Regulations needn’t hold you back – with a bit of entrepreneurial creativity they can even inspire value-added solutions.
In every market segment and at every national and international level, routine business activities are dictated by laws, standards and regulations. However, the rules aren’t always aligned with each other and can often even be mutually restrictive. As a result, good ideas can sometimes come to nothing – not because they’re non-starters, but because they get bogged down by official regulations or are even prohibited by them. Yet despite the plethora of rules, it is still possible to successfully develop and implement innovations that add a lot of value for your business. Through the example of the MindTags digital guidance system, Steinbeis Entrepreneur Stefan Wilke shows how this can be done with the aid of digital technology.
As Stefan Wilke succinctly puts it, “All too often, people focus on the problem rather than the solution”. Turning this approach on its head proved key to the successful realization of the MindTags system that Wilke was involved in both as a developer and a user. As a blind person himself, he had experienced his fair share of less than helpful digital solutions. But while user-friendliness was at the heart of MindTags, the system also complies with all the relevant building, IT security, accessibility and data protection regulations.
Guidance systems are primarily used to help everyone in a building find their way around and get information by themselves. This can often be particularly difficult for people with sensory impairments. Buildings seldom even comply with the statutory accessibility requirements, while buildings that allow people with sensory impairments to independently find their way around and access information are even thinner on the ground. The principal accessibility standard, DIN 18040, is supposed to be implemented in all buildings throughout the EU by 2030. But the reality often still falls disappointingly short of this ambition. Even in cases where substantial investments have been made, the solutions implemented are frequently obsolete, poorly designed or not fully functional.
The following aspects are key to achieving a value-added solution that provides the optimal way of complying with the relevant standards while also catering to the interests of all the target groups:
- Effective and thorough planning: This involves clearly defining the project’s goal and required outcomes, and carrying out needs and data analyses.
- What are the relevant standards and what rules do they stipulate?
- What are the critical points for my solution?
- Who will benefit from it and how will it add value in other areas?
Once these questions have been answered, it’s time to search the market for the right provider.
MindTags delivers flexible guidance in buildings
Returning to MindTags, it started life as an idea to develop a new guidance system for blind and visually impaired people. Traditional solutions such as tactile guidance systems only guide users along fixed routes. They do not provide any information and lack the flexibility to cope with spatial or structural changes. So the question was, is there a flexible technology that can be used to describe routes while also providing other information?
The solution is an app that uses Bluetooth technology and has a database to store all the necessary information. One of the things that made this an appealing option is that mobile device usage is still as high as 68% even among 70-year-olds, while blind and visually impaired people use mobile devices for almost everything anyway. The projected increase in user numbers was a key factor: the number of very elderly users who don’t use mobile devices will progressively decline as time goes by. This means the solution adds value by reducing the cost of other support services such as assistants.
Synergies for other user groups
Given the fact that mobile device usage among the population as a whole stands at over 95%, it made sense to develop a system that also provides guidance and information in other formats for other target groups and in other languages. This is easily implemented in the content management system, allowing MindTags to be used by any target group. The system is available for iOS and Android, ensuring high user numbers. Another benefit is instant digital access to information in several languages in all formats. This enables savings on the production of visual information.
Complying with standards and adding value for customers
Accessible solutions must observe the two-senses principle. In buildings, this means multiple versions of the same signs – e.g. with and without braille, color-based guidance systems and pictograms. Since all formats are available in MindTags, it fulfills all of these statutory requirements, adding yet more value thanks to the cost savings achieved by having a single solution on a single device. Blind users benefit from the fact that directions are provided via the headset, so they have one hand free for their cane or guide dog.
No structural alterations are needed to use MindTags in a building. Since the only requirement is to add on Bluetooth systems, building standards do not apply and are thus not an issue. In this respect, the system adds value by simplifying the tendering and implementation processes and enabling significant time and cost savings. Data protection law is also adhered to, since no personal data is required or stored. And the fact that the servers used are located in Germany and other European countries addresses any concerns about IT security.
An important goal for the development team was for customers to be largely able to maintain and update the product by themselves. This means they are not tied to the provider and follow-on costs are kept to a minimum. The system can also be used offline – Internet access is only needed for the initial data download and for occasional updates of the information.
Furthermore, the system can connect to any device and provide access to its data through MindTags – for example the departure and arrival information displayed on digital information boards at public transportation stops. The fact that the information is downloaded means it can be accessed at a later point in time, avoiding the need for duplicate structures and allowing it to be used anywhere. The only cost is an annual hosting charge.
MindTags provides a user-friendly, affordable solution that adds value for different target groups. The project approached the plethora of regulations as an opportunity rather than a constraint – the best planning and development solutions often come from thinking outside the box.
Contact
Stefan Wilke (author)
Managing Director
MindTags Group GmbH (Durmersheim)
www.mindtags.net