Reviews

Search results

• Accuracy and Reliability of At-Home Quantification of Motor Impairments Using a Computer-Based Pointing Task with Children with Ataxia-Telangiectasia

  Vineet Pandey, Nergis C. Khan, Anoopum S. Gupta, Krzysztof Z. Gajos · 2023 · ACM Transactions on Accessible Computing

  This paper validates at-home, unsupervised use of Hevelius, a web-based active digital phenotyping system that quantifies motor impairment in the dominant arm through mouse pointing tasks. The study addresses a critical gap: while prior research showed that crowdsourced…

  motor impairment · digital phenotyping · remote assessment · ataxia · pointing tasks

• Enriching Social Sharing for the Dementia Community: Insights from In-Person and Online Social Programs

  Jiamin Dai, Karyn Moffatt · 2023 · ACM Transactions on Accessible Computing

  This paper presents a comparative study of in-person and virtual social programs for people with dementia, examining how the COVID-19 pandemic transformed community-based social engagement. The research centers on "Tales & Travels," a storytelling program hosted by the Westmount…

  dementia · cognitive accessibility · social computing · videoconferencing · caregivers

• It could be better. It could be much worse: Understanding Accessibility in User Experience Practice with Implications for Industry and Education

  Cynthia Putnam, Emma J. Rose, Craig M. MacDonald · 2023 · ACM Transactions on Accessible Computing

  This qualitative study examines how accessibility is understood and practiced within the UX profession through 58 interview sessions with 65 senior UX professionals conducted between 2017 and 2020. Using transitivity analysis from critical discourse analysis, the researchers…

  UX practice · design systems · accessibility education · industry practices · qualitative research

• WordMelodies: Supporting the Acquisition of Literacy Skills by Children with Visual Impairment through a Mobile App

  Dragan Ahmetovic, Cristian Bernareggi, Barbara Leporini, Sergio Mascetti · 2023 · ACM Transactions on Accessible Computing

  WordMelodies is a freely available mobile application designed to teach literacy skills to primary school children, with particular attention to accessibility for children with visual impairments or blindness (VIB). The app was developed through an iterative design process…

  visual impairment · literacy education · mobile apps · children · screen reader

• Never-ending Learning of User Interfaces

  Jason Wu, Rebecca Krosnick, Eldon Schoop, Amanda Swearngin, Jeffrey P. Bigham, Jeffrey Nichols · 2023 · Proceedings of the 36th Annual ACM Symposium on User Interface Software and Technology (UIST)

  This paper introduces the Never-ending UI Learner, an automated system that continuously crawls real mobile applications to learn semantic properties of user interfaces. The system addresses a fundamental limitation of current approaches to UI understanding: most machine…

  machine learning · mobile accessibility · UI semantics · automated crawling · tappability

• WebUI: A Dataset for Enhancing Visual UI Understanding with Web Semantics

  Jason Wu, Siyan Wang, Siman Shen, Yi-Hao Peng, Jeffrey Nichols, Jeffrey P. Bigham · 2023 · Proceedings of the 2023 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems

  This paper introduces WebUI, a large-scale dataset of approximately 400,000 web pages automatically crawled and paired with visual, semantic, and stylistic metadata extracted from the browser engine. The dataset addresses a critical bottleneck in UI understanding research:…

  machine learning · computer vision · UI modeling · web semantics · transfer learning

• Nonverbal Communication through Expressive Objects

  Stephanie Valencia, Mark Steidl, Michael L. Rivera, Cynthia L. Bennett, Jeffrey P. Bigham, Henny Admoni · 2023 · Communications of the ACM

  This paper explores how physical motion through an expressive object — a "sidekick" — can support nonverbal communication for augmented communicators (ACs) who use AAC devices. The work centres on Mark, a co-author with cerebral palsy who has used AAC for over 19 years and…

  AAC · augmentative and alternative communication · cerebral palsy · nonverbal communication · co-design

• From User Perceptions to Technical Improvement: Enabling People Who Stutter to Better Use Speech Recognition

  Colin Lea, Zifang Huang, Jaya Narain, Lauren Tooley, Dianna Yee, Dung Tien Tran, Panayiotis Georgiou, Jeffrey P. Bigham, Leah Findlater · 2023 · Proceedings of the 2023 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI '23)

  This paper investigates how people who stutter (PWS) experience consumer speech recognition systems and demonstrates technical improvements that can significantly reduce errors. The work combines user research with engineering interventions across the speech recognition…

  stuttering · speech recognition · voice assistants · dictation · speech accessibility

• Enhancing Blind Visitor's Autonomy in a Science Museum Using an Autonomous Navigation Robot

  Seita Kayukawa, Daisuke Sato, Masayuki Murata, Tatsuya Ishihara, Hironobu Takagi, Shigeo Morishima, Chieko Asakawa · 2023 · Proceedings of the 2023 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems

  Museums have historically struggled to offer blind visitors the same self-directed, exploratory experience that sighted visitors take for granted. Prior solutions — tactile tours, audio guides, or pre-fixed navigation routes — either require a human escort or constrain visitors…

  blind navigation · autonomous navigation robot · museum accessibility · visual impairment · indoor navigation

• PathFinder: Designing a Map-less Navigation System for Blind People in Unfamiliar Buildings

  Masaki Kuribayashi, Tatsuya Ishihara, Daisuke Sato, Jayakorn Vongkulbhisal, Karnik Ram, Seita Kayukawa, Hironobu Takagi, Shigeo Morishima, Chieko Asakawa · 2023 · Proceedings of the 2023 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems

  Map-based indoor navigation systems for blind travellers (CaBot, NavCog, BLE-beacon apps) work well when a prebuilt map exists, but building and maintaining those maps is labour-intensive and has only been done for a tiny fraction of the world's buildings. Engel et al. reported…

  map-less navigation · blind navigation · indoor navigation · intersection detection · sign recognition

• Visualization of Speech Prosody and Emotion in Captions: Accessibility for Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing Users

  Caluã de Lacerda Pataca, Matthew Watkins, Roshan Peiris, Sooyeon Lee, Matt Huenerfauth · 2023 · Proceedings of the 2023 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI '23)

  This CHI 2023 paper tackles a dimension of captioning that has gone largely unaddressed for four decades: captions depict words but strip out the prosody and emotion carried by a speaker's voice. The authors argue that while automatic speech recognition (ASR) has reduced word…

  captioning · deaf and hard of hearing · prosody · affective computing · videoconferencing accessibility

• Born Accessible: Exploring Organizational Practices at CNIB

  Bob Dodd · 2022 · Research Paper

  An exploration of how the Canadian National Institute for the Blind (CNIB) embeds accessibility into its organizational DNA, from procurement and development processes to training and culture. Based on direct experience working within the organization.

  organizational practices · born accessible · CNIB · culture

• Math-to-Speech Effectiveness and Appreciation for People with Developmental Learning Disorders

  Chiara Magosso, Dragan Ahmetovic, Tiziana Armano, Cristian Bernareggi, Sandro Coriasco, Adriano Sofia, Luisa Testa, Anna Capietto · 2022 · Proceedings of the 19th International Web for All Conference (W4A 2022)

  This short paper presents a user study with 19 Italian university students who have Developmental Learning Disorders (DLD), examining whether text-to-speech (TTS) access to mathematical formulae improves their ability to memorize math syntax and their subjective experience…

  developmental learning disorders · text-to-speech · mathematics accessibility · dyscalculia · dyslexia

• When Headers Are Not There: Design and User Evaluation of an Automatic Topicalisation and Labelling Tool to Aid the Exploration of Web Documents by Blind Users

  Jorge Sassaki Resende Silva, André Pimenta Freire, Paula Christina Figueira Cardoso · 2022 · Proceedings of the 19th International Web for All Conference (W4A 2022)

  This paper addresses a fundamental problem for blind screen reader users: what happens when web documents lack proper heading markup, eliminating one of the primary navigation strategies available to them. The researchers designed and evaluated a tool that uses Natural Language…

  screen readers · headings · natural language processing · text segmentation · blind users

• An Approach to Teach Accessibility with Gamification

  Mohammad Gulam Lorgat, Hugo Paredes, Tânia Rocha · 2022 · Proceedings of the 19th International Web for All Conference (W4A 2022)

  This extended abstract proposes a gamification-based approach for teaching web accessibility to undergraduate Computer Science and Software Engineering students as part of a web design course. The authors identify a gap in accessibility education: while previous approaches have…

  gamification · accessibility education · computer science education · WCAG · pedagogy

• Understanding the Touchscreen-based Nonvisual Target Acquisition Task Performance of Screen Reader Users

  Hwayeon Joh, Yun Jung Lee, Uran Oh · 2022 · Proceedings of the 19th International Web for All Conference (W4A 2022)

  This study investigates how screen reader users find and select targets on a smartphone touchscreen without visual cues, examining the effects of screen size, target size, and the ratio between them. Twelve participants with visual impairments (three totally blind, three with…

  touchscreen · screen readers · target acquisition · mobile accessibility · visual impairment

• WearSkill: Personalized and Interchangeable Input with Wearables for Users with Motor Impairments

  Ovidiu-Andrei Schipor, Laura-Bianca Bilius, Radu-Daniel Vatavu · 2022 · Proceedings of the 19th International Web for All Conference (W4A)

  This paper introduces WearSkill, a web-based application designed to provide personalized and interchangeable input for wearable computing, with a specific focus on users with motor impairments. The system addresses a fundamental challenge in wearable accessibility: most…

  wearable technology · motor impairments · personalization · input modalities · gesture input

• Optimising the Website Accessibility Conformance Evaluation Methodology

  Alexander Hambley, Yeliz Yesilada, Markel Vigo, Simon Harper · 2022 · Proceedings of the 19th International Web for All Conference (W4A)

  This paper critically examines the Website Accessibility Conformance Evaluation Methodology (WCAG-EM), the W3C's standard five-step process for evaluating website conformance to WCAG. The authors identify several methodological weaknesses in WCAG-EM and propose a parallel…

  accessibility evaluation · WCAG-EM · sampling methodology · automated testing · web crawling

• Machine Learning for Accessible Web Navigation

  Tlamelo Makati · 2022 · Proceedings of the 19th International Web for All Conference (W4A)

  This extended abstract explores how machine learning techniques, particularly reinforcement learning, can be adapted to improve web navigation accessibility in alignment with WCAG Guideline 2.4 (Navigable). The author observes that ML techniques have already been applied to…

  machine learning · web accessibility · reinforcement learning · web navigation · query optimization

• Framework for Experiential Transcoding of Web Pages with Scanpath Trend Analysis

  Idil Ece Trabzon, Furkan Yagiz, Elmas Eda Karadavut, Mahmoud Elhewahey, Sukru Eraslan, Yeliz Yesilada, Simon Harper · 2022 · Proceedings of the 19th International Web for All Conference (W4A)

  This paper presents EXTRA, an automated framework for experiential transcoding of web pages — a technique that restructures web content based on how sighted users actually interact with pages, rather than relying solely on source code analysis. The core problem the authors…

  screen readers · web transcoding · eye tracking · web page segmentation · content reordering

• How and Why We Run: Investigating the Experiences of Blind and Visually-Impaired Runners

  Sidas Saulynas, Mei-Lian Vader, Apoorva Bendigeri, Tristan King, Anirudh Nagraj, Ravi Kuber · 2022 · Proceedings of the 19th International Web for All Conference (W4A)

  This qualitative study investigates the running experiences of 13 legally blind individuals in the United States, exploring where and how they run, what assistance they use, the challenges they face, and how technology could better support them. Participants ranged from casual…

  blindness · visual impairment · physical activity · assistive technology · wearable technology

• Investigating Older Adults' Adoption and Usage of Online Conferencing Tools During COVID-19

  Hirak Ray, Ravi Kuber, Adam J. Aviv · 2022 · Proceedings of the 19th International Web for All Conference (W4A)

  This qualitative study examines how 25 older adults (aged 60-89) in the United States adapted to online conferencing tools during the COVID-19 pandemic, with a particular focus on usability challenges, privacy and security concerns, and the trade-offs made between the two. The…

  older adults · aging · technology adoption · privacy · usability

• "I'm Ok Because I'm Alive": Understanding Socio-cultural Accessibility Barriers for Refugees with Disabilities in the US

  Foad Hamidi, Zulekha Karachiwalla · 2022 · Proceedings of the 19th International Web for All Conference (W4A)

  This qualitative study investigates the accessibility barriers faced by refugees with disabilities in the United States, drawing on interviews with six experts who serve refugee populations in Baltimore, Maryland. The research was conducted during the first year of the COVID-19…

  refugees · disability · mental health · cultural barriers · language access

• On the Identification of Accessibility Bug Reports in Open Source Systems

  Wajdi Aljedaani, Mohamed Wiem Mkaouer, Stephanie Ludi, Ali Ouni, Ilyes Jenhani · 2022 · Proceedings of the 19th International Web for All Conference (W4A)

  This paper addresses a significant gap in software engineering research: the automated identification of accessibility-related bug reports in open-source projects. While bug tracking systems like Bugzilla and Monorail accumulate vast numbers of reports, manually sifting through…

  accessibility bug reports · machine learning · open source · bug classification · automated testing

• Creating an Open Source, Customizable Accessibility Checker for Content Authors

  Adam Chaboryk · 2022 · Proceedings of the 19th International Web for All Conference (W4A)

  This extended abstract introduces Sa11y, an open-source, in-page accessibility checker specifically designed for content authors rather than developers. Created at Ryerson University (now Toronto Metropolitan University) to manage accessibility across several hundred website…

  automated testing · accessibility tools · content management · open source · quality assurance