Glossary

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3D Gaussian Splatting(also: 3DGS, Gaussian Splatting)

An explicit 3D scene representation, introduced by Kerbl et al. in 2023, in which a scene is modelled as a cloud of anisotropic 3D Gaussians whose positions, shapes, colours, and opacities are optimised to match input views. Unlike NeRFs, which require costly neural-network…

3D Instance Segmentation

3D instance segmentation is a computer vision technique that identifies and delineates individual objects within a three-dimensional point cloud or mesh, assigning a distinct label to each detected instance. Unlike semantic segmentation (which classifies every point by…

AI-Generated Content(also: AIGC)

An umbrella term for text, images, audio, video, and other media produced by generative AI systems — especially large language models and diffusion-based text-to-image or text-to-video models — in response to user prompts. AIGC is widely used in creative tooling (backdrop…

ARKit(also: Apple ARKit)

ARKit is Apple's augmented reality development framework for iOS that enables developers to create AR experiences for iPhone and iPad. It uses the device's camera, motion sensors, and processor to detect surfaces, track movement, and place virtual 3D objects in the real world.…

Adaptive Environment(also: Adaptive System, Responsive Environment)

A physical or digital space that automatically adjusts its properties and behaviours in response to the people within it. Adaptive environments use sensors, machine learning, and actuators to modify lighting, sound, temperature, display content, or interaction modes based on…

Advanced Driver Assistance Systems(also: ADAS)

A family of in-vehicle technologies that partially automate driving tasks — adaptive cruise control, lane-keeping, automatic emergency braking, parking assistance, blind-spot monitoring — while a human driver retains overall control. ADAS are relevant to accessibility as steps…

Affective Haptics(also: Emotional Haptics)

A subfield of haptic interaction design concerned with using tactile and kinaesthetic feedback — vibration, pressure, temperature, squeezing, stroking, heartbeat-like pulsation — to communicate, evoke, or regulate emotion. Affective haptics draws on research showing that touch…

Always-On Computing(also: Always-available computing, Continuous computing)

A model of interaction in which computing devices — particularly wearables such as smartwatches, AR glasses, and fitness trackers — remain continuously active and accessible throughout the day rather than being engaged only for discrete tasks. Always-on computing shifts design…

Ambient Intelligence(also: AmI)

An environment enriched with networked, sensor-equipped devices that are sensitive and responsive to the presence and needs of people within it. Ambient intelligence systems anticipate user requirements by learning preferences and behaviours over time, and adapt their responses…

Automated Employment Decision System(also: AEDS, AEDT, Automated Employment Decision Tool)

A software system that screens, evaluates, categorises, recommends, or otherwise makes or facilitates hiring or employment decisions about job candidates or workers. AEDSs span résumé sorters, personality tests, gamified cognitive assessments, situational-judgement tests,…

Autonomous Ferry(also: Self-Driving Ferry, Autonomous Passenger Ferry)

A waterborne passenger vessel that navigates, docks, and avoids obstacles without a human pilot, typically using a sensor suite (cameras, radar, LiDAR, ultrasonic, IMU, GNSS) and a shore-based supervisory operator. Autonomous ferries are being trialled as sustainable…

Autonomous Vehicle(also: AV, Self-Driving Car, Automated Driving System)

A vehicle equipped with technology that enables it to navigate and operate without human input, ranging from partial automation features like adaptive cruise control to fully autonomous systems that handle all driving tasks. Autonomous vehicles represent a potentially…

Brain-Computer Interface(also: BCI, Brain-Machine Interface, BMI)

A technology that enables direct communication between the brain and an external device by detecting and interpreting neural activity, typically through electroencephalography (EEG) or electromyography (EMG). In accessibility contexts, BCIs allow people with severe motor…

Brain-Computer Interface(also: BCI, Brain-Machine Interface, BMI)

A technology that enables direct communication between the brain and an external device by detecting and interpreting neural signals. BCIs can use invasive methods (implanted electrodes) or non-invasive approaches (EEG headsets). In accessibility contexts, BCIs allow people with…

Brain-Machine Interface(also: BMI, Brain-Computer Interface, BCI)

A technology that translates brain activity—typically measured via electroencephalography (EEG), electrocorticography, or implanted electrodes—into commands for controlling external devices such as computers, robotic limbs, wheelchairs, or communication systems. For people with…

Calm Technology(also: Peripheral Computing, Ambient Computing)

A design philosophy originated at Xerox PARC in which technology communicates information through the periphery of a user's attention rather than demanding direct focus. Calm technology moves between the centre and periphery of attention, providing awareness without constant…

Digital Twin

A digital twin is a virtual replica of a physical object, space, or system that is updated in real time to mirror its real-world counterpart. In accessibility contexts, digital twins of physical environments can enable remote exploration and interaction with spaces — allowing…

Esports(also: Competitive Gaming, Electronic Sports, E-Sports)

Organised, competitive video-game play — typically involving tournaments, teams, audiences, and professional players. Esports has grown into a major global industry and a site of accessibility research, because conventional game controllers and high-speed inputs can exclude…

Facial Avatar(also: Singing head, Talking head avatar)

A digital, animated representation of a face — typically rendered as a 3D or stylized 2D character from the neck up — driven by audio, video, or data signals to produce expressive facial behavior such as lip-sync, emotional expression, gaze, and head motion. In accessibility…

Fully Autonomous Vehicle(also: FAV, Level 5 Autonomous Vehicle, Self-Driving Car)

A vehicle capable of performing all driving functions without any human intervention, classified as SAE Level 5 automation. Unlike semi-autonomous vehicles that require a human driver as backup, FAVs are designed to operate without steering wheels, pedals, or other manual…

Geofencing(also: Geo-Fencing, Virtual Boundary)

Geofencing is a technology that creates virtual geographic boundaries using GPS, RFID, or other location-based data to trigger actions when a device enters or exits a defined area. In accessibility contexts, geofencing can be used to designate low-speed zones for micromobility…

Human Augmentation(also: Body Augmentation, Augmentative Technology)

Technologies that extend or enhance human physical or cognitive capabilities beyond their current state, including robotic exoskeletons, prosthetic limbs, sensory substitution devices, and brain-computer interfaces. In disability and accessibility contexts, human augmentation…

Identity Wallet(also: Digital Identity Wallet, EUDI Wallet)

A smartphone app that stores digitally signed credentials representing attributes of a person's identity — such as name, date of birth, government-issued ID number, student enrolment, or professional qualification — and lets the holder selectively disclose only the attributes…

Information Retrieval(also: IR)

The science of searching for and extracting relevant information from large collections of documents or data. In accessibility, information retrieval techniques such as keyword extraction, text summarisation, and relevance ranking are used to help blind and visually impaired…

Keyword Extraction(also: Key Term Extraction, Automatic Keyword Extraction)

A natural language processing technique that automatically identifies the most important or representative words and phrases in a document. In accessibility, keyword extraction can provide blind users with a quick summary of a web page's topic without requiring them to listen to…

Metaverse

The metaverse refers to a persistent, interconnected network of virtual and mixed-reality spaces where users can interact, collaborate, and engage with digital content and each other in real time. It extends XR concepts — virtual reality, augmented reality, and mixed reality —…

Mid-Air Ultrasound Haptics(also: Ultrasound Haptics, Airborne Ultrasound Tactile Display, AUTD)

A non-contact haptic technology that uses phased arrays of ultrasonic transducers to focus acoustic radiation pressure onto a user's skin, producing tactile sensations in mid-air without any worn or held device. By modulating the intensity, focal-point location, and trajectory…

Mobile AR(also: Smartphone AR, Handheld AR)

Augmented reality experiences delivered on commodity smartphones and tablets using the built-in camera, display, inertial sensors, and (increasingly) depth sensors, without specialized AR headsets. Mobile AR platforms such as Apple's ARKit and Google's ARCore provide plane…

Mobility-as-a-Service(also: MaaS, Transportation-as-a-Service)

A transportation model that integrates various mobility services (public transit, ridesharing, bike-sharing, car rentals) into a single accessible platform, typically via a smartphone app. For people with disabilities, MaaS platforms offer potential benefits through unified…

Muscle-Computer Interface(also: MCI (Muscle-Computer Interface), EMG Interface)

An input modality in which signals generated by muscle contractions — typically recorded via surface electromyography (sEMG) sensors worn on the forearm or other muscle group — are interpreted by a computer to recognise discrete gestures or continuous control signals. Coined by…

Neural Radiance Field(also: NeRF)

An implicit neural representation of a 3D scene, introduced by Mildenhall et al. in 2020, in which a small neural network is trained to map any 3D coordinate and viewing direction to a colour and density value. Rendering is performed by volumetric ray marching through this…

Non-Contact Haptics(also: Contactless Haptics, Device-Free Haptics)

A class of haptic feedback techniques that render tactile sensations on the user's body without requiring physical contact with a device, surface, or wearable. Common approaches include mid-air ultrasound haptics, air-vortex rings, and laser-induced plasma. Because they avoid…

Perceptual Computing(also: Perceptual Intelligence)

A computing paradigm in which systems use sensors such as cameras, microphones, and motion detectors to perceive and interpret human behaviour, including gestures, facial expressions, speech, and body movement. In accessibility contexts, perceptual computing enables interfaces…

Personal Delivery Device(also: PDD, Delivery Robot, Autonomous Delivery Robot)

Personal delivery devices (PDDs) are small autonomous or semi-autonomous robots that travel on sidewalks and pedestrian pathways to deliver food, packages, and other goods. These devices have been granted pedestrian status under traffic code in several US states, giving them the…

Pico Projection(also: Pico Projector, Pocket Projector, Mini Projection)

A compact projection technology that enables small, portable devices to project images and information onto nearby surfaces. In accessibility contexts, pico projection offers an alternative to screen-based interfaces by allowing users to project communication props, maps,…

Plan Recognition(also: Intent Prediction, Action Prediction)

A technique in human-computer interaction where a system predicts the user's intended action based on patterns in their input behaviour and the current interaction context. By anticipating what the user is likely to do next, the system can weight recognition processes…

Semantic Hearing(also: Programmable Hearing, Intent-Aware Hearing)

A research paradigm and class of systems that treat the user's auditory environment as something programmable: rather than uniformly amplifying or suppressing all sound, the wearable headphone or earbud uses on-device machine learning to selectively extract or attenuate specific…

Smart Environment(also: Intelligent Environment, Smart Space)

A physical space equipped with sensors, computing devices, and networked systems that can monitor conditions, infer context, and respond to the activities and needs of occupants. Smart environments aim to improve quality of life by automating tasks and providing contextual…

Socially Assistive Robotics(also: SAR)

Socially assistive robotics is a field of robotics focused on designing robots that assist people through social interaction rather than physical manipulation. SAR robots engage users through conversation, gesture, facial expression, and behaviour to support therapy,…

Spatial Computing(also: Spatial interaction)

A paradigm of computing in which digital content is rendered and interacted with in three-dimensional physical space, typically via head-worn augmented or mixed reality devices (e.g., HoloLens, Magic Leap, Apple Vision Pro, Snap Spectacles) that track head pose, hands, eyes, and…

Spatial Presence(also: Sense of Presence)

Spatial presence is the subjective experience of feeling physically located within a virtual or mediated environment — the sensation of "being there" rather than merely observing content on a screen. It is a key measure of immersive technology effectiveness, assessed through…

Spatio-Temporal Modulation(also: STM)

A rendering technique used in mid-air ultrasound haptics in which a single focal point is moved rapidly along a closed trajectory (commonly circular) while its intensity is modulated over time. When the trajectory is swept fast enough (typically tens to hundreds of Hz), the skin…

Speech Language Model(also: SLM, Audio Language Model, Speech Foundation Model)

A class of large neural models that processes both speech and text in a single end-to-end framework, integrating tasks — automatic speech recognition, spoken language understanding, dialogue, speech generation — that traditionally required separate modular systems. Examples…

Ubiquitous Computing(also: Ubicomp, Pervasive Computing, Ambient Computing)

Ubiquitous computing is a paradigm where computing is integrated seamlessly into everyday environments and objects, becoming an invisible part of daily life through sensors, smart devices, and networked systems. Examples include smart home devices, automatic doors,…

Verifiable Credential(also: VC)

A cryptographically signed statement about a person, organisation, or object that a relying party can verify without contacting the issuer, following the W3C Verifiable Credentials Data Model. Verifiable credentials are the underlying data format used by identity wallets, and…

Wearable Computing(also: Wearable Technology, Wearables)

Electronic devices and computing systems designed to be worn on the body, integrated into clothing, or carried as accessories. Wearable computers can continuously monitor the user and their environment, providing real-time feedback, navigation assistance, health monitoring, or…

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