Designing for Everyone

Technology Review
April 12, 2011

Products that are created to suit a few people's needs often turn out to be better for all.
When Whirlpool created its first line of front-loading washers, designers came up with a simple but ingenious idea: to put the appliance atop a 10- to 15-inch pedestal. Users would no longer have to bend so deeply to load their clothes or to fish out the last sock from the back of the drum. The change was ideal for older people and those with bad backs, but it also made the washer easier for everyone to use. That's a core principle of an approach known as "universal design." 
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