Towards an inclusive virtual dressing room for wheelchair-bound customers

This manuscript reports on a work-in-progress project evolving aside from a main undertaking; that of making a commercial `Internet of Things' style product called “The Virtual Dressing Room (VDR)”. The project targets the process chain from designer and clothing manufacturer to retailer and end-user customers. The VDR has been subject of other publications, thus is introduced only briefly in this manuscript. VDR is a `non-groupware-based' project funded under the Danish National Advanced Technology Foundation. A main goal at conception was reducing returns of online purchased apparel, which, at a reported approximately 40% is crippling the clothing industry. Results from public response surveys (including at The Scandinavian Health & Rehab Messe) to a VDR simulation system clearly indicated how the wheelchair-bound community perceived benefits from the system. This was unexpected and aside from the original VDR project design requisite. Interviews highlighted problems of high street fitting rooms not being sized to accommodate wheelchairs, and often so minimally sized as to not enable a second helping person to be present to support the involved undressing and dressing procedures. Existing online purchasing systems were also considered problematic including a need to improve social networking to enable others Online to view clothes considered for purchase to assist decision making. The production suffered problematic cooperation, coordination, communication, and collaboration that prevented early product. This resulted in additional surveys and the evolution of this additional work-in-progress. Following introducing the VDR, key issues such as interface design, body measurement, and cloth representation in the VDR is discussed. The finding of wheelchair-bound-need is envisioned as a next-generation iteration and is thus the focus of this contribution to position the work-in-progress and invite like-minded interested parties to collaborate towards optimization of a system to realize potentials.