The importance of the enviromental design
Environmental communication systems help us to make decisions when navigating the built environment. These decisions include understanding the organization of space, knowing one’s location, and learning how to find one’s destination. A signage system that is readable and legible by all users is a fundamental part of environmental communications. In 1997, the US Census Bureau reported that 3.7% of U.S. citizens (7.7 million people) over 15 years of age “had difficulty seeing words/letters” and that “6.6 million people were unable to read printed signs at normal viewing distances.” This statistic jumps to 12.1% for individuals 65 years of age and older. The World Health Organization (2002) reported that worldwide there are approximately 180 million persons with vision disabilities. Signage systems that are designed without taking into account this significant portion of the population leave people “lost in space.”
To date, limited empirical data exists to determine the ideal characteristics for legibility and readability of large format displays like those typically used in buildings and on sites. Many studies have evaluated the legibility of text in small print. Also, a large body of knowledge exists around the legibility of text on standard highway signs. Text size and font type relating to visual acuity have also been studied extensively. We know that a specific font, Sne len is most legible when measuring visual acuity (Garvey, Zineddin and Pietrucha, 2001). But, these findings have limited relevance in the built environment because sign reading and acuity chart reading are very different for two basic reasons. Vision charts are always presented with high contrast whereas signs in the built environment may not be. Acuity charts do not use words, sentences and phrases like those on signs. Finally, while accessibility standards have established guidelines for signs, they are consensus based rather than evidence based. Recent studies contradict many of these guidelines. A summary of the most recent findings is provided below.
Environmental communication systems help us to make decisions when navigating the built environment. These decisions include understanding the organization of space, knowing one’s location, and learning how to find one’s destination. A signage system that is readable and legible by all users is a fundamental part of environmental communications. In 1997, the US Census Bureau reported that 3.7% of U.S. citizens (7.7 million people) over 15 years of age “had difficulty seeing words/letters” and that “6.6 million people were unable to read printed signs at normal viewing distances.” This statistic jumps to 12.1% for individuals 65 years of age and older. The World Health Organization (2002) reported that worldwide there are approximately 180 million persons with vision disabilities. Signage systems that are designed without taking into account this significant portion of the population leave people “lost in space.”
To date, limited empirical data exists to determine the ideal characteristics for legibility and readability of large format displays like those typically used in buildings and on sites. Many studies have evaluated the legibility of text in small print. Also, a large body of knowledge exists around the legibility of text on standard highway signs. Text size and font type relating to visual acuity have also been studied extensively. We know that a specific font, Sne len is most legible when measuring visual acuity (Garvey, Zineddin and Pietrucha, 2001). But, these findings have limited relevance in the built environment because sign reading and acuity chart reading are very different for two basic reasons. Vision charts are always presented with high contrast whereas signs in the built environment may not be. Acuity charts do not use words, sentences and phrases like those on signs. Finally, while accessibility standards have established guidelines for signs, they are consensus based rather than evidence based. Recent studies contradict many of these guidelines. A summary of the most recent findings is provided below.
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