Application for the configuration and adaptation of the Android operating system for the visually impaired
Bruna de Oliveira, Juliana Cristina Braga, Rafael J. Pezzuto Damaceno · 2018 · Proceedings of the 15th International Web for All Conference (W4A 2018) · doi:10.1145/3192714.3192838
Summary
This short paper presents the design and preliminary evaluation of an Android application that allows people with visual impairments (PVI) to configure their device’s accessibility settings using voice commands, bypassing the paradoxical problem that activating accessibility features on a touchscreen device requires navigating an inaccessible visual interface. The authors identify a fundamental bootstrapping problem: Android’s built-in accessibility tools (TalkBack screen reader, magnifier, high contrast) must be activated through visual touch interaction, creating an initial barrier for users who need those very tools to operate the device. TalkBack’s tutorial has been criticised for its linear reading capability that forces users to memorise element positions, and the gesture recogniser fails to distinguish single taps from double taps. The application, developed at the Federal University of ABC in Brazil, defines three configuration levels: Initial Configurations (screen reader settings, speech speed, name, language, and type of impairment — collected via voice to personalise the experience), Partial Case Configurations (visual display settings like font size, accessed by touch for users with partial vision), and Total Case Configurations (all interaction via voice for totally blind users). A "Rules" feature provides navigation commands such as changing impairment type, returning to previous functionality, skipping a step, or exiting the application. The interface was prototyped as flowcharts since it is almost entirely voice-based with minimal visual elements, and was developed using Android Studio 2.0 with the android.speech library for voice recognition.
Key findings
The application was tested with 6 volunteers with visual impairments (2 partial, 4 total; ages 20-68, mean 38) in individual sessions lasting approximately 2.5 hours each. Volunteers spent 10 minutes exploring the tablet with TalkBack, then 55 minutes configuring the device using the standard Android accessibility settings (with screen reader), then 1 hour using the developed voice-based system. The SUS usability score for the developed system had a median near 90, compared to 75 for the comparative evaluation between the two systems. When using the standard configuration system, 6 volunteers could not find or gave up on locating Screen Reader and Call Settings functionalities within 5 minutes — these were buried in sub-items within the Accessibility Menu. The developed system took users directly to relevant configurations, eliminating the navigation burden. Setup time comparison showed that totally blind volunteers completed configuration in an average of 1,098±80 seconds with the developed system versus 1,734±288 seconds with the standard system (63% of the time). For partially impaired users, results were mixed: one took longer with the developed system (154% of standard time) while the other was faster (50%). Qualitative feedback showed that all volunteers rated the developed system favourably for autonomy and satisfaction. The main criticism was repetitive "Rules Moment" announcements that interrupted the flow. Volunteers appreciated being taken directly to useful configurations rather than searching through menus, and one partially impaired user found it particularly useful to configure font size via voice without needing the hearing feature.
Relevance
This paper addresses a practical but often overlooked accessibility problem: the initial device setup barrier for blind users. While mobile operating systems include increasingly sophisticated accessibility features, the assumption that users can visually navigate settings menus to activate those features creates a catch-22 that disproportionately affects new users, those with recent vision loss, and those purchasing new devices. The voice-command approach offers a viable alternative that could be integrated into out-of-box setup experiences on mobile platforms. For accessibility practitioners and mobile OS developers, the key insight is that accessibility configuration should itself be accessible from the moment a device is powered on — not dependent on first enabling the tools that make configuration possible. The three-level configuration architecture (initial shared settings, partial vision settings, total vision settings) provides a design pattern for personalising device setup based on declared needs. As a short paper with only 6 participants on a single device (Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 with Android 4.4 KitKat), this is preliminary work, but the identified bootstrapping problem and the voice-based solution approach remain relevant.
Tags: Android · visual impairment · blind · low vision · TalkBack · voice commands · mobile accessibility · accessibility settings · screen reader · Brazil