Scatter Plot Accessibility

The set of techniques and design considerations for making scatter plot data visualizations accessible to people with disabilities, particularly blind and low-vision users. Scatter plots present unique accessibility challenges compared to line or bar charts because their data points are distributed non-linearly across a two-dimensional space, making sequential navigation and audio representation more complex. Approaches include dynamic scanning radii that treat the fingertip as a scanning window to detect nearby data points, directional lock mechanisms to help users maintain consistent movement direction, and dual-encoding strategies using both pitch and tone duration to convey data density and distribution patterns.