GotYourBack: An Internet of Toilets for the Trans* Community

Transgender individuals frequently report negative experiences when attempting to access gender segregated areas, such as toilets. This includes physical and verbal harassment and being denied access to facilities. The existing applications used to locate gender-neutral toilets are limited by the few facilities available. Our research shows that many transgender individuals feel more comfortable using gendered toilets in the presence of people who support gender diversity. In this paper we present GotYourBack, a mobile application, which utilizes this support network and works with an Internet of Toilets ecosystem to improve safe access to gendered toilets. GotYourBack works by utilizing motion sensors and Bluetooth beacons to provide real-time data on toilet capacity and presence of supporters.