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• Situation-based Indoor Wayfinding System for the Visually Impaired

  Eunjeong Ko, Jin Sun Ju, Eun Yi Kim · 2011 · The Proceedings of the 13th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS)

  This paper presents an indoor wayfinding system for visually impaired people that uses situation-aware color codes affixed to building walls to guide users to destinations in unfamiliar environments. The key innovation is a situation-based approach: rather than providing all…

  blindness and low vision · indoor navigation · wayfinding · computer vision · assistive technology

• Blind People and Mobile Touch-based Text-Entry: Acknowledging the Need for Different Flavors

  João Oliveira, Tiago Guerreiro, Hugo Nicolau, Joaquim Jorge, Daniel Gonçalves · 2011 · The Proceedings of the 13th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS)

  This paper investigates how individual differences among blind people affect their performance with different touchscreen text-entry methods. Thirteen blind participants (ages 24-62) were evaluated using four methods on a Samsung Galaxy S: QWERTY (standard VoiceOver-style…

  blindness and low vision · text entry · touchscreen accessibility · mobile accessibility · ability-based design

• We Need to Communicate! Helping Hearing Parents of Deaf Children Learn American Sign Language

  Kimberly A. Weaver, Thad Starner · 2011 · The Proceedings of the 13th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS)

  This paper presents interview research with hearing parents of deaf children to understand their motivations, challenges, and needs when learning American Sign Language, informing the design of SMARTSign, a mobile ASL learning application. In the United States, 90-95% of deaf…

  deaf accessibility · sign language · educational technology · mobile accessibility · Deaf Culture

• Supporting Spatial Awareness and Independent Wayfinding for Pedestrians with Visual Impairments

  Rayoung Yang, Sangmi Park, Sonali R. Mishra, Zhenan Hong, Clint Newsom, Hyeon Joo, Erik Hofer, Mark W. Newman · 2011 · The Proceedings of the 13th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS)

  This paper presents Talking Points 3 (TP3), a location- and orientation-aware smartphone system designed to increase the "legibility" of indoor environments for pedestrians with visual impairments, fostering spatial awareness rather than simply providing turn-by-turn directions.…

  blindness and low vision · wayfinding · indoor navigation · spatial cognition · mobile accessibility

• The Spoken Web Application Framework: User Generated Content and Service Creation through Low-End Mobiles

  Arun Kumar, Sheetal K. Agarwal, Priyanka Manwani · 2010 · Proceedings of the 2010 International Cross Disciplinary Conference on Web Accessibility (W4A)

  This paper from IBM Research India presents the Spoken Web Application Framework (SWAF), a platform that expands the definition of "Web" itself to include voice-based hyperlinked content accessible through ordinary telephone calls. At the time of publication, only 22% of the…

  digital divide · voice interface · developing regions · digital inclusion · mobile accessibility

• A Simple Solution: Solution Migration from Disabled to Small Device Context

  Yeliz Yesilada, Tianyi Chen, Simon Harper · 2010 · Proceedings of the 2010 International Cross Disciplinary Conference on Web Accessibility (W4A)

  This paper demonstrates how accessibility solutions developed for motor-impaired desktop users can be migrated to benefit small-device (mobile) users who experience similar input difficulties. The authors had previously replicated a study originally investigating input…

  motor accessibility · mobile accessibility · input methods · situational impairment · error correction

• VizWiz: Nearly Real-Time Answers to Visual Questions

  Jeffrey P. Bigham, Chandrika Jayant, Hanjie Ji, Greg Little, Andrew Miller, Robert C. Miller, Aubrey Tatarowicz, Brandyn White, Samuel White, Tom Yeh · 2010 · Proceedings of the 2010 International Cross Disciplinary Conference on Web Accessibility (W4A)

  This paper introduces VizWiz, a pioneering mobile application that enables blind and low-vision people to get nearly real-time answers to visual questions by connecting their smartphone cameras to remote paid workers on Amazon Mechanical Turk. Users take a photo with their…

  blind and low vision · crowdsourcing · assistive technology · mobile accessibility · human computation

• Designing for Auditory Web Access: Accessibility and Cellphone Users

  Shari Trewin, Rachel Bellamy, John Thomas, Jonathan Brezin, John Richards, Cal Swart, Bonnie E. John · 2010 · Proceedings of the 2010 International Cross Disciplinary Conference on Web Accessibility (W4A)

  This paper draws a parallel between two groups of web users who experience the web primarily through auditory rather than visual interaction: people with visual impairments using screen readers, and people in developing regions accessing the web through low-end mobile phones…

  auditory interaction · screen readers · mobile accessibility · developing regions · digital divide

• (Voice) website creation and access using phones

  Arun Kumar, Sheetal K. Agarwal, Priyanka Manwani, Ketki Dhanesha · 2010 · Proceedings of the 2010 International Cross Disciplinary Conference on Web Accessibility (W4A)

  This challenge paper from IBM Research India presents Spoken Web, a platform that enables people to create and access "voice websites" (VoiceSites) entirely through phone calls using speech and DTMF (touch-tone) input. The system takes a fundamentally different approach to web…

  voice interface · developing countries · digital divide · low literacy · user-generated content

• Multi-Layered Interfaces to Improve Older Adults' Initial Learnability of Mobile Applications

  Rock Leung, Leah Findlater, Joanna McGrenere, Peter Graf, Justine Yang · 2010 · ACM Transactions on Accessible Computing

  This paper investigates whether multi-layered (ML) interfaces can improve the learnability of mobile applications for older adults. ML interfaces present novice users with a simplified, reduced-functionality layer containing only basic features, allowing them to progress to a…

  aging · older adults · mobile accessibility · learnability · interface design

• EasySnap: Real-time Audio Feedback for Blind Photography

  Samuel White, Hanjie Ji, Jeffrey P. Bigham · 2010 · Adjunct Proceedings of the 23rd Annual ACM Symposium on User Interface Software and Technology (UIST 2010)

  This demonstration paper presents EasySnap, an iPhone application that enables blind and low-vision users to take high-quality photographs by providing real-time audio feedback as they point their camera phones. The system addresses a key barrier: blind people want to take…

  blind and low vision · computer vision · mobile accessibility · assistive technology · photography

• Accessible Indoor Navigation

  Kyle Montague · 2010 · Proceedings of the 12th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS 2010)

  This doctoral consortium paper presents early-stage research on designing an accessible indoor navigation application for disabled users. Montague identifies a key gap: while outdoor navigation benefits from GPS, indoor wayfinding remains a significant challenge because GPS is…

  indoor navigation · wayfinding · adaptive interface · mobile accessibility · assistive technology

• Leveraging Proprioception to Make Mobile Phones More Accessible to Users with Visual Impairments

  Frank Chun Yat Li, David Dearman, Khai N. Truong · 2010 · Proceedings of the 12th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS 2010)

  This paper extends Virtual Shelves — an interaction technique that leverages proprioception (the sense of body position and movement) to provide eyes-free access to mobile phone shortcuts — for users with visual impairments. The core concept is elegant: users hold their phone in…

  visual impairment · proprioception · mobile accessibility · interaction techniques · eyes-free interaction

• LocalEyes: Accessible GPS and Points of Interest

  Jason Behmer, Stillman Knox · 2010 · Proceedings of the 12th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS 2010)

  This student research paper presents LocalEyes, an open-source Android application that provides accessible GPS and points-of-interest information for blind and low-vision users. The authors identify that existing accessible GPS devices like the Trekker Talking GPS cost between…

  visual impairment · GPS navigation · mobile accessibility · points of interest · wayfinding

• AudioWiz: Nearly Real-Time Audio Transcriptions

  Samuel White · 2010 · Proceedings of the 12th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS 2010)

  This student research paper presents AudioWiz, a mobile application that provides near-real-time transcriptions of both spoken words and environmental sounds for deaf and hard of hearing users. The author identifies a critical gap in existing automated transcription systems:…

  deaf and hard of hearing · audio transcription · crowdsourcing · human computation · environmental sounds

• Improving Public Transit Usability for Blind and Deaf-Blind People by Connecting a Braille Display to a Smartphone

  Shiri Azenkot, Emily Fortuna · 2010 · Proceedings of the 12th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS 2010)

  This short paper explores the public transit challenges faced by blind and deaf-blind people and presents MoBraille, a novel framework that connects any Wi-Fi-enabled Braille display to an Android smartphone. The authors conducted semi-structured interviews with four blind and…

  deafblindness · blindness · braille display · public transit accessibility · mobile accessibility

• Getting mobile with mobile devices: using the web to improve transit accessibility

  Darren Minifie, Yvonne Coady · 2009 · Proceedings of the 2009 International Cross-Disciplinary Conference on Web Accessibililty (W4A)

  This paper proposes a mobile web-based architecture for making public transit accessible to blind and visually impaired travelers. Drawing on direct feedback from the blind community (including one of the authors, who is visually impaired), the paper identifies four key barriers…

  mobile accessibility · public transportation · visual impairment · blindness · GPS

• Freedom to Roam: A Study of Mobile Device Adoption and Accessibility for People with Visual and Motor Disabilities

  Shaun K. Kane, Chandrika Jayant, Jacob O. Wobbrock, Richard E. Ladner · 2009 · Proceedings of the 11th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (Assets '09)

  This paper presents a two-method qualitative study examining how people with visual and motor disabilities select, adapt, and use mobile devices in their daily lives. The researchers interviewed 20 participants (ages 20-66) with visual disabilities (blindness, low vision) and…

  mobile accessibility · visual impairment · motor impairment · blindness · low vision

• NavTap: A Long Term Study with Excluded Blind Users

  Tiago Guerreiro, Hugo Nicolau, Joaquim Jorge, Daniel Gonçalves · 2009 · Proceedings of the 11th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (Assets '09)

  This paper presents a long-term evaluation of NavTap, a navigational text-entry method designed specifically for blind users who cannot effectively use standard mobile phone text input. Unlike traditional MultiTap — where users press a key multiple times to cycle through letters…

  mobile accessibility · blind users · text entry · assistive technology · longitudinal study

• MokE: A Tool for Mobile-ok Evaluation of Web Content

  John Garofalakis, Vassilios Stefanis · 2008 · Proceedings of the 2008 International Cross-Disciplinary Conference on Web Accessibility (W4A)

  This paper presents MokE (Mobile-OK Evaluator), a web-based tool for evaluating whether web content provides an acceptable experience on mobile devices, based on W3C's mobileOK Basic Tests and Mobile Web Best Practices. Written at a time when mobile web access was rapidly…

  mobile accessibility · mobile web · automated testing · web crawling · W3C standards

• Evaluating Web Accessibility for Specific Mobile Devices

  Markel Vigo, Amaia Aizpurua, Myriam Arrue, Julio Abascal · 2008 · Proceedings of the 2008 International Cross-Disciplinary Conference on Web Accessibility (W4A)

  This paper addresses a fundamental limitation in early mobile web accessibility testing: the reliance on a single Default Delivery Context (DDC) that assumed all mobile devices shared the same baseline capabilities. The W3C mobileOK Basic tests, designed to verify compliance…

  mobile accessibility · automated testing · evaluation tools · device independence · mobile web

• Grouping Hyperlinks for Improved Voice/Mobile Accessibility

  Alex Penev, Raymond K. Wong · 2008 · Proceedings of the 2008 International Cross-Disciplinary Conference on Web Accessibility (W4A)

  This paper from UNSW Sydney proposes an automatic technique for clustering a web page's hyperlinks into topical groups to help blind screen reader users and mobile device users locate desired links more quickly. The core problem is that sighted users can visually scan a page in…

  web accessibility · screen readers · blind users · navigation · mobile accessibility

• Slide Rule: Making Mobile Touch Screens Accessible to Blind People Using Multi-Touch Interaction Techniques

  Shaun K. Kane, Jeffrey P. Bigham, Jacob O. Wobbrock · 2008 · Assets '08: Proceedings of the 10th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility

  This paper introduces Slide Rule, a set of audio-based multi-touch interaction techniques that make touch screen devices accessible to blind users without requiring any additional hardware. Published in 2008 — just one year after the iPhone launched and before VoiceOver was…

  blind users · touch screens · mobile accessibility · multi-touch interaction · gestures

• Input to the Mobile Web is Situationally-Impaired

  Tianyi Chen · 2008 · Proceedings of the 10th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (Assets '08)

  This paper investigates the overlap between input problems experienced by mobile web users and those faced by disabled desktop users, particularly people with motor impairments. The author argues that these two domains are typically studied in isolation despite sharing…

  mobile accessibility · situational impairment · motor disability · input methods · web accessibility

• PhotoTacs: An Image-Based Cell Phone Interface

  Michael J. Astrauskas · 2008 · Proceedings of the 10th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (Assets '08)

  This paper presents PhotoTacs, a simplified image-based cell phone interface designed to help people with cognitive or visual impairments navigate their phone contacts and make calls. The author begins by identifying the core problem: as cellular phones gained features, their…

  cognitive accessibility · mobile accessibility · assistive technology · visual impairment · user interface design