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• Accessible Touchscreen Technology for People with Visual Impairments: A Survey

  William Grussenmeyer, Eelke Folmer · 2017 · ACM Transactions on Accessible Computing

  This comprehensive survey reviews the state of the art in touchscreen accessibility for people who are blind or have low vision, covering research from the mid-1990s through 2016. The authors organize the field by input modalities (gestural, voice, sensor-based) and output…

  touchscreen accessibility · mobile accessibility · visual impairment · screen readers · gestures

• Scanning for Digital Content: How Blind and Sighted People Perceive Concurrent Speech

  João Guerreiro, Daniel Gonçalves · 2016 · ACM Transactions on Accessible Computing (TACCESS)

  This paper investigates whether blind and sighted people can leverage concurrent speech — multiple audio streams playing simultaneously — to more efficiently scan and identify relevant digital content, exploiting the well-known Cocktail Party Effect. Screen readers currently…

  visual impairment · concurrent speech · auditory interface · screen reader · cocktail party effect

• Tactile Graphics with a Voice

  Catherine M. Baker, Lauren R. Milne, Ryan Drapeau, Jeffrey Scofield, Cynthia L. Bennett, Richard E. Ladner · 2016 · ACM Transactions on Accessible Computing (TACCESS)

  This paper presents Tactile Graphics with a Voice (TGV), a system that uses QR codes and a smartphone application to make text labels on tactile graphics accessible to blind and low-vision users — particularly the estimated 60% of blind people who are not fluent in Braille.…

  tactile graphics · visual impairment · QR codes · STEM accessibility · Braille

• Online Nemeth Braille Input/Output Using Content MathML

  Samuel S. Dooley, Susan Osterhaus, Dan Brown, Edgar Lozano, Su H. Park · 2016 · Proceedings of the 13th International Web for All Conference (W4A)

  This extended abstract presents a software system that enables automatic two-way conversion between printed mathematical notation and Nemeth Braille, using Content MathML as an intermediary representation. Access to mathematical content remains one of the most challenging…

  braille · mathematics accessibility · STEM accessibility · visual impairment · MathML

• NavCog: Turn-by-Turn Smartphone Navigation Assistant for People with Visual Impairments or Blindness

  Dragan Ahmetovic, Cole Gleason, Kris M. Kitani, Hironobu Takagi, Chieko Asakawa · 2016 · Proceedings of the 13th International Web for All Conference (W4A)

  This extended abstract presents NavCog, an open-source iOS smartphone navigation system designed to assist people with visual impairments or blindness in navigating complex indoor and outdoor environments. While many blind people can independently traverse familiar routes by…

  indoor navigation · visual impairment · blindness · assistive technology · Bluetooth beacons

• TactBack: VibroTactile braille output using smartphone and smartwatch for visually impaired

  Aritra Dhar, Aditya Nittala, Kuldeep Yadav · 2016 · Proceedings of the 13th International Web for All Conference (W4A)

  This extended abstract presents TactBack, a system that uses vibration patterns on off-the-shelf smartphones and smartwatches to convey braille characters haptically. The system was motivated by the limitations of audio-based screen reader feedback (TalkBack) for visually…

  braille · haptic technology · wearable technology · visual impairment · deafblindness

• Lake Devo: accessible online role-play

  Greg Gay, Maureen Glynn, Naza Djafarova · 2016 · Proceedings of the 13th International Web for All Conference (W4A)

  This extended abstract describes Lake Devo, a web-based role-playing environment developed at Ryerson University (now Toronto Metropolitan University) for collaborative learning, and the strategies used to make it accessible to blind students using screen readers. Lake Devo…

  WAI-ARIA · screen reader accessibility · e-learning accessibility · web accessibility · collaborative learning

• An empirical investigation of the situationally-induced impairments experienced by blind mobile device users

  Ali Abdolrahmani, Ravi Kuber, Amy Hurst · 2016 · Proceedings of the 13th International Web for All Conference (W4A)

  This paper investigates the situationally-induced impairments and disabilities (SIIDs) experienced by blind people when using mobile devices in real-world contexts. While prior SIID research has focused on sighted users encountering temporary impediments (like walking while…

  situational impairment · mobile accessibility · visual impairment · blindness · screen readers

• Wearables for All: Development of Guidelines to Stimulate Accessible Wearable Technology Design

  Jobke Wentzel, Eric Velleman, Thea van der Geest · 2016 · Proceedings of the 13th International Web for All Conference (W4A)

  This paper from the University of Twente and The Accessibility Foundation (Netherlands) presents the rationale and methodology for developing accessibility guidelines specifically for wearable technology — a domain where no dedicated accessibility standards existed at the time.…

  wearable technology · universal design · guidelines · visual impairment · multimodal interaction

• Accessible Map Visualization Prototype

  Tania Calle-Jimenez, Sergio Luján-Mora · 2016 · Proceedings of the 13th International Web for All Conference (W4A)

  This paper from Ecuador's National Polytechnic School and the University of Alicante presents a prototype for making online geographic maps accessible to people with visual disabilities. The authors identify four key accessibility barriers in web-based maps: maps rendered as…

  data visualization · visual impairment · color blindness · SVG · web accessibility

• Evaluating the Mobile Web Accessibility of Electronic Text for Print Impaired People in Higher Education

  Neil Rogers, Mike Wald, E. A. Draffan · 2016 · Proceedings of the 13th International Web for All Conference (W4A)

  This paper from the University of Southampton presents an Accessibility Evaluation Framework for assessing how well mobile devices support electronic text (eText) reading for people with print impairments in higher education. Print disabilities are broadly defined following…

  print disabilities · mobile accessibility · education accessibility · dyslexia · visual impairment

• Customizable 3D Printed Tactile Maps as Interactive Overlays

  Brandon Taylor, Anind Dey, Dan Siewiorek, Asim Smailagic · 2016 · Proceedings of the 18th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS '16)

  This paper presents an end-to-end system that enables visually impaired individuals to independently design, customize, and interact with 3D printed tactile maps. Traditional tactile map production has been limited by high costs (Braille embossers range from $1,800 to $80,000;…

  tactile maps · tactile graphics · 3D printing · visual impairment · navigation

• Real-Time Mobile Personalized Simulations of Impaired Colour Vision

  Rhouri MacAlpine, David R. Flatla · 2016 · Proceedings of the 18th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS '16)

  This paper extends personalized simulations of Impaired Colour Vision (ICV) to work in real time on mobile devices, enabling people with typical colour vision to see the world through the camera as someone with ICV would perceive it. At least 5% of the world population has some…

  color vision deficiency · color blindness · visual impairment · mobile accessibility · simulation

• Remote Access Programs to Better Integrate Individuals with Disabilities

  Thomas Hahn, Hidayat Ur Rahman, Richard Segall, Christoph Heim, Raphaela Brunson, Ankush Sharma, Maryam Aslam, Ana Lara-Rodriguez, Md. Sahidul Islam, Neha Gupta, Charles S. Embry, Patrick Grossmann, Shahrukh Babar, Gregory A. Skibinski, Fusheng Tang · 2016 · Proceedings of the 18th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS '16)

  This experience report, written primarily from the perspective of the first author who is legally blind due to albinism, describes how remote access programs (such as TeamViewer and AnyDesk) combined with voice communication tools (Skype, Google Hangout) can significantly…

  visual impairment · low vision · screen magnification · remote access · education

• How People with Low Vision Access Computing Devices: Understanding Challenges and Opportunities

  Sarit Felicia Anais Szpiro, Shafeka Hashash, Yuhang Zhao, Shiri Azenkot · 2016 · Proceedings of the 18th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS '16)

  This paper presents a contextual inquiry study examining how 11 people with low vision use mainstream computing devices (smartphones, tablets, and computers) to perform common tasks like reading email and browsing news. Low vision affects at least 3.3 million Americans over 40,…

  low vision · screen magnification · visual impairment · mobile accessibility · usability

• Using Dynamic Audio Feedback to Support Peripersonal Reaching in Young Visually Impaired People

  Graham Wilson, Stephen A. Brewster · 2016 · Proceedings of the 18th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS '16)

  This paper investigates whether dynamic audio feedback — sound that changes based on the proximity between a reaching hand and target objects — can improve the accuracy of peripersonal reaching (reaching within arm's length) for blind and visually impaired young people.…

  blindness · visual impairment · sonification · spatial cognition · child development

• Supporting Orientation of People with Visual Impairment: Analysis of Large Scale Usage Data

  Hernisa Kacorri, Sergio Mascetti, Andrea Gerino, Dragan Ahmetovic, Hironobu Takagi, Chieko Asakawa · 2016 · Proceedings of the 18th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS '16)

  This paper analyzes large-scale remote usage data from iMove, an iOS GPS-based orientation app for people with visual impairments, to understand how users interact with assistive navigation technology in real-world conditions. Traditional assistive technology user studies are…

  visual impairment · blindness · navigation · orientation and mobility · mobile accessibility

• Exploring Auditory Graphing Software in the Classroom: The Effect of Auditory Graphs on the Classroom Environment

  Brianna J. Tomlinson, Jared Batterman, Yee Chieh Chew, Ashley Henry, Bruce N. Walker · 2016 · ACM Transactions on Accessible Computing

  This study examines the real-world deployment of GNIE (Graph and Number line Input and Exploration), an auditory graphing software developed by Georgia Tech's Sonification Lab, in a middle school math classroom at the Georgia Academy for the Blind over two school years…

  auditory displays · sonification · STEM accessibility · educational technology · visual impairment

• Social Predictors of Assistive Technology Proficiency Among Teachers of Students with Visual Impairments

  Valerie S. Morash, Yue-Ting Siu · 2016 · ACM Transactions on Accessible Computing

  This study investigates why only about 40% of Teachers of students with Visual Impairments (TVIs) integrate assistive technology into their practice, despite AT being critical for K-12 students' educational engagement and predictive of positive postsecondary outcomes. Previous…

  assistive technology · visual impairment · special education · teacher training · community of practice

• Audio-Based Feedback Techniques for Teaching Touchscreen Gestures

  Uran Oh, Stacy Branham, Leah Findlater, Shaun K. Kane · 2015 · ACM Transactions on Accessible Computing (TACCESS)

  This paper proposes and evaluates two complementary audio-based techniques for teaching touchscreen gestures to blind and low-vision users: gesture sonification (mapping finger position to pitch and stereo panning to create an audio representation of the gesture) and corrective…

  visual impairment · touchscreen · gesture learning · sonification · audio feedback

• Complexities of Practical Web Automation

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

  This paper systematizes and analyzes the complexities involved in building practical, usable, and accessible web automation systems, drawing on published literature and the authors' years of experience developing automation tools for visually impaired web users. Web automation —…

  web automation · screen readers · visual impairment · non-visual browsing · assistive technology

• End-to-End Solution for Accessible Chemical Diagrams

  Volker Sorge, Mark Lee, Sandy Wilkinson · 2015 · Proceedings of the 12th International Web for All Conference (W4A)

  This paper presents a complete pipeline for making chemical diagrams — typically distributed as inaccessible bitmap images — fully accessible on the web. The system takes bitmap images of molecular diagrams as input and produces interactive, explorable SVG diagrams with semantic…

  STEM accessibility · image accessibility · visual impairment · screen readers · SVG

• A4TV: Assessing and Ameliorating the Accessibility of the Ascending Connected TV Platforms

  Daniel Costa · 2015 · Proceedings of the 12th International Web for All Conference (W4A)

  This doctoral consortium paper proposes a two-stage research programme to study and improve the accessibility of connected TV platforms for visually impaired users. Connected TVs — smart TVs and set-top boxes with internet connectivity — use web technologies (HTML5, JavaScript)…

  connected TV · blindness · visual impairment · accessibility evaluation · multimodal interaction

• Eyes-free Exploration of Shapes with Invisible Puzzle

  Andrea Gerino, Lorenzo Picinali, Cristian Bernareggi, Sergio Mascetti · 2015 · ASSETS '15: Proceedings of the 17th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers & Accessibility

  This paper presents Invisible Puzzle Game, an iPhone application that uses sonification techniques to enable people who are blind or visually impaired to explore shapes on touchscreen devices. Image exploration is fundamental for developing visuospatial skills and STEM…

  sonification · blindness · visual impairment · touchscreen · image exploration

• The Tactile Graphics Helper: Providing Audio Clarification for Tactile Graphics Using Machine Vision

  Giovanni Fusco, Valerie S. Morash · 2015 · ASSETS '15: Proceedings of the 17th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers & Accessibility

  This paper presents the Tactile Graphics Helper (TGH), a machine vision system that enables students who are blind or visually impaired to independently access clarifying information about tactile graphics without sighted assistance. Tactile graphics—raised line drawings,…

  tactile graphics · visual impairment · blindness · STEM education · machine vision