measured with blind testers ### Follow-up Questions - How would your design work in a building with destination dispatch, where riders enter their floor at a lobby kiosk and are assigned a car? - What changes for a rider who is both deaf and blind? - Spoken announcements tell everyone nearby which floor a rider is going to. When does that matter, and how would you handle it?