Moderator: Karen Milchus, Senior Research Engineer and Associate Director of Georgia Tech’s Center for Assistive Technology and Environmental Access (CATEA)

Are there any tools or strategies that you use to make your work tasks easier? Perhaps these include consulting reminder notes, “zooming” in on documents with small text, or using a hands-free method for talking on the phone. While these things might make your job easier, for a person with a disability, they might determine whether or not he or she is able to work. In a study from CATEA, 75% of the employees with disabilities reported that they could not perform all of their job duties without accommodations. Yet, about a third of the respondents reported that they had unmet accommodation needs.

Could some of these unmet needs be addressed with the assistance of emerging technology? Could what we are learning about the “smart home” be applied to a “smart office”? What types of cognitive, manipulation, or sensory aids might be developed? Can telemedicine technologies be applied to provide remote job assistance? We'll brainstorm ways that current Georgia Tech research might be repackaged to assist people with disabilities in the workplace, with the goal of developing some ideas for future funding opportunities.

The Thursday Think Tank is a weekly gathering of the IPaT community to brainstorm about research and stay informed about the work that everyone is doing. This is an informal gathering where the moderator kicks off the weekly topic, but everyone is encouraged to join the discussion.

Ideas for future Thursday Think Tanks? Send comments or suggestions to Russ Clark (russ.clark@gatech.edu) or Maribeth Gandy (maribeth@imtc.gatech.edu)