Some of you might remember my visit to AAATE conference where I got excited about the research topic for studying arm movements with wheelchair use uphill, downhill and on un-even surfaces.

Now that maps and location has become hotter and hotter, I return to the topic with an expanded idea. Did you ever have your dream holiday turn into tears because you had to constantly carry your baby AND the babycarriage because the tropical paradise had no ramps, sidewalks or even concrete/asphalt. (don't go to Istanbul with a baby carriage if you're looking for a tranquil holiday). Do you know how difficult it is for a person on wheel chair to go to a place not familiar to him/her because there's no way of knowing where the ramps are. Do you know anyone who injured because his/her usual rollerskate route suddenly got a foot deep dimp on it?

Nokia Maps should introduce a map service for people on wheels, so that they could share information on where to go, what to avoid, road blocks, road construction etc. Some people might be willing to keep the information up-to-date if it was made easy, i.e. uploading info linked to his/her gps position.

Even better, is an automated version of this. Researchers have shown that people using wheelchairs use specific arm gestures for uphill, downhill and steady surface. By linking a monitor to wheelchairs in major locations, one can draw a map of the wheelchairs exact movements on the 2D map PLUS get the altitude data from studying these arm movement patterns.

For the people on wheels it is not enough to know that this road leads to that place, it is crucial, sometimes even vital to know wether to take the left side or the right side of the street. Or at least it is darn annoying have to turn back for 500 meters because your walkway ends in stairs that were not marked on the map.