design for the blind

Cookware developed specifically for the blind and visually impaired communities requires a good blend of ergonomic and tactile design elements. While today’s product designs across industries shoot for minimalism, ditching bulky gear for a more elemental and bare look, the lack of sensory components overlooks those who might benefit from an ergonomic design, like the visually impaired community. French industrial designer Dorian Famin created Ugo, a two-part induction stovetop, to help streamline work in the kitchen for the blind community.

Ugo is a portable, two-part induction stovetop that helps blind people navigate cooking through haptic dials and an overall ergonomic build. At the center of Ugo’s design, Famin incorporated a chunky stove dial that clicks into place when turned to the right. The size of the stove dial enhances the stove’s ergonomic design by guiding the user’s sense of touch to the stovetop’s main power function. Famin’s stovetop also implements wide, easy-to-grip handles, ensuring safe carrying and boosting the stove’s tactile attributes. Ugo also recites step-by-step recipes to users, weaving in the sense of hearing to aid blind people’s experience in the kitchen. This addition allows room for users to engage with the cookware and accessories already in their kitchen and get cooking while Ugo narrates each step along the way.

While cookware for the visually impaired still has a long way to go, designers notice the lack of inclusive home products and create appliances that streamline everyday tasks. Striking a balance between tactile, bulky stove dials and clever incorporation of sensory elements, Famin’s Ugo boasts accessibility without compromising its refined personality.

Designer: Dorian Famin

The stovetop’s chunky main dial guides the user’s sense of touch to its center.

Wide, easy-to-grip handles enhance Ugo’s ergonomic design.

The two-part construction of Ugo allows users to use their own kitchen accessories when cooking.

The stovetop’s built-in heating coil adds to Ugo’s overall safety factor, allowing for flameless operation.

Braille guides fill out the front panel of Ugo to ensure that users can distinguish between the different dials and buttons.

Today, induction stovetops are widely preferred over gas stovetops. Food cooks a little faster on induction stovetops, they’re easy to clean, and, without any visible flames, they’re generally considered much safer than gas stoves. However, when it comes to designing sleek induction stovetops specifically built for the blind community, the cooktop industry has a long way to go. Conceptualized by Hyeon Park, Curva is an induction stovetop specifically built for use by blind people.

Noticing the shortcomings of induction stovetops when considering the needs of blind people, Park improved several aspects of the traditional induction stovetop that could pose risks and hazards to the blind person who might be using it. The typical induction stovetop boasts a flat surface, which is usually the primary reason buyers choose it– it’s sleek, compact, and minimal in design.

However, the physical dials and knobs of gas stovetops have been replaced with haptic sensors and incognito buttons that cannot be felt by the blind community. Curva doesn’t compromise the induction stovetop’s flat surface but instead incorporates physical elements like ridges and slightly raised hot plates to help guide blind people when cooking.

Each hot plate on Curva’s stovetop is embossed and consists of different textures so that blind people can pinpoint the location of each one. Additionally, the firepower dial has a matte finish while the timer dial has a semi-glossy finish, indicating to the user the knobs’ different functions. Curva also comes equipped with voice controls that register commands for operation. The stovetop’s freeze function relies on weight sensors to keep the cookware lodged into the hotplate.

Designer: Hyeon Park