Transcript for the Piece Audio version of Universal Design in Japan

UNIVERSAL DESIGN IN JAPAN
Producer: Ross Chambless
RossChambless@hotmail.com

HOST:
UNIVERSAL DESIGN IS A CONCEPT THAT?S BECOMING A TREND ALL OVER THE WORLD. IT?S AN APPROACH TO DESIGNING PRODUCTS, FACILITIES, SERVICES AND ENVIRONMENTS INTENDING TO MAKE THEM AS USABLE AS POSSIBLE FOR AS MANY PEOPLE AS POSSIBLE, REGARDLESS OF AGE, GENDER, CULTURE, OR PHYSICAL CONDITION. THE IDEA IS ATTRIBUTED TO AN AMERICAN ARCHITECT NAMED RONALD MACE, WHO DEVELOPED SEVEN PRINCIPLES OF UNIVERSAL DESIGN IN THE 1980?S.
BUT ONE THING NOT OFTEN CONSIDERED ABOUT UNIVERSAL DESIGN, IS ITS AFFECT ON OUR EARS AND OUR EVERYDAY SOUND ENVIRONMENT. FACILITIES AND PRODUCTS ARE INCREASINGLY USING AUTOMATED VOICES OR SOUNDS TO HELP THE HARD-OF-HEARING OR THE BLIND. BUT IN JAPAN THESE FUNCTIONS REACH A WHOLE NEW LEVEL.

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(REPORTER) ROSS CHAMBLESS:
ABOUT THREE HOURS BY TRAIN FROM TOKYO IS MATSUMOTO, THE CITY WHERE I?M LIVING. ARRIVING AT THE STATION? COMMUTERS ARE LINED UP IN FRONT OF TICKET MACHINES?[BACKGROUND SOUNDS]

UPON EXITING THE STATION, A TRUCK WILL WARN YOU THAT IT?S TURNING A CORNER? [TRUCK BEEPING SIGNAL]

NEXT, YOU STOP TO GET A DRINK FROM A VENDING MACHINE?[MACHINE]

AT A NEARBY CROSSWALK? THE CROSSING SIGNAL TELLS YOU WHEN IT?S SAFE TO CROSS THE STREET? [STREET SIGNAL]

WALK A LITTLE FURTHER? AND CARS ARE EXITING A PARKING GARAGE? [CARS EXITING]

GO INSIDE THE NEAREST OFFICE BUILDING? THERE?S A MACHINE SELLING PARKING VALIDATIONS? AND NEXT TO THAT IS AN ELEVATOR? [MACHINE AND ELEVATOR]

ACCORDING TO VARIOUS JAPANESE COMPANIES? LIKE TOSHIBA? WHO STARTED MAKING VOICE ASSISTIVE ELEVATORS IN THE EARLY 80?S? THE TREND OF UNIVERSAL DESIGN IS INCREASING? AND WITH IT THE DEMAND FOR AUTOMATIC ANNOUNCEMENTS. TOSHIBA SAYS THEY HAVE AROUND 40,000 UNITS OPERATING IN JAPAN NOW? STILL OTHERS SAY JAPAN?S UNIQUE SOCIAL HABITS?HAVE MUCH TO DO WITH THEIR CURRENT SOUND ENVIRONMENT? SHINICHIRO IWAMIYA? A PROFESSOR OF ACOUSTIC DESIGN AT KYUSHU UNIVERSITY? STUDIES JAPAN?S SOUNDSCAPE AND HAS NOTED THE RISING SOUNDS OF UNIVERSAL DESIGN OVER THE PAST 20 YEARS?

IWAMIYA: ?JAPANESE DON?T LIKE TO SAY DIRECTLY TO OTHER PEOPLE. THEY PREFER TO USE A PUBLIC ANNOUNCEMENT.?

ROSS: PUBLIC ANNOUNCEMENTS ARE EVERYWHERE IN JAPAN? AND SOMETIMES IT?S HARD TO TELL WHERE THE VOICES ARE COMING FROM?

STANDUP: ROSS: [RIGHT NOW THERE?S AN AIRPLANE FLYING AROUND BROADCASTING SOME KIND OF RECORDED MESSAGE, A PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT OR SOME KIND OF SALE AT A LOCAL STORE. SO I?VE BEEN TRYING TO CHASE IT, BUT IT JUST FLEW AWAY.]

ROSS: SOMETIMES THE EXTENT THE JAPANESE ARE USING THESE AUTOMATED ANNOUNCEMENTS ARE? WELL? SURPRISING. LIKE AT THIS CROWDED SKI RESORT WHERE THIS CHAIRLIFT TELLS SKIERS WHEN TO MOVE FORWARD. BUT SOMETHING ELSE THAT?S TAKING UP THIS TREND IN JAPAN ARE HOUSEHOLD APPLIANCES.

SEKI: [SEKI WITH VOICE OVER] ?AFTER A LONG DAY AT WORK, I?M ALWAYS EXCITED TO HEAR MY BATHTUB TELLING ME THE WATER?S READY.]

ROSS: YOSHIHIRO SEKI, A LOCAL PUBLIC EMPLOYEE IN MATSUMOTO? ALSO HAS A REFRIGERATOR THAT TELLS HIM WHEN HE?S LEFT THE DOOR OPEN.

SEKI: [VOICE OVER?] [?AT FIRST SOME PEOPLE DIDN?T LIKE THE TALKING MACHINES. BUT NOW THE MACHINES AND OUR HEARTS ARE CONNECTING. MOST JAPANESE ARE GETTING OLDER NOW, AND THEY MAKE OUR LIVES MORE AFFLUENT AND CONVENIENT. I THINK THERE?S POTENTIAL FOR MORE APPLIANCES TO SAY THINGS.]

CAMPBELL: ?I?M NOT SURE IF WE NEED IT, BUT WE?RE GOING TO HAVE TO LIVE WITH IT?

ROSS: THAT?S NICK CAMPBELL.. A SPEECH SCIENTIST HERE AT ATR?JAPAN?S ADVANCED TELECOMMUNICATIONS RESEARCH INSTITUTE INTERNATIONAL NEAR KYOTO?

CAMPBELL: ?HUMAN BEINGS LIKE TO TALK. THEY LIKE TO USE THEIR VOICES, THEY LIKE TO INTERACT. SO IF MACHINES ARE GOING TO WORK WITH PEOPLE, MACHINES SHOULD MAYBE TALK WITH PEOPLE. ON A SOCIAL LEVEL AS WELL AS AN INFORMATIONAL LEVEL. OII?YOUR REFRIGERATOR DOOR IS OPEN. THAT?S A SERIOUS WARNING, YOUR ICE CREAM IS GOING TO MELT.?

ROSS: UNDER A GRANT FROM JAPAN?S MINISTRY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY? CAMPBELL IS DEVELOPING A VOICE SYNTHESIS PROGRAM? THAT AMONG OTHER THINGS? COULD HELP PRODUCTS ACCOMMODATE PEOPLE BETTER BY USING NATURAL VOICES THAT CHANGE DEPENDING ON THE SITUATION AND WHO IS LISTENING? HIS PROGRAM IS CALLED N-A-T-R, OR NATR?AND IT USES RECORDINGS OF REAL HUMAN VOICES? CAMPBELL RELATES THE POSSIBILITIES TO IN-CAR NAVIGATION SYSTEMS.

CAMPBELL: ?IF I?M CRUISING ALONG SLOWLY IN THE COUNTRY SIDE, AND NAVIGATOR SAYS TO ME THERE?S A CHURCH COMING UP IN 5 MINUTES YOU WANT TO TURN LEFT?. THAT SHOULD BE A DIFFERENT KIND OF SPEAKING STYLE FROM WHEN I?M CRUISING ON THE FREEWAY, AND ?THERE?S AN INTERSECTION ON THE FREEWAY, YOU HAVE TO TURN RIGHT NOW?. COMPUTER VOICE SYSTEMS ? ARE ONLY BEGINNING TO HAVE THAT KIND OF AWARENESS.?

ROSS: UNIVERSAL DESIGN CAN OF COURSE BE HEARD IN THE U.S. NOW? THE AMERICANS WITH DISABILITIES ACT REQUIRES ALL ATM MACHINES TO HAVE AUTOMATIC VOICE ASSISTANCE? AND CLEARLY, MANY OF THESE EVOLUTIONS IN OUR TECHNOLOGIES? SO TO SPEAK, ARE NECESSARY? AND AS UNIVERSAL DESIGN BECOMES MORE CONVENTIONAL? PERHAPS IT WON?T SEEM STRANGE TO HEAR YOUR HITACHI TOASTER OVEN GIVING YOU THE TIME OF DAY?BUT SHINICHIRO IWAMIYA SAYS THE JAPANESE APPRECIATION FOR LITTLE JINGLES AND AUTOMATED VOICES? MAY BE HARD FOR FOREIGNERS TO UNDERSTAND?

IWAMIYA: WE ARE FAMILIAR WITH THE SOUND ENVIRONMENT IN JAPAN?SO WE THINK IT?S ORDINARY. BUT FROM A DIFFERENT POINT OF VIEW, SOME SOUNDS ARE VERY STRANGE OR CURIOUS, OR MAYBE SOME FOREIGNERS ARE LAUGHING? ABOUT THE USATION OF SOME JAPANESE SOUND?

ROSS: THEN AGAIN? MAYBE THE WAY THE JAPANESE HAVE ADOPTED UNIVERSAL DESIGN SO STRIDENTLY? CAN TEACH US SOMETHING ABOUT MAINTAINING HARMONY? AND CARING FOR EACH OTHER BETTER EVERYDAY? EVEN IF MEANS A LITTLE MORE ELECTRONIC CHATTER.

IN MATSUMOTO, JAPAN? I?M ROSS CHAMBLESS

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