A design team at Purdue University won first place in the U.S. Department of Transportation’s $5 million Inclusive Design Challenge for its development of an automated vehicle that accommodates people who have physical and sensory disabilities.
The Purdue University team’s $1 million first-place prize was announced July 26 during an event recognizing the 32nd anniversary of the American with Disabilities Act, a Department of Transportation news release said. ADA is a law that gives people with disabilities civil rights protections.
“Automated vehicles have the revolutionary potential to help seniors and people with disabilities get around more easily — but we must ensure that accessibility is part of the conversation from the very beginning,” Pete Buttigieg, transportation secretary, said in the release. “That’s why DOT started the Inclusive Design Challenge, and we’re thrilled to award these inaugural winners funding to help advance their innovative ideas and improve transportation for people with disabilities.”
The department’s Inclusive Design Challenge sought designs that enhanced mobility for people who have “physical, sensory and cognitive disabilities and to provide equal access to automated vehicles,” the release said.
Purdue University’s project was “Efficient, Accessible and Safe Interaction in a Real Integrated Design Environment for Riders with disabilities (EASI RIDER)” that includes features such as “an in-floor ramp design, an automatically deploying smart ramp, an automated wheelchair docking system and an on-board user-interface,” the release said.
The challenge had two separate parts. The first was an initial written proposal describing the design solution. The 10 semifinalists were selected from the first stage. During the second stage, semifinalists developed prototypes of their concepts, the release reported. Each semifinalist received $300,000.
The remaining $2 million was distributed to three winners, according to the release. In addition to Purdue University's $1 million first-place prize,
AbleLink Smart Living Technologies was awarded $700,000 for its second-place winning WayFinder ADS System, and the University of Maine won $300,000 for its third-place “Ava” (the Autonomous Vehicle Assistant) project.
