Glossary

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Interest-Based Personalisation(also: Interest-Based Customization, Special Interest Embedding)

A software design strategy in which content, visuals, or activities are customised to reflect a user's personal interests or preferences in order to increase engagement and motivation. In the context of autism and developmental disabilities, interest-based personalisation…

Internet Voting(also: E-Voting, Electronic Voting, i-Voting)

Internet voting (also known as e-voting or i-voting) is the casting and counting of votes via internet-connected systems, enabling voters to participate in elections from any location without attending a physical polling station. For accessibility, internet voting is significant…

Intersection Detection(also: Junction detection, Corridor intersection recognition)

A computer-vision or sensor-fusion technique used in indoor navigation systems for blind travellers to identify where two or more walkable corridors meet, so the navigation software can update the user's position on a map and issue a turn instruction at the right moment.…

Intracortical BCI(also: iBCI, Intracortical Brain-Computer Interface)

A brain-computer interface that records neural activity directly from inside the cerebral cortex, typically using surgically implanted microelectrode arrays such as the Utah array. Compared with non-invasive EEG-based BCIs, intracortical BCIs offer dramatically higher…

Isotonic Joystick(also: Displacement Joystick, Free-Moving Joystick)

An isotonic joystick is a type of joystick input device that moves freely in response to applied force and returns to a centre position when released. Unlike isometric (force-sensing) joysticks that remain stationary and measure the pressure applied, isotonic joysticks…

Iterative Crowdsourcing(also: Iterative Human Computation, Multi-Round Crowdsourcing)

A human computation workflow in which multiple rounds of crowd workers build iteratively upon each other's responses to collectively achieve higher quality results than any individual worker could produce alone. In each iteration, workers are shown the previous round's outputs…

JAWS(also: Job Access With Speech)

A commercial screen reader for Windows developed by Freedom Scientific (now part of Vispero). JAWS is one of the most widely used screen readers in professional and enterprise settings, providing text-to-speech and braille output for blind and low-vision users. It supports web…

JAWS for Windows(also: JFW)

JAWS (Job Access With Speech) for Windows is a commercial screen reader from Freedom Scientific (now Vispero) that provides speech and braille output for blind and low-vision users on the Windows operating system. The JFW mailing list and user group (jfw.groups.io) is one of the…

JSML(also: Java Speech Markup Language)

An XML-based markup language developed by Sun Microsystems that provides directives for controlling the output of speech synthesis engines. JSML allows developers to specify pronunciation details including speaking rate, volume, pitch, emphasis, pauses, gender of synthetic…

Joystick(also: Adaptive Joystick)

A joystick is an input device with a lever that tilts in multiple directions to control cursor movement on screen, used as an alternative pointing device by people with motor impairments who have difficulty using a standard mouse. Adaptive joysticks come in various forms — some…

Just-in-Time Intervention(also: JITI, Just-in-Time Adaptive Intervention, JITAI)

A technology-delivered intervention that provides the right type and amount of support at the right time, adapting to the user's current context, mental state, and needs. Unlike scheduled therapy sessions, just-in-time interventions use sensing technologies (smartphones,…

Just-in-Time Programming(also: JIT Programming, Real-Time AAC Configuration)

A method of configuring AAC devices in real time by capturing an image of a current activity, social interaction, or object and immediately creating a visual scene display with relevant communication options. Just-in-time programming enables communication partners to take…

Just-in-Time Support(also: JIT Support, Just-in-Time Programming, JIT Vocabulary)

In augmentative and alternative communication, the programming and availability of language concepts at the moment they are needed, rather than requiring pre-planning. Just-in-time support can be mentor-generated (e.g., a conversation partner quickly creating a hotspot on a…

Key Acceptance Delay(also: Acceptance Delay, Key Debounce)

A keyboard accessibility setting that requires a key to be held down for a specified minimum duration before it is registered as a deliberate press. Keys released before the delay period expires are ignored, filtering out brief accidental touches. Key acceptance delay is the…

Key Frame Extraction(also: Keyframe Selection, Key Frame Selection)

A computer vision technique that automatically identifies and selects the most representative or highest-quality frames from a continuous video stream. In accessibility contexts, key frame extraction is used in mobile assistive applications to select well-focused,…

Keyboard Configuration(also: Keyboard Customisation, Keyboard Settings)

The process of adjusting keyboard behaviour and settings to match an individual user's needs and abilities. For people with motor disabilities, keyboard configuration may include enabling accessibility features such as Sticky Keys, Repeat Keys, Bounce Keys, or Slow Keys, as well…

Keyboard Shortcut(also: Hotkey, Keyboard Accelerator, Access Key)

A key or combination of keys that triggers a specific command or function in software without requiring navigation through menus or interface elements. Keyboard shortcuts are essential for accessibility, enabling users who cannot use a mouse—including screen reader users, people…

Keyguard(also: Keyboard Guard, Key Guard)

A rigid cover that fits over a keyboard with holes aligned to each key, allowing users with motor impairments to rest their hands on the surface without accidentally pressing keys. Keyguards help people who have imprecise motor control, tremors, or involuntary movements to type…

Keystroke Saving(also: KS, Keystroke Reduction)

A metric used to evaluate word prediction and word completion systems, measuring the percentage of keystrokes that a user can avoid by accepting system predictions instead of typing each character individually. Keystroke saving is calculated by comparing the number of keystrokes…

Keystroke Saving Rate(also: KSR, Keystroke Savings)

A metric measuring the efficiency of text prediction systems by calculating the percentage of keystrokes saved compared to typing the same text on a standard keyboard without prediction. A KSR of 50% means the user needed only half the keystrokes they would have required…

Keystroke Savings(also: KS, Key Savings)

A metric used to evaluate word prediction systems, measuring the percentage of keystrokes eliminated by accepting predictions compared to typing the full text character by character. While keystroke savings is commonly reported in AAC research, it does not directly translate to…

Kinesthetic Feedback(also: Kinesthetic Haptics, Force Feedback)

A form of haptic feedback that engages the body’s sense of limb position, movement, and applied force — the kinesthetic sense mediated by receptors in muscles, tendons, and joints — rather than cutaneous sensation alone. Kinesthetic displays include force-feedback joysticks,…

Knee-Ankle-Foot Orthosis(also: KAFO)

A lower-limb orthosis that spans the knee, ankle, and foot to provide weight-bearing support and prevent knee buckling or hyperextension in people with significant leg weakness or paralysis - commonly due to stroke, spinal cord injury, post-polio syndrome, or muscular dystrophy.…

Knowledge Base(also: KB, FAQ Database)

A knowledge base is a structured repository of information — typically questions, answers, articles, or how-to guides — that can be searched and browsed to find solutions to problems. In accessibility contexts, knowledge bases serve as important support tools for people with…

Kurzweil Reading Machine(also: KRM, Kurzweil Reader)

A pioneering reading device for blind people invented by Ray Kurzweil in 1976, combining optical character recognition (OCR) with text-to-speech synthesis to read printed text aloud. The original device was as large as a stove and produced mechanical-sounding speech, but it…

LaTeX(also: TeX)

A document typesetting language widely used in academia and STEM fields for producing scientific documents containing complex mathematical formulae. LaTeX encodes mathematical content as plain text markup commands (e.g., \frac{a}{b} for a fraction), which makes it inherently…

Landmark Navigation(also: Navigate by Landmarks, ARIA Landmark Navigation)

A screen reader navigation strategy that allows users to jump between major structural regions of a webpage defined by ARIA landmark roles (banner, navigation, main, complementary, contentinfo, search, form) or their equivalent HTML5 semantic elements. Landmark navigation…

Landmark-Based Navigation(also: Landmark Navigation, Landmark-Based Wayfinding)

A wayfinding strategy that uses recognisable environmental features such as buildings, signs, or other prominent objects as reference points for giving directions, rather than relying solely on street names or turn-by-turn instructions. Research has shown that landmark-based…

Language Localization(also: L10N, Localization)

The process of adapting a product, application, or content for a specific language, culture, and region, including translation, cultural adaptation of imagery and symbols, currency and date formats, and text-to-speech voice support. Language localization is a critical barrier…

Language Model(also: Statistical Language Model, LM)

A computational model that assigns probabilities to sequences of words, enabling prediction of likely next words or sentences in text. In assistive technology, language models power word and sentence prediction systems by learning patterns from training corpora. Modern AAC…

Language Remediation(also: Language Therapy, Language Intervention)

Language remediation is the process of treating language disorders through structured intervention designed to improve a person's ability to understand and produce language. In the context of accessibility and assistive technology, language remediation often involves…

Large Print(also: Large Type, Enlarged Print, Giant Print)

Text or graphic material produced in a larger-than-standard font size to improve readability for people with low vision. Large print typically uses font sizes of 16 to 18 points or larger, though individual needs vary significantly depending on the type and degree of vision…

Large multimodal model(also: LMM, Multimodal AI, Vision-language model)

An artificial intelligence model capable of processing and generating content across multiple modalities, such as text, images, and audio. Examples include GPT-4V and Gemini. In accessibility applications, large multimodal models enable powerful new capabilities like generating…

Last Meter Problem(also: Last Mile Problem, Final Approach Problem)

In assistive technology for blind users, the challenge of bridging the gap between knowing an object exists and physically reaching or interacting with it. While object detection apps can identify what objects are present and approximately where they are, they typically cannot…

Last-Few-Metres Problem(also: Last Few Meters Problem)

The difficulty that blind and low-vision pedestrians face in the final short distance (roughly the last several metres) of a trip, where GPS accuracy degrades, building entrances are ambiguous, and digital navigation apps leave users in the general vicinity of a destination…

Latency(also: Delay, Lag, Response Time)

The time delay between when an event occurs and when its accessible representation is delivered to the user. In real-time captioning, latency is the gap between spoken words and their appearance as text, typically measured in seconds. In screen readers and other assistive…

Leap Motion(also: Leap Motion Controller)

A compact infrared hand-tracking sensor that uses binocular cameras to detect and track finger and hand positions in three-dimensional space without physical contact. In accessibility research, Leap Motion controllers have been used to create touchless interfaces for people with…

Leapfrog Technology(also: Leapfrogging)

The adoption of advanced or cutting-edge technology in contexts that skipped intermediate technological stages, bypassing legacy infrastructure to achieve modern capabilities directly. In assistive technology, leapfrogging refers to the potential for Global South countries to…

Learning by Doing(also: Incidental Learning, Learning-While-Doing)

Learning by doing is a pedagogical and interface design principle in which skills are acquired through the process of performing tasks rather than through separate, explicit instruction. In human-computer interaction, interfaces designed around this principle enable users to…

Lecture Capture(also: Lecture Recording, Classroom Recording)

The process of recording classroom lectures, presentations, or educational sessions using video, audio, and screen capture technology for later review by students. Lecture capture systems range from simple single-camera recordings to multi-camera setups that capture the…

Legion:Scribe(also: Scribe, Legion Scribe)

A crowd captioning system developed at the University of Rochester that enables multiple non-expert typists to collectively produce real-time captions by simultaneously typing partial transcriptions of speech, which are then automatically aligned and merged into a single…

LiDAR(also: Light detection and ranging, Laser scanning)

A remote sensing technology that measures distances by emitting laser pulses and analysing the reflected light, producing precise three-dimensional point clouds of the surrounding environment. In accessibility, LiDAR has multiple applications: it is used to assess pedestrian…

Lifelogging(also: Life Logging, Digital Lifelogging)

Lifelogging is the practice of automatically and continuously capturing data about a person's daily life using sensors, cameras, GPS, and other digital tools, typically worn or carried by the individual. In the context of accessibility, lifelogging data can be used to build…

Lime Lighter

A specialized hardware and software system developed by Dancing Dots, a company led by a blind musician, for reading and navigating music scores accessibly. The Lime Lighter includes features like Bluetooth pedal control for hands-free page turning, Optical Music Recognition,…

Liminality(also: Liminal State, Liminal Period)

A transitional state of being "betwixt and between" established social positions, originally described by anthropologist Victor Turner. In accessibility contexts, liminality refers to the uncertain, in-between period people experience when acquiring a disability, adopting…

Line Tracing

A reading technique in which a user physically follows lines of text with their finger or a pointing device, typically while receiving feedback to maintain accurate positioning. In assistive technology contexts, line tracing is fundamental to finger-based reading systems for…

Linear Discriminant Analysis(also: Fisher Discriminant Analysis, Fisherfaces)

A statistical method used in pattern recognition and machine learning that finds a linear combination of features to best separate two or more classes of objects. In the context of face recognition, LDA (also known as the Fisherfaces method) projects face images into a…

Lingraphica

A commercially available computerized visual communication system designed to help people with aphasia communicate through icon-based sentence construction. Lingraphica provides a vocabulary of purpose-designed icons that users can arrange to form phrases and sentences, with the…

Live Captioning(also: Real-Time Captioning, Live Captions)

The process of converting spoken language into text displayed in real time, enabling Deaf and hard of hearing individuals to follow live audio content such as meetings, lectures, broadcasts, and events. Live captioning may be performed by human stenographers (CART providers),…

Live Captions(also: Google Live Caption, Automatic Captions)

An Android accessibility feature that automatically generates real-time captions for any audio playing on the device, including videos, podcasts, phone calls, and video meetings. Unlike Live Transcribe which captures ambient speech, Live Captions processes audio output from the…