The Critical Use Case Model

Critical Functionalities for Organisations

Sign up to the system and set up billing information
Set geographical bounds of the organisation
Upload floor plan images and generate the navigation graph, as well as edit and update building layouts
Manage any number of buildings / sites, and for each of these manage user access rights for any number of associated users

Critical Functionalities for Users

Sign up to the system and get associated with any number of organisations
Use the system as a guest of an organisation without having to log in
Find the way to a room from another room in the same building, possibly on a different floor
Find the way to a room from another building
Store individual accessibility requirements in their user account
Generate paths suitable for their requirements

Functional Requirements

Organisations should be able to sign up to the system and set up billing information

They should be able to create administrative accounts for their organisation using authorised organisational emails and secure passwords
They should be able to connect administrative accounts with emails and credit cards

Organisations should be able to set the core geographical information for their buildings

They should be able to set the geographical bounds of the organisation
They should be able to associate their individual buildings with geographical locations

Organisations should be able to upload floor plan images and generate the navigation graph, as well as edit and update building layouts

They should be able to upload an image for each floor of a building
The images should be laid over the map and organisations should be able to fine-tune the geographical location and rotation of the images
Organisations should be able to generate an initial graph of nodes corresponding to rooms, doors, staircases etc.
They should be able manually edit the generated graph nodes
They should be able to store information on the types and layouts of rooms in their buildings, such as special computer rooms, conference rooms, tiered rooms such as lecture theatres etc.
They should be able to make both temporary and permanent changes to building layouts at any point in time

Organisations should be able to manage any number of buildings / sites, and for each of these manage user access rights for any number of associated users

Organisations should be able to deploy the pathfinding for their sites and buildings, allowing it to be used to generate paths for the users associated with the organisation
They should be able to generate QR codes that allow non-registered users to utilise the pathfinding
They should be able to create the possibility for users to sign up using organisational tokens and thus be associated with the organisation
They should be able to manage user access rights to their sites and buildings

Users should be able to sign up to the system, enter their accessibility requirements, and get associated with any number of organisations

They should be able to create an account and set their name and personal password
They should be able to connect their account to an email
They should be able to select their special needs from a list of alternatives
They should be able to enter preferences such as avoiding staircases or tiered hallways

Users should be able to use the system as a guest of an organisation without having to log in

They should be able to directly access the system via a QR code distributed by the organisation

Users should be able to find suitable paths to a room from another room both within the same building and across buildings

They should be able to select their destination from a list or from a map interface
They should be able to get directions to a target destination immediately via appropriate entry-points (e.g., clicking the room link on the university MyTimetable application, or scanning a QR code that directs them to a specific room)
They should be able to see the path that was generated for them visually on a map
They should be able to follow step-by-step instructions on how to get to their destination
They should be able to go back to a previous step if they were unable to follow a certain step

User Scenarios

Our product is adaptable to a wide range of applications, including exhibition and conference spaces, universities and schools, hospitals, office buildings, libraries, shopping malls and hotels. Two possible user case scenarios are given below.

Universities and Schools

Disabled literature student Alex has just received the timetable for the new academic year.

They notice that this year they have several lectures in buildings they have never been to, which makes them anxious because they do not know if these buildings and lecture theatres are accessible with their wheelchair.

Unfortunately, the university website is not very helpful, so instead Alex follows the links provided on the timetable application that should show the location of each individual class.

Quickly, Alex realises that not only the locations are shown, but there is an additional feature that allows them to find wheelchair-accessible paths to each of the classrooms, as well as information on the layout of the rooms themselves.

They are very happy and now ready to start the new academic year without worries.

Conference Spaces

The "Pathfinding in Computing" conference takes place in an exhibition space that is made up of different rooms and lecture theatres, food outlets, and common spaces for get-togethers and discussions. Researcher Lena has chosen a few presentations she would like to attend that should be interesting given her field of work. Unfortunately, according to the schedule, several of the presentations are due to take place one right after another in different locations, and Lena's orientation is not great.

To ensure she makes it on time for all the speeches, Lena opens the pathfinding application that was promoted by the conference, logs in with her attendee credentials and then selects the presentations she wants to go to from the conference schedule.

The app loads up a map interface showing her the paths to take, with detailed wayfinding instructions at the bottom for her convenience. Lena follows the plan made for her by the app and arrives at all her destinations in time, while also improving her understanding of the exhibition space's layout