IVU app keeps IGA visitors informed

IVU supplies guidance and information system for IGA 2017

Berlin, 4 April 2017 – This year’s International Garden Show will draw crowds to Berlin with flowers, indoor and outdoor exhibitions and events. An app created by IVU Traffic Technologies AG on behalf of the state of Berlin will help visitors to find their way around the site and discover the various attractions. The application also meets the special requirements of people with visual and physical impairments.

IGA 2017 is Germany’s largest garden exhibition: Visitors to the site of over 100 hectares can expect international themed gardens, varied landscapes and flower shows. The official IGA app, which IVU developed on behalf of the Senate Department for the Environment, Transport and Climate Protection, will provide information on each exhibition and the plants on display by way of an audio guide. To make this possible, special Bluetooth beacons have been installed at around 150 locations. These let the app know exactly where the visitor is, so it can automatically play the audio text for the appropriate attraction.

If they wish, visitors can also explore the exhibition via various tours. The app will take them on predetermined routes to each stop on the tour. If they want to explore the park landscape on their own, they can use the app to navigate towards a specific point. Starting from its current location, the system then calculates the shortest route to the destination in real time and displays it on a detailed map of the site.

The route is calculated entirely on IVU’s servers. In order to guarantee exact guidance, the system has access to high-precision survey data of the IGA site, which as well as GPS coordinates also includes all the structural features of the paths and buildings. This allows it to offer people with visual impairments and wheelchair users routes that meet their requirements, for example by only going via accessible paths. For people with visual impairments, the app has a complete acoustic navigation system including important additional information such as the suitability of paths and potential hazards.

“Thanks to this app, all visitors to IGA 2017 can enjoy the exhibition however they want – families with children as well as older people or people with disabilities,” says Simone Maas, head of the department responsible at IVU Traffic Technologies AG. “Our solution meets the different needs of the users in an ideal manner. We achieved this by drawing on findings from current research projects and cooperating closely with disability organisations.” Organisations involved in the development of the system included Deutscher Blinden- und Sehbehindertenverband e.V. (German Society for the Blind and Visually Impaired).

The app will initially be released for Android and will be available on the Google Play Store with the opening of IGA on 13 April 2017. We will publish the link here.

IVU Traffic Technologies AG has been working for over 40 years with more than 400 engineers to ensure punctual and reliable transport in the world’s metropolises. In growing cities, people and vehicles are constantly on the move – a logistical challenge that calls for intelligent and secure software systems. The integrated standard products of the IVU.suite work to plan, optimise and control the deployment of buses and trains, provide passengers with real-time information, create routes for parcel delivery services, and support businesses in choosing branch locations.
IVU. FACILITATING PUBLIC TRANSPORT.

Press contact:
Dr Stefan Steck
Corporate Communications
IVU Traffic Technologies AG
Bundesallee 88, 12161 Berlin, Germany
T +49.30.85906-386
Stefan.Steck@ivu.com
www.ivu.com

This release was published on openPR.