Type and amount of environmental information in urban scene--basic study on the design of intelligence environment

Signs have gained importance as an information mechanism that supports the urban activities in signage, and projects are being actively launched in cities. Urban spaces are already filled with multitudes of signs including directories and signboards, calling for organization of signage as a system and not merely as a collection of individual signs. As a first step for tackling with the objectives, the present study noted the type and amount of environmental information presented in the realm of pedestrians. Our study included (1) investigating the type and amount of information available in the streets including underpass; (2) classifying and organizing signs according to the content of information; and (3) analyzing the relation between different types of information, between situations and signs, and continuity of the signs of the same type. The study revealed that there was a (1) deviation in information offered at various spots on a pedestrian route; (2) multitudes of advertisements and installations other than signs were placed at the same spot using the same method as the public signs; and (3) there were qualitative lack of signs despite many signs in the investigated area. The study thus indicated a need for cross-sectional environmental design for information in place of sign designs and delineates several basic requirements for it.