Project MANA: Tactile Wearable Navigation for Queen Victoria Market

White canes and companion assistance are the default navigation tools for visually impaired people in complex public spaces — but both require either extensive spatial memorisation or surrendering autonomy to another person. Neither is ideal in an environment like QVM, which is loud, crowded, irregular in layout, and changes seasonally.

The design challenge was creating directional feedback perceptible in that high-noise sensory environment, without being stigmatising or requiring the user to carry extra equipment.

I began with comprehensive field research — interviewing visually impaired market visitors, making observations of navigation patterns, and consulting accessibility experts. This grounded the design in actual lived experience rather than assumptions about what might work.

I used a rapid prototyping approach: developing multiple form factors testing different sensory feedback modalities (vibration frequency, pressure patterns) to understand which provided the clearest directional signal in the ambient noise of the market environment. Each iteration was tested with visually impaired participants.

Developed a series of wearable device prototypes exploring different form factors and feedback mechanisms. Key considerations: comfort during extended wear, intuitiveness of directional cues (could a user interpret 'turn left' correctly on first use?), effectiveness in a noisy sensory environment, and social acceptability — the device needed to not draw unwanted attention.

The final concept combined haptic feedback with a discreet wearable form factor that could integrate with existing personal items.

Validated that wearable tactile technology can provide reliable navigation cues in complex, crowded public spaces. Demonstrated that vibration/pressure cues were interpretable correctly by participants without prior training, offering a more inclusive experience for visually impaired market visitors.