Research to Market Transition of Mobile Assistive Technologies for People with Visual Impairments
Sergio Mascetti, Dragan Ahmetovic, Cristian Bernareggi · 2019 · Proceedings of the 21st International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS 2019) · doi:10.1145/3308561.3355618
Summary
This paper examines why so few mobile assistive technology research prototypes for people with visual impairments ever reach end users, and shares practical lessons from the authors’ experience developing and distributing three iOS apps through EveryWare Technologies, a university spin-off from Università degli Studi di Milano. The three apps are: TypeInBraille, which replaces the standard on-screen keyboard with a Braille-based input method enabling faster and more accurate text entry; MathMelodies, a didactic app for primary school children to practice mathematics through multimodal interaction using audio icons, screen reader support, and Braille display compatibility; and iMove, a mobility app providing on-demand position information, nearby points of interest, and geo-referenced audio notes, downloaded over 300,000 times by December 2018. Each app followed a different distribution model: TypeInBraille used business-to-consumer commercialization via the App Store at .99; MathMelodies was crowdfunded through Indiegogo; and iMove was sponsored by Retina Italia ONLUS, an Italian nonprofit. The paper situates these experiences within a broader analysis of the target population, noting that the WHO estimates 285 million people worldwide have visual impairments, but the actual market for any specific assistive app is 2-3 orders of magnitude smaller than the general mobile app market due to population fragmentation by needs, capabilities, and platform preferences.
Key findings
The paper identifies several critical characteristics of the assistive technology market that researchers must understand before attempting commercialization. The target population is not homogeneous — blind users require audio/haptic interaction while low vision users prefer to use residual sight, and even within blind users there are relevant differences (congenitally blind people are more likely Braille readers than late blind people). This fragmentation means each AT app serves only a population segment, further shrinking the viable market. iOS devices have been historically more adopted by people with VI than Android — a LightDetector app downloaded 2,100 times on iOS versus only 73 times on Google Play over the same period. The paper evaluates six distribution models: B2C commercialization (sustainable only with low initial costs), grant funding (reduces risk but constrains scope), crowdfunding (doubles as advertising but most donors are not from the target population), sponsorship by nonprofits (lowest overhead, worked best in their experience), nonprofit/corporate free distribution, and advertising (ineffective due to small population and visual ads being inaccessible). A key insight is that the transition to market creates a beneficial feedback loop for research: iMove’s 61,000+ users over 15 months generated usage data revealing that 44% used accessibility features, users fell into four distinct clusters, and only 25% matched the originally anticipated use pattern — insights impossible to obtain from typical small-scale lab studies.
Relevance
This paper addresses a persistent gap in accessibility research: the "valley of death" between academic prototypes and products that actually reach disabled users. For researchers, it provides a pragmatic framework for thinking about commercialization before starting a project — understanding population size, fragmentation, platform preferences, and sustainable funding models. The finding that sponsorship by disability-focused nonprofits was the most effective distribution model is particularly actionable, as it aligns mission-driven organizations with research teams while reducing entrepreneurial risk. The observation that Apple integrated its own Braille input method into iOS 8 after several third-party apps (including TypeInBraille) demonstrated demand illustrates how AT research can influence mainstream platform accessibility. For accessibility practitioners and organizations, the paper highlights that simply building good assistive technology is insufficient — sustainable distribution, maintenance across OS updates, localization (including adapting Braille encodings across languages), and stakeholder engagement are all essential for the technology to actually help people.
Tags: assistive technology · visual impairment · mobile accessibility · technology transfer · blind · low vision · app development · braille · orientation and mobility · STEM accessibility