Abstract: Flow maps represent data over time that connect different locations. A cartographic representation for different vehicle’s flows with color hue variation, ideally, could be well succeed for users having Normal Color Vision (NCV) or having Color Vision Deficiency (CVD). The scientific research about reading flow maps by people having NCV or CVD is not clearly established, mainly when considering the perceptual properties present in the static and dynamic visual variables. This work aims to evaluate and compare the usability (effectiveness, efficiency, and satisfaction) of static and dynamic flow maps reading which were represented by using ordered hues, with 10 people having CVD and with 10 people having NCV. An area located in the city of Presidente Prudente, state of São Paulo, was selected to design eight static maps and eight dynamic maps at 1:5,000 scale. In an experiment conducted in laboratory, the participant’s tasks were select and draw routes between origin and destination places shown on maps. The maps were displayed individually in a tablet with a size of 7 inches, and each task lasted up to 30 seconds. The results showed that the efficacy was similar between the NCV and CVD participants when they were using static or dynamic maps. Higher efficiency was found with the use of dynamic maps among participants having NCV, and higher efficiency was found with the use of static maps among participants having CVD. Additionally, dynamic maps showed a higher level of satisfaction than static maps for groups of NCV and CVD. Different kinds of static and dynamic visual variables can be considered as matter of investigation for future research to represent flow of vehicle in the cities, especially for CVD.

Resumo: O See Color é um sistema de códigos de cores baseado na escrita em Braille para comunicar as cores para pessoas com deficiência visual. Este estudo avaliou a percepção do tema Temperatura por pessoas cegas, utilizando o código See Color em dois mapas táteis israítmicos e a percepção de pessoas com visão normal de cores. Um mapa de temperatura média da Austrália continha 10 classes, mas estes intervalos foram reagrupados em quatro classes no software Corel Draw. O novo mapa foi duplicado no projeto digital em tamanho A4 e incluíram-se os códigos See Color em dois esquemas de cores obtidos no website Color Brewer. Em seguida, os mapas foram impressos a laser sobre papel microcapsulado para produção do relevo tátil. A percepção cromática foi observada, assim como as sensações térmicas que as cores poderiam representar para os participantes cegos (06), para os participantes normovisuais do ensino básico (23) e do ensino superior (20). Nesta pesquisa, os mapas mostraram potencial para fornecer conhecimento espacial para participantes cegos adquiridos e normovisuais com base na percepção de cores e códigos de cores táteis usados como linguagem gráfica.

Abstract: The See Color is a color coding system based on Braille writing to communicate colors to people with visual impairments. This study assessed the perception of the theme Temperature by blind people, by using the See Color code on two isarithmic tactile maps and the perception of subjects with normal color vision. An average temperature map of Australia had 10 classes, but these intervals were regrouped into four classes on Corel Draw software. The new map was duplicated in the digital project in A4 size, both included the See Color code in two color schemes obtained from the Color Brewer website. Subsequently, they were laser-printed on swell paper to produce the tactile relief. The chromatic perception was observed, as well as the thermal sensations that the colors could represent for blind participants (06), normally sighted participants in basic education (23), and normally sighted participants in higher education (20). In this research, the See Color code showed the potential to provide spatial knowledge as a graphic language through colors in color maps for adventitiously blind and for normally sighted participants based on their perception of colors and tactile color codes.