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    Case study · Madrid · 22–24 April 2022

    The ONCE fair that found its way with NaviLens.

    At the 6th edition of Tifloinnova — the largest international fair of accessible technology for blind people, organised by ONCE and the CTI — NaviLens was both exhibitor (stand 12) and the official internal orientation technology of the venue.

    White welcome banner with the «TIFLOINNOVA 2022» logo in navy blue, the power symbol inside the letter O and the isotype made of four triangles in green, red, yellow and blue to the right of the name

    22–24 Apr 2022

    6th edition · Madrid

    Stand 12

    NaviLens · CDC ONCE

    +15 countries

    International exhibitors

    NaviLens

    Official orientation technology of the fair

    The setting

    Tifloinnova 2022
    ONCE · CTI · Madrid

    Tifloinnova is the international fair of accessible technology that ONCE has organised through its Centre for Tiflotechnology and Innovation (CTI) since 2005. Its 6th edition was held at the ONCE Sports and Cultural Centre in Madrid from 22 to 24 April 2022, after two pandemic postponements.

    It gathered exhibitors from more than 15 countries — from makers of canes and screen readers to startups of smart glasses and guide robots — under a clear motto: «the friendly face of technology». NaviLens was present at stand 12, alongside Hable One (13), Bones AG Switzerland, Ambutech and Comde-Derenda, and gave one of the fair's official presentations.

    The unique part: the organisation itself chose NaviLens as the venue's internal orientation system. Each stand carried the NaviLens code on its header next to its number, so any blind visitor could move from one exhibitor to another without assistance, scanning with their phone.

    § The challenge

    Making the accessibility fair itself accessible.

    1. 01

      Orienting a blind audience inside the venue itself

      Tifloinnova fills the ONCE pavilion with dozens of stands, corridors and presentation rooms. For a fair designed by and for blind people, navigating between stands was the first challenge: how do you get from the entrance to stand 12, to the toilets or to the lecture room without human help?

    2. 02

      Demonstrating the technology in real conditions

      A Tifloinnova visitor is no ordinary spectator: they are expert users, CTI-ONCE technicians and international representatives. NaviLens had to be shown on real packaging (Special K, Pringles), on stand signage and inside a wayfinding app such as Grupo ACCEDO's Vision 360º.

    3. 03

      Sustaining three full days of non-stop demos

      Over 22, 23 and 24 April, stand 12 received a continuous flow of low-vision and blind visitors and industry professionals. The demo had to work first time, at any angle, with or without a mask, on any phone model.

    Central corridor of the Tifloinnova 2022 venue with large A-shaped arches lit in green, red and blue neon; above the white header of each stand — Comde-Derenda (17), Ameridian, etc. — the NaviLens colour code appears next to the stand number, allowing visitors to orient themselves from one exhibitor to the next

    § The solution

    One code per stand. The whole fair, navigable.

    ONCE's CTI placed NaviLens codes on the header of every stand, next to the exhibitor number. With the official app, any visitor with visual impairment could scan and instantly know which stand they were at, which company occupied it and what it was showing.

    On top of that base signage, Grupo ACCEDO's Vision 360º app used the same codes to deliver step-by-step guidance between stands: a green arrow pointing to the next exhibitor, distance in metres and a list of recent stops — «Stand 21 Grupo ACCEDO», «Stand 22 CTI-Innov…».

    At stand 12, NaviLens set up a permanent demo with Special K boxes, a Pringles tube and «Scan with NaviLens GO» signs so any visitor could test scanning on real packaging with their own phone.

    § Stand 12

    Three days of queues at the NaviLens stand.

    Header of stand 12 «NaviLens» at Tifloinnova 2022, with a NaviLens code next to the sign and another next to stand 13 «Hable One»; a group of visitors — including one in a camouflage raincoat and another in a yellow anorak — gathers in front of a NaviLens technician in a black polo and mask, beside the «GET THE POWER · NaviLens» rollup
    A Tifloinnova visitor scans with her iPhone a NaviLens code placed on a plinth at stand 12; next to the code, a «Scan with NaviLens GO» sign and two Special K Classic cereal boxes with a NaviLens code and a 1.99 € price tag. The phone screen shows the scan result on a green strip with the text «Stop NaviLens»
    A visitor at Tifloinnova 2022 holds up his iPhone to scan the NaviLens code printed on a Special K «Milk Chocolate» box that a NaviLens technician in a blue surgical mask is handing him; the phone screen shows a green arrow indicating where the code is and, in the background, other visitors with white canes try out demos at the stand
    Demo at Grupo ACCEDO's stand during Tifloinnova 2022: the hands of a woman with brown-painted nails hold an iPhone turned horizontally, its screen reading «NaviLens 360 orientation code — 0.16 m, share new route» on a green strip; next to the phone, a folded card «360 VISION · Personal Route» with the NaviLens code visible

    § Internal wayfinding

    A green arrow from stand to stand.

    The NaviLens codes on each stand's header fed Grupo ACCEDO's Vision 360º app (stand 21), which offered point-to-point orientation inside the venue: «Stop 6692 — Olympic Avenue · Pavilion · 4.21 m», with a green arrow and a list of recent visits.

    For ONCE it was the real-world proof: a blind person could walk Tifloinnova 2022 autonomously, with their own phone, without Bluetooth wristbands or extra hardware.

    Young visitor in a green hoodie and white FFP2 mask holds an Android smartphone with the Vision 360º app open: large green arrow pointing up, text «Stop 6692 · Olympic Avenue — Pavilion · 4.21 m» and, in the «Recent visits» list, entries like «Stand 21 Grupo ACCEDO» and «Stand 22 CTI-Innov…»; in the background, the blue, yellow and green A-shaped arches of the Tifloinnova 2022 venue

    § International visitors

    From the Swiss to the Japanese stand, everyone stopped by NaviLens.

    Older visitor in a blue «Good Maps» polo and a white FaceView mask tries the NaviLens app with an iPhone next to the Bones AG Switzerland and Ambutech Inc. stands, whose headers carry the NaviLens code; in the background, a Bones rollup and, to the right, the venue's glowing green arch

    NaviLens gave one of the official Tifloinnova 2022 presentations within Saturday 23 April's agenda, alongside eLearning Media, Bones AG Switzerland, Biel Glasses, Thinkable, Sensee and BlindShell Matapo, among others.

    § Why it matters

    The CTI-ONCE seal of approval on the technology.

    Validation

    ONCE choosing NaviLens as the official orientation system of its fair — and explicitly recommending it to visitors from the CTI — is equivalent to the most demanding technical seal in the Spanish-speaking assistive-technology sector.

    Integration

    Tifloinnova 2022 showed how NaviLens lives alongside other technologies — Grupo ACCEDO's Vision 360º, BlindShell, Hable One, GoodMaps — without stepping on them: the same signage serves several apps at once.

    Showcase

    Three days of continuous demos in front of exhibitors from more than 15 countries and institutional buyers accelerated later contacts with transport operators, city councils and FMCG brands.

    § And your headquarters?

    Your office can also welcome in 42 languages.

    Tell us about your building, your services and your visitors. We’ll show you how NaviLens would make your office truly accessible.

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