Glossary

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Conductive Filament(also: Conductive 3D printing filament, Conductive PLA)

A specialized 3D printing material that conducts electricity, enabling printed objects to interact with capacitive touchscreens. In accessibility applications, conductive filament can be embedded in otherwise non-conductive 3D printed objects — such as tactile maps or overlays —…

Conductive Ink(also: Conductive Paint, Electrically Conductive Ink)

An ink or paint formulated with electrically conductive materials such as silver, carbon, or graphene that can carry an electrical signal when applied to a surface. In accessibility applications, conductive ink is used to create touch-sensitive areas on physical objects like…

Confidence Indicator(also: Confidence Score, Uncertainty Indicator)

An interface element that communicates how certain an AI or automated system is about a given output, helping users decide how much to trust the result. In accessibility tools for blind and low-vision users, confidence indicators are especially important because users cannot…

Confusion Matrix(also: Error Matrix)

A table used to characterize the accuracy of an input system by showing the probability that an intended signal will be correctly recognized versus misinterpreted as a different signal. In assistive technology, confusion matrices are used to map the error patterns of alternative…

Connected TV(also: Smart TV, Internet TV, CTV)

A television set or set-top box that can connect to the Internet, providing access to interactive features beyond traditional broadcast content including streaming applications, electronic programme guides, web browsing, and app stores. Connected TVs present significant…

Constructive Exploration

Constructive exploration is an interactive learning method in which a user is guided by a computer system to physically build a representation of spatial information using building blocks or other tangible objects, rather than passively receiving descriptions or studying…

Content Description(also: contentDescription, Android Content Description)

A text attribute on Android UI elements that provides an accessible label for screen readers like TalkBack. Content descriptions serve the same purpose as alt text on web images — they convey the meaning or function of visual elements to users who cannot see them. For…

Content Extraction(also: Web Content Extraction, Text Extraction)

The process of separating meaningful content from the surrounding structural markup, navigation elements, and boilerplate text on a web page. For assistive technology users, content extraction is valuable because it allows them to focus on the substantive information on a page…

Content Re-Rendering(also: Content Transformation, Accessible Re-Rendering)

The process of taking content from one format or presentation and transforming it into a different format that is more accessible or usable for a specific audience. In accessibility, content re-rendering typically involves converting visually-encoded information (images, PDFs,…

Content Summarization(also: Text Summarization, Automated Summarization)

The process of condensing longer text content into shorter, focused summaries that capture the essential information. In accessibility contexts, content summarization addresses the information overload that screen reader users face when navigating verbose or redundant web…

Content Transcoding(also: Content Adaptation, Content Transformation)

The process of automatically modifying web content to make it more accessible or usable for specific users or devices. Content transcoding can involve restructuring HTML, modifying CSS styles, replacing images with text alternatives, simplifying page layouts, or converting…

Content tagging(also: Structural tagging, Semantic tagging)

The process of adding structural markup to document content that identifies the role and meaning of each element. In PDF accessibility, content tagging involves marking regions of a document as paragraphs, headings, lists, tables, figures, or artifacts so that assistive…

Context Awareness(also: Context-Aware Computing, Situational Awareness)

The capability of a system to sense and respond to its environment without requiring explicit input from the user. In assistive technology, context-aware systems infer what a user is doing based on sensor data—such as camera images, motion sensors, or object tracking—rather than…

Context-Appropriate Technology(also: Appropriate Technology, Context-Appropriate AT)

Technology, particularly assistive technology, that is designed or selected to fit the specific social, economic, cultural, and environmental context in which it will be used. Context-appropriate technology considers factors such as local infrastructure, available materials,…

Contextual Reinforcement(also: Header Reinforcement)

A technique in aural and non-visual rendering of tabular data where column headers, row labels, or other structural context is repeated alongside data values to help users understand the relationships between cells. Without contextual reinforcement, a screen reader might…

Continuous Motion Input(also: Gesture Typing, Swipe Input)

A text entry method where the user traces a continuous path across an on-screen keyboard, passing through the desired letters or keys without lifting their finger. This approach can be faster than discrete tapping and is particularly beneficial for users with motor impairments…

Continuous Voice Control(also: Continuous Vocal Control, Proportional Voice Control)

A voice interaction paradigm in which vocal parameters such as pitch, loudness, vowel quality, and timbre are used to provide smooth, proportional, real-time control of a system, as opposed to discrete voice commands that trigger specific actions. Continuous voice control is…

Contrastive Decoding(also: Visual Contrastive Decoding, VCD)

Contrastive decoding is a technique for reducing hallucinations in large language model and multimodal AI outputs by comparing token probability distributions across different input conditions. The core principle is that tokens genuinely grounded in the input content will change…

Control Surface(also: Hardware Controller, Mixing Console Controller)

A control surface is a hardware device with physical knobs, sliders, and buttons that maps to the controls of a software application, most commonly a digital audio workstation (DAW). For people with visual impairments, control surfaces provide essential tactile access to…

Conversational Agent(also: Chatbot, Virtual Assistant, AI Assistant)

A software system that uses natural language processing to engage in dialogue with users, answering questions and providing information through text or speech. In accessibility contexts, conversational agents offer potential for flexible, on-demand information access that can…

Conversational Assistant(also: Voice Assistant, Virtual Assistant, Intelligent Personal Assistant)

A software application that uses natural language processing and speech recognition to interact with users through spoken or typed conversation, providing information, performing tasks, and controlling devices. Examples include Google Assistant, Amazon Alexa, Apple Siri, and…

Conversational Glanceability(also: Conversational Layout Support)

A proposed design approach that uses conversational AI agents to provide blind and visually impaired users with the equivalent of visual glanceability—the ability to quickly scan and identify content of interest on a page. Sighted users can rapidly skim visual layouts to locate…

Conversational Interface(also: Conversational UI, Voice User Interface, VUI)

A user interface that enables interaction through natural language, either spoken or typed, allowing users to communicate with a system using conversational dialogue rather than traditional graphical controls. Conversational interfaces include voice assistants, chatbots, and…

Conversational Interface(also: Conversational UI, Conversational User Interface, Chat Interface)

An interface that enables interaction through natural language dialogue, either spoken or text-based, rather than through traditional graphical controls like buttons and menus. Conversational interfaces are significant for accessibility because they can reduce cognitive load,…

Convivial Tools(also: Conviviality)

A concept from philosopher Ivan Illich describing tools that are easy to learn through use, allow users to decide when and how to use them, and can adapt to individual preferences. In accessibility contexts, convivial tools are malleable technologies that empower users—including…

Cooperative Evaluation(also: Cooperative Usability Evaluation, Modified Think-Aloud)

A usability evaluation method in which the researcher and participant work together as collaborators rather than following a strict observer-subject protocol. Unlike standard controlled experiments, cooperative evaluation allows participants to think aloud, ask questions, and…

Copilot (Shared Control)(also: Gaming Copilot, Assistive Copilot)

In shared-control video gaming, the copilot is the secondary actor who supports the pilot (the primary player, typically a person with a disability) by taking over game actions the pilot cannot perform. A copilot can be a human partner — often a family member, friend, or trained…

Coping Strategies(also: Coping Tactics, Workaround Strategies)

The techniques and approaches that users with disabilities develop to navigate around accessibility barriers they encounter on the web and in digital interfaces. Expert screen reader users, for example, employ strategies such as using element lists, virtual search, heading…

Core Haptics

Apple's iOS framework for designing and playing custom vibrotactile patterns on iPhone using the Taptic Engine. Core Haptics lets developers synthesize transient 'taps' and continuous vibrations, vary intensity and sharpness over time, and synchronize haptics with audio using…

Corneal Reflection(also: Pupil-Center Corneal Reflection, PCCR)

An eye tracking technique that works by shining a near-infrared light at the eye and measuring the relationship between the reflection off the cornea (the bright spot called the glint) and the center of the pupil. As the eye rotates to look at different screen positions, the…

Cosmesis(also: Cosmetic Cover, Prosthetic Cosmesis)

A covering applied to a prosthetic device that is designed to make the prosthesis look more natural or socially acceptable, and sometimes to improve grip or functionality. Cosmeses are available in a limited range of skin tones, which raises significant equity concerns—people…

Creativity Support Tool(also: CST, Creative Tool)

Software designed to enhance, facilitate, or augment human creative processes such as drawing, writing, music composition, photography, and design. Creativity support tools range from simple drawing applications to complex AI-powered systems that generate content or provide…

Crip Technoscience(also: Critical Disability Technoscience)

A framework articulated by Aimi Hamraie and Kelly Fritsch that examines how disabled people engage with, repurpose, and create technologies from their own embodied knowledge and political standpoints. The Crip Technoscience Manifesto advocates for technology research and design…

Cross-Checking(also: Cross-Verification, Multi-Tool Verification)

A verification strategy used by blind and low vision people to assess the reliability of AI-generated image descriptions by comparing outputs from multiple AI tools, taking photos from different angles, using non-visual senses, or consulting sighted individuals. BLV users have…

Cross-Modal Transfer(also: Cross-Modal Perception, Sensory Substitution)

Cross-modal transfer refers to the ability to recognize or process information received through one sensory modality (such as touch or hearing) based on experience gained through a different modality (such as vision). In accessibility and assistive technology, cross-modal…

Cross-Referencing(also: Verification by Comparison)

A strategy used by blind people to verify AI output by comparing information from multiple sources or against prior personal knowledge. In the context of privacy tools, participants suggested that assessment descriptors describing multiple objects in a familiar space would…

Cross-Representation Highlighting(also: Synchronized Highlighting, Linked Highlighting)

A user interface technique that synchronizes selections across multiple representations of the same data, so that selecting an element in one view automatically highlights the corresponding element in all other views. In accessible tools, cross-representation highlighting helps…

Crossing-Based Interaction(also: Goal Crossing)

An alternative to traditional point-and-click interaction where users select a target by dragging across its boundary rather than tapping or clicking on it. Instead of requiring a precise tap within a target area, crossing-based interaction registers a selection when the user's…

Crowd Accessibility(also: Crowdsourcing for Accessibility, Human-Powered Access Technology)

An approach that combines human intelligence with machine intelligence to create accessible content and services for people with disabilities. In crowd accessibility, micro-tasks that automated systems cannot yet perform reliably — such as describing images, identifying objects,…

Crowdsourcing Accessibility(also: Accessibility Crowdsourcing)

The practice of using distributed groups of people, often through online platforms, to collect, label, or improve accessibility-related information at scale. Examples include using crowd workers to audit bus stop landmarks via Google Street View, label images for alt text,…

Cued Speech(also: Cued Language)

A visual communication system that combines mouth movements of speech with hand shapes and positions (cues) near the face to make spoken language visually accessible. Unlike sign language, which is an independent language with its own grammar, cued speech represents the phonemes…

Cueing(also: External Cueing, Sensory Cueing)

In rehabilitation, cueing is the delivery of external sensory stimuli - visual, auditory, or somatosensory - that guide or trigger a motor action. Cueing is used most prominently in Parkinson's disease, where basal ganglia dysfunction impairs internally generated movement…

Cultural Heritage Accessibility(also: Heritage Accessibility, Accessible Cultural Heritage)

The practice of making cultural heritage sites, monuments, museums, and artifacts accessible to people with disabilities through physical modifications, assistive technologies, and alternative formats. This includes tactile reproductions of artworks and architectural features,…

Currency Accessibility(also: Accessible Currency, Banknote Accessibility)

The design of physical money — coins and banknotes — so that people with visual impairments or other disabilities can independently identify and use different denominations. Many countries produce banknotes in different sizes, colours, or with tactile features (raised print,…

Cursor Assistance(also: Pointer Assistance, Mouse Assistance)

Software techniques that modify cursor behavior to make pointing and clicking easier for users with motor impairments. Cursor assistance encompasses a range of approaches including enlarging the effective target area (area cursors, bubble cursors), making targets "sticky" so the…

Cursor Freeze(also: Pointer Freeze, Steady Clicks)

An assistive technology technique that locks the cursor position in place during mouse button clicks, preventing the cursor from moving between the press and release of the button. This addresses a common source of errors for users with motor impairments who may involuntarily…

Cursor Tethering(also: Cursor Sync, Cursor Following)

A collaborative editing feature that automatically synchronizes one user's cursor position to match another user's cursor location in a shared document or code file. Unlike visual Follow mode (which syncs the viewport but not the actual cursor), cursor tethering moves the…

Cyber Crumb(also: Digital Crumb, Electronic Breadcrumb)

A concept in accessible wayfinding where tiny, inexpensive solar-powered digital chips are placed along building walkways like a trail of breadcrumbs, storing location-specific information that can be wirelessly transmitted to assistive devices. Developed by David Ross and…

CyberGlove(also: CyberGlove II)

A wearable motion-capture device in the form of a lightweight, elastic glove instrumented with bend sensors that measure the angles of finger joints during hand movement. CyberGloves are widely used in sign language research, virtual reality, and rehabilitation to record…

Cyborg(also: Cybernetic Organism)

A being that integrates both organic and technological components, extending human capabilities through mechanical or digital augmentation. In disability studies and accessibility research, the cyborg concept has been applied to understand how people with disabilities who use…