청각장애인을 위한 긴급상황 경고 픽토그램 시스템 개발 연 구 - 재난 상황 및 안전사고 상황을 중심으로

Background The purpose of the research is to provide insights into developing an Emergency Pictogram System for Hearing-impaired people that can be used instantly in emergency situations. Unlike most emergency systems, which were based on only sound, emergency pictogram systems provide warning messages that consists of a combination of visual information, vibration, and flashing lights. Methods The research was carried out by investigating incidents that deaf people had experienced during emergency situations. A survey was conducted on 10 hearing-impaired students in order to discuss the problems and solutions for the inconvenience that had occurred while communicating warning messages in urgent situations. Based on the results from the survey, warning message system models were been formed by combining pictograms, various effects and a wearable device. In order to select the most effective model, the investigation was conducted with the help of five hearing-impaired volunteers. Results The results from the survey and analysis showed that the main reason that the heraing-impaired people could not receive the emergency information immediately was because most it was delivered through sound. In addition, it was found that hearing-impaired people were mostly dependent on smart-devices such as mobile phones' vibration functions in emergency situations. Therefore, a new warning message was developed by using a mixture of pictograms, flashing lights and vibration. Conclusions The purpose of developing a pictogram emergency system was to provide additional functions such as smart-devices for hearing-impaired people who have only been acquiring sound systems. The development of a pictogram emergency system will be helpful for hearing-impaired people in emergency situations by providing features that are effective and practical in real-life.