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• Toward Independent Online Shopping of the Visually Impaired Through Voice-based Computer-Using Agent

  Subin Shin, Jeesun Oh, Suhyun Kim, Seoyeon Eom, Sangwon Lee · 2026 · Proceedings of the 2026 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI '26)

  This CHI 2026 paper investigates how visually impaired users might shop online independently by interacting with a voice-based Computer-Using Agent (CUA) — an AI agent built on a Large Multimodal Model (LMM) that can perceive a screen, reason about its contents, and manipulate a…

  visual impairment · blindness · low vision · voice interface · conversational user interfaces

• Investigating the Role of Agentic AI in Facilitating Travel Planning for People with Low Vision

  Ranran Ding, Maryam Bandukda · 2026 · Extended Abstracts of the 2026 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI EA ’26)

  This CHI 2026 Extended Abstract examines a stage of accessible travel that most assistive-technology research has overlooked: the pre-trip planning work people with low vision (PLV) do before ever leaving the house. The authors argue that most existing tools — navigation apps,…

  low vision · wayfinding · agentic AI · large language models · conversational agents

• StepWrite: Adaptive Planning for Speech-Driven Text Generation

  Hamza El Alaoui, Atieh Taheri, Yi-Hao Peng, Jeffrey P. Bigham · 2025 · Proceedings of the 38th Annual ACM Symposium on User Interface Software and Technology (UIST '25)

  This paper introduces StepWrite, an LLM-powered voice-based writing system that enables structured, hands-free and eyes-free composition of longer-form texts. While speech-to-text tools handle short dictation well, composing structured emails or detailed responses requires…

  voice interface · speech-to-text · hands-free interaction · eyes-free interaction · large language models

• Understanding and Improving Drilled-Down Information Extraction from Online Data Visualizations for Screen-Reader Users

  Ather Sharif, Olivia H. Wang, Alida T. Muongchan, Katharina Reinecke, Jacob O. Wobbrock · 2023 · Proceedings of the 20th International Web for All Conference (W4A)

  This full research paper presents a comprehensive investigation into how screen-reader users (SRUs) extract drilled-down information from online data visualizations, and how the VoxLens tool can be improved to support this process. While prior work on VoxLens focused on holistic…

  screen readers · data visualization · voice interface · information extraction · natural language processing

• Exploring Smart Speaker User Experience for People Who Stammer

  Anna Bleakley, Daniel Rough, Abi Roper, Stephen Lindsay, Martin Porcheron, Minha Lee, Stuart Alan Nicholson, Benjamin R. Cowan, Leigh Clark · 2022 · Proceedings of the 24th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS '22)

  This paper investigates how people who stammer experience smart speakers in their daily lives over a three-week period. The researchers deployed Google Nest devices in the homes of 11 participants (mean age 33, recruited through the STAMMA charity in the UK) and collected data…

  stammering · stuttering · speech disfluency · smart speakers · voice interface

• A Collaborative Approach to Support Medication Management in Older Adults with Mild Cognitive Impairment Using Conversational Assistants (CAs)

  Niharika Mathur, Kunal Dhodapkar, Tamara Zubatiy, Jiachen Li, Brian Jones, Elizabeth Mynatt · 2022 · Proceedings of the 24th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS '22)

  This paper presents MATCHA (Medication Action To Check-In for Health Application), a conversational medication management system built as a Google Action for the Google Home Hub, designed specifically for older adults with Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI) and their caregivers…

  mild cognitive impairment · older adults · medication management · conversational assistants · smart speakers

• Understanding Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing Users' Interest in Sign-Language Interaction with Personal-Assistant Devices

  Abraham Glasser, Vaishnavi Mande, Matt Huenerfauth · 2021 · Proceedings of the 18th International Web for All Conference (W4A '21)

  This mixed-methods study investigates Deaf and Hard of Hearing (DHH) users' experiences with and interest in personal-assistant devices (such as Amazon Alexa and Google Home) that could understand American Sign Language (ASL) commands. The research was motivated by the growing…

  deaf and hard of hearing · sign language · personal assistants · voice interface · smart home

• Improving Mealtime Experiences of People with Visual Impairments

  SeungA Chung, Soobin Park, Sohyeon Park, Kyungyeon Lee, Uran Oh · 2021 · Proceedings of the 18th International Web for All Conference (W4A)

  This paper investigates the mealtime challenges faced by people with visual impairments (PVI) and explores how assistive technology can support more independent dining experiences. While most accessibility research for PVI has focused on navigation and object recognition, this…

  visual impairment · assistive technology · independent living · daily living · computer vision

• Deaf Users' Preferences Among Wake-Up Approaches during Sign-Language Interaction with Personal Assistant Devices

  Vaishnavi Mande, Abraham Glasser, Becca Dingman, Matt Huenerfauth · 2021 · Extended Abstracts of the 2021 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI EA '21)

  This CHI 2021 Extended Abstract investigates a narrow but previously unexplored question: if future personal-assistant devices (Alexa, Google Assistant, etc.) could recognise sign language, how should Deaf users wake them up? Current wake-up mechanisms — speaking a wake-word…

  deaf and hard of hearing · sign language · personal assistants · voice interface · conversational user interfaces

• Supporting Older Adults in Locating Mobile Interface Features with Voice Input

  Ja Eun Yu, Debaleena Chattopadhyay · 2020 · Proceedings of the 22nd International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS 2020)

  This demonstration paper presents a voice assistant system built on Android that helps older adults locate specific features on complex mobile interfaces by speaking natural language queries. The system addresses a well-documented challenge: older adults struggle to find…

  aging · mobile accessibility · voice interface · user interface design · assistive technology

• Supporting Selfie Editing Experiences for People with Visual Impairments

  Soobin Park · 2020 · Proceedings of the 22nd International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS)

  This short paper investigates the selfie editing experiences and desires of people with visual impairments (PVI), a topic largely overlooked despite research showing that PVI actively participate in social media and photo sharing. The study has two parts: an online survey of 47…

  visual impairment · social media accessibility · photo editing · voice interface · blindness

• Accessibility for Deaf and Hard of Hearing Users: Sign Language Conversational User Interfaces

  Abraham Glasser, Vaishnavi Mande, Matt Huenerfauth · 2020 · Proceedings of the 2nd Conference on Conversational User Interfaces (CUI '20)

  This short CUI 2020 position paper (3 pages, presented at the CUI@CHI workshop) lays out the research agenda for making voice-based conversational user interfaces (CUIs) — Alexa, Google Assistant, and similar personal assistant devices — accessible to Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing…

  deaf and hard of hearing · sign language · conversational user interfaces · personal assistants · american sign language

• ScratchThat: Supporting Command-Agnostic Speech Repair in Voice-Driven Assistants

  Jason Wu, Karan Ahuja, Richard Li, Victor Chen, Jeffrey Bigham · 2019 · Proceedings of the ACM on Interactive, Mobile, Wearable and Ubiquitous Technologies

  This paper presents ScratchThat, a command-agnostic speech repair system for voice-driven virtual assistants that allows users to naturally correct voice commands without repeating entire queries. Current voice assistants like Alexa, Google Assistant, and Siri lack natural…

  voice interface · speech recognition · conversational agents · error correction · natural language processing

• Vocal Programming for People with Upper-Body Motor Impairments

  Lucas Rosenblatt, Patrick Carrington, Kotaro Hara, Jeffrey P. Bigham · 2018 · Proceedings of the 15th International Web for All Conference (W4A 2018)

  This paper presents VocalIDE, a prototype voice-based integrated development environment (IDE) designed to enable people with upper-body motor impairments to write and edit computer code using speech commands rather than a keyboard. Only 4% of professional programmers have…

  speech recognition · motor impairment · cerebral palsy · spinal cord injury · programming education

• Assessing Virtual Assistant Capabilities with Italian Dysarthric Speech

  Fabio Ballati, Fulvio Corno, Luigi De Russis · 2018 · Proceedings of the 20th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS '18)

  This paper evaluates how well three major smartphone virtual assistants — Apple's Siri, Google Assistant, and Microsoft's Cortana — can understand and respond to Italian dysarthric speech. Dysarthria is a motor speech disorder characterized by slurred, slow, or…

  speech recognition · dysarthria · virtual assistant · voice interface · ALS

• Understanding the Power of Control in Autonomous Vehicles for People with Vision Impairment

  Robin N. Brewer, Vaishnav Kameswaran · 2018 · Proceedings of the 20th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS 2018)

  This University of Michigan study investigates how people with vision impairments perceive control in semi-autonomous versus fully autonomous vehicles, a distinction previous research had not explored. The researchers conducted design-based focus groups with 15 participants…

  blindness · low vision · autonomous vehicles · accessible transportation · independence

• "Siri Talks at You": An Empirical Investigation of Voice-Activated Personal Assistant (VAPA) Usage by Individuals Who Are Blind

  Ali Abdolrahmani, Ravi Kuber, Stacy M. Branham · 2018 · Proceedings of the 20th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS 2018)

  This UMBC and UC Irvine study is one of the first to examine how individuals who are blind use voice-activated personal assistants (VAPAs) like Siri, Amazon Echo, and Google Home, and what barriers they encounter. The researchers interviewed 14 legally-blind adults (ages 21-66,…

  blindness · voice interface · voice assistant · Siri · Amazon Echo

• Towards More Robust Speech Interactions for Deaf and Hard of Hearing Users

  Raymond Fok, Harmanpreet Kaur, Skanda Palani, Martez E. Mott, Walter S. Lasecki · 2018 · Proceedings of the 20th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS 2018)

  This University of Michigan study addresses a largely overlooked accessibility gap: while much research has focused on providing deaf users access to spoken output (via captioning or sign language), almost no work has addressed improving deaf users' ability to provide speech…

  deaf and hard of hearing · automatic speech recognition · deaf speech · crowdsourcing · speech intelligibility

• Deaf, Hard of Hearing, and Hearing Perspectives on Using Automatic Speech Recognition in Conversation

  Abraham Glasser, Kesavan Kushalnagar, Raja Kushalnagar · 2017 · Proceedings of the 19th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS)

  This experience report describes the real-world accessibility challenges encountered by five participants — two deaf, one hard of hearing, and two hearing — including the authors, when using the top seven most popular ASR applications (DEAFCOM, Dragon Dictation, Siri, Virtual…

  automatic speech recognition · deaf and hard of hearing · speech recognition · communication accessibility · voice interface

• VocalIDE: An IDE for Programming via Speech Recognition

  Lucas Rosenblatt · 2017 · Proceedings of the 19th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS '17)

  This student research paper addresses the underrepresentation of people with upper-limb physical impairments in the developer community — while 6.7% of Americans have upper-limb impairments, less than 4% of developers report any physical disability. The author argues that…

  speech recognition · motor disability · programming accessibility · voice interface · upper-limb impairment

• Capti-Speak: A Speech-Enabled Web Screen Reader

  Vikas Ashok, Yevgen Borodin, Yury Puzis, I. V. Ramakrishnan · 2015 · Proceedings of the 12th International Web for All Conference (W4A)

  This paper presents Capti-Speak, a speech-augmented screen reader for web browsing that allows blind users to combine natural language voice commands with traditional keyboard shortcuts. Built as an extension to the Capti Narrator screen reader, Capti-Speak addresses a…

  screen readers · speech recognition · voice interface · web accessibility · blind users

• Social Media Platforms for Low-Income Blind People in India

  Aditya Vashistha, Edward Cutrell, Nicola Dell, Richard Anderson · 2015 · ASSETS '15: Proceedings of the 17th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers & Accessibility

  This groundbreaking study provides the first analysis of social media use and non-use by low-income blind people in rural and peri-urban India—a population largely absent from accessibility research despite India having the world's largest blind population (63+ million). The…

  blindness · social media · low-income · India · Global South

• Evaluation of a Context-Aware Voice Interface for Ambient Assisted Living: Qualitative User Study vs. Quantitative System Evaluation

  Michel Vacher, Sybille Caffiau, François Portet, Brigitte Meillon, Camille Roux, Elena Eluj, Benjamin Lecouteux, Pedro Chahuara · 2015 · ACM Transactions on Accessible Computing (TACCESS)

  This study evaluates Sweet-Home, a voice-controlled smart home system designed to help older adults and people with visual impairments maintain independence at home. The research was conducted in a realistic 30-square-meter smart apartment (Domus) equipped with 150 sensors, 7…

  ambient assisted living · voice interface · smart home · aging in place · visual impairment

• Wizard-of-Oz evaluation of speech-driven web browsing interface for people with vision impairments

  Vikas Ashok, Yevgen Borodin, Svetlana Stoyanchev, Yuri Puzis, I. V. Ramakrishnan · 2014 · Proceedings of the 11th Web for All Conference (W4A)

  This paper presents a Wizard-of-Oz study with 24 blind participants to evaluate the usability and effectiveness of speech-driven web browsing as an alternative to traditional keyboard-based screen reader interaction. The study was motivated by three key shortcomings of current…

  blindness · screen readers · speech interface · voice interface · web navigation

• JustSpeak: enabling universal voice control on Android

  Yu Zhong, T. V. Raman, Casey Burkhardt, Fadi Biadsy, Jeffrey P. Bigham · 2014 · Proceedings of the 11th Web for All Conference (W4A)

  This paper introduces JustSpeak, a universal voice control system for Android that works across all applications without requiring any developer intervention. Unlike Google Now or Siri, which only support pre-defined commands for specific apps, JustSpeak dynamically constructs…

  voice interface · mobile accessibility · blindness · motor accessibility · Android