Glossary

Search results

Visual Interpreter(also: Visual Interpreter Service, Visual Description Service, VIDS)

A visual interpreter or description service (VIDS) is a technology or human-powered service that provides people who are blind or have low vision with descriptions of their visual surroundings, typically by receiving camera feeds from the user's smartphone or smart glasses.…

Visual Prompts(also: Picture Prompts, Visual Cues, Photographic Cues)

Images, icons, photographs, or other visual representations used to guide, remind, or support individuals in completing tasks, following schedules, or navigating environments. Visual prompts are particularly important for people with cognitive disabilities, intellectual…

Visual Prosthetic(also: Visual Prosthesis, Vision Prosthetic)

A device or system that provides visual information to people who are blind or have severe visual impairments through alternative sensory channels or direct neural stimulation. Visual prosthetics range from smartphone apps that convert visual data into audio or haptic feedback…

Visual Saliency(also: Saliency, Saliency Detection, Saliency Map)

A computational measure of how much a particular region of an image or video stands out from its surroundings and attracts visual attention. Saliency models predict where people are most likely to look based on factors such as contrast, colour, motion, and semantic content. In…

Visual Scene Display(also: VSD)

A type of augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) layout that uses photographs or images of real-world scenes with embedded interactive hotspots that produce speech output when selected. Unlike grid displays that present abstract symbols in rows and columns, VSDs ground…

Visual Schedule(also: Picture Schedule, Activity Schedule)

A visual representation of a sequence of activities or steps that an individual is expected to complete, using pictures, symbols, photographs, or written words arranged in chronological order. Visual schedules are widely used in educational and therapeutic settings for autistic…

Visual Speech Aid(also: Speech Reading Aid, Visual Communication Aid)

A visual speech aid is an assistive device or system that converts auditory speech information into visual form to help individuals with hearing impairments follow spoken conversation. These aids may display text (as in captioning systems), phonetic symbols, lip-shape cues,…

Visual Supports(also: Visual Aids, Visual Cues)

Pictures, symbols, photographs, written words, objects, or other visual items used to support communication, learning, and behaviour in individuals with developmental disabilities, particularly autism. Visual supports leverage the strong visual processing abilities common among…

Visual Vocabulary(also: Picture-Based Vocabulary, Icon Vocabulary)

A collection of words or concepts represented through images, icons, or pictorial symbols rather than text alone. Visual vocabularies are widely used in augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) systems to support people who have difficulty with text-based language,…

Visual assistance technology(also: VAT, AI visual assistance, Visual interpretation service)

Technology that uses artificial intelligence, computer vision, or human volunteers to provide visual information to blind and low-vision users. Examples include apps like Seeing AI, Be My Eyes, and Lookout, which can identify objects, read text, describe scenes, and recognise…

Visual authoring(also: Visual content creation)

The process of creating or editing visual content such as images, graphics, videos, or layouts. Visual authoring has traditionally been one of the least accessible creative activities for blind and low vision users because it requires real-time visual feedback to evaluate and…

Visual guidance(also: Visual cueing, Visual highlighting)

Assistive techniques that direct a user's visual attention to relevant content through highlights, outlines, magnification, or other visual cues. For people with low vision, visual guidance systems can compensate for reduced visual acuity or restricted visual fields by making…

Visual question answering(also: VQA, Visual QA)

A computer vision and natural language processing task in which a system answers natural language questions about the content of an image or video. In accessibility contexts, VQA enables blind and visually impaired users to query visual content interactively — asking specific…

Visual substitution(also: Sensory substitution, Vision substitution)

Visual substitution is a design strategy in assistive technology that replaces visual information with output in another sensory modality, such as audio descriptions, haptic feedback, or tactile representations. It contrasts with visual enhancement, which amplifies or augments…

VizWiz

A mobile application and research platform that allows blind people to take photos with their phones and receive answers to visual questions from human workers or AI systems. VizWiz originated as a research project at Carnegie Mellon University and has generated important…

Vocal Joystick(also: VJ, Voice Joystick)

A voice-based human-computer interface that uses continuous non-verbal vocal sounds (rather than spoken words) to provide proportional, real-time control of devices, cursors, or robotic systems. The Vocal Joystick engine extracts pitch, loudness, and vowel quality from the…

Vocal Source Identity

Vocal Source Identity is an auditory display principle referring to the use of different speaking voices or sound sources to convey distinct types of information in an audio interface. In the context of non-visual web browsing, different synthesised voices might represent…

Voice Assistant(also: Virtual Assistant, Smart Speaker)

An AI-powered system that responds to voice commands to perform tasks, answer questions, and control devices, such as Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant, and Apple Siri. Voice assistants have accessibility potential for people with vision impairments by providing hands-free,…

Voice Assistant(also: Smart Speaker, Voice-Activated Assistant, Conversational Agent)

A software application that uses speech recognition and natural language processing to respond to voice commands and perform tasks. Common examples include Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant, and Apple Siri. Voice assistants offer accessibility benefits for users who have difficulty…

Voice Augmentation(also: Audio Augmentation, Voice-Based Augmentation)

A technique for enhancing user interfaces by adding spoken audio feedback to supplement visual information on screen. Voice augmentation provides contextual support through spoken confirmations of user input, notifications of errors or status changes, suggestions for next…

Voice Browser(also: Voice Web Browser, Audio Browser)

A voice browser is a type of web browser that presents web content through speech output and accepts voice or keyboard input rather than relying on visual display. Voice browsers convert web page content to synthesized speech using text-to-speech technology, allowing users who…

Voice Cloning(also: Voice Synthesis Cloning, Personalized Text-to-Speech)

The use of machine-learning models to synthesise a target speaker's voice from a short reference recording, enabling text-to-speech output that sounds like that specific person. For accessibility, voice cloning has transformative potential: people whose voices are at risk of…

Voice Command(also: Voice Control, Spoken Command)

An input method where users speak predefined words or phrases to control software or perform actions. In assistive technology, voice commands enable hands-free and eyes-free interaction, allowing users to perform operations like text editing (delete, insert, replace),…

Voice Control(also: Voice Command, Voice-Activated Control)

The ability to operate devices, applications, or systems using spoken commands. Voice control is a key accessibility feature in smart home technology, enabling people with mobility impairments, visual disabilities, or dexterity limitations to independently control their…

Voice Conversion(also: VC, speech conversion)

A speech processing technique that transforms one person's voice to sound like another while preserving the linguistic content. In accessibility applications, voice conversion can improve the intelligibility of speech from people with articulation disorders by replacing unclear…

Voice Customization(also: Voice Personalization, Custom Voice)

The process of creating or modifying synthetic voices to match a user's preferences or identity, including attributes such as gender, age, pitch, breathiness, hoarseness, and speech variation. Voice customization is particularly important in accessibility for people with speech…

Voice Input(also: Voice Control, Voice Command, Speech Input)

An input modality that allows users to control devices, enter text, or issue commands using spoken language, typically processed through speech recognition technology. Voice input is an essential accessibility feature for people who cannot use traditional input devices such as…

Voice Interaction(also: Voice User Interface, VUI, Voice-Based Interaction)

An interaction paradigm where users communicate with technology primarily through spoken commands and receive audio responses, rather than using visual displays, keyboards, or touch screens. Voice interaction combines speech-to-text for input, natural language processing for…

Voice Interface(also: Voice User Interface, VUI)

A user interface that accepts spoken language as input and typically provides audio output, enabling hands-free, eyes-free interaction with technology. Voice interfaces are used in voice-activated personal assistants, smart speakers, phone systems, and accessibility tools. For…

Voice Interface(also: Speech Interface, Voice User Interface, VUI)

An interface that allows users to interact with a system using spoken natural language commands rather than keyboard, mouse, or touch input. Voice interfaces range from simple command-and-control systems that recognise fixed phrases to conversational assistants that interpret…

Voice Output Communication Aid(also: VOCA, Speech Output Device)

An electronic augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) device that produces synthesized or digitized speech output when a user selects symbols, words, or phrases. VOCAs range from simple single-message devices to sophisticated systems with extensive vocabularies and…

Voice Recognition(also: Speech Recognition, Voice Control, Voice Input)

Technology that identifies and processes human speech to convert it into text or execute commands. Voice recognition serves as a critical assistive technology for people with motor disabilities who cannot use a keyboard or mouse, enabling them to navigate websites, dictate text,…

Voice User Interface(also: VUI)

A user interface that enables interaction with a device or system through spoken voice commands and audio responses. Voice user interfaces use speech recognition to interpret user input and text-to-speech or pre-recorded audio for output. For accessibility, VUIs provide an…

Voice User Interface(also: VUI, Voice Command Interface, Voice Interface)

An interface that allows users to interact with a device or application through spoken language commands rather than touch, mouse, or keyboard input. Voice user interfaces use automated speech recognition (ASR) to convert speech to text and natural language understanding (NLU)…

Voice Vista

A free audio-based navigation application for blind and low-vision users that uses 3D spatial audio to announce nearby streets, intersections, points of interest, and set beacons as the user walks. Voice Vista is a community-maintained successor to Microsoft Soundscape, released…

Voice and Video-Capable Language Model(also: VVLM, Multimodal AI Assistant, Video-Capable LLM)

A large language model that can process real-time or near-real-time video and audio input alongside text, enabling conversational interaction about the visual world. VVLMs represent a shift from static image analysis (single photo question-answering) to dynamic, continuous…

Voice banking(also: Voice preservation, Speech banking)

The process of recording and storing samples of a person's natural voice so that a synthetic version can be created for future use with text-to-speech systems. Voice banking is particularly important for people with degenerative conditions like ALS or motor neuron disease who…

Voice navigation(also: Voice control, Voice input)

An assistive technology that allows users to navigate and interact with digital content using spoken commands rather than a mouse, keyboard, or touchscreen. Voice navigation systems such as Dragon NaturallySpeaking, Voice Control on macOS/iOS, and Voice Access on Android enable…

Voice prosthesis(also: speech prosthesis, voice restoration device)

A device that enables speech production for people who have lost their natural voice, typically due to laryngectomy or severe laryngeal damage. Voice prostheses include external devices like electrolarynx (which produces vibrations held against the neck or inserted into the…

Voice-Activated Personal Assistant(also: VAPA, Voice Assistant, Virtual Assistant)

AI-powered software that responds to spoken commands to perform tasks such as scheduling, setting reminders, searching information, and controlling devices. Examples include Siri, Alexa, Google Assistant, and Cortana. For blind and low vision users, VAPAs offer hands-free…

Voice-Assisted Technology(also: VAT, Voice-Activated Technology)

Technology that uses voice recognition and natural language processing to enable users to interact with devices, applications, and services through spoken commands. Voice-assisted technology encompasses smart speakers, virtual assistants on phones, and voice-enabled appliances.…

Voice-First Design(also: Voice-First Interface, Audio-First Design)

A design approach for applications and interfaces where voice is the primary input and output modality, with visual elements being secondary or absent. Voice-first design is particularly relevant for accessibility tools serving visually impaired users, where the entire user…

Voice-activated personal assistant(also: VAPA, Smart assistant, Virtual assistant)

An AI-powered software agent that responds to voice commands to perform tasks such as answering questions, controlling smart home devices, managing schedules, and reading content aloud. For people with visual impairments, VAPAs like Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant, and Apple Siri…

Voice-to-Text(also: Voice Typing, Dictation, Voice Input)

Technology that converts spoken language into written text, enabling users to compose text by speaking rather than typing. Voice-to-text is an important accessibility tool for people with motor disabilities affecting manual dexterity, repetitive strain injuries, or temporary…

VoiceOver

The built-in screen reader provided by Apple across macOS, iOS, iPadOS, watchOS, and tvOS. VoiceOver is notable for being deeply integrated into the operating system rather than being a separate application, which gives it direct access to the accessibility APIs of native…

VoiceXML(also: Voice Extensible Markup Language, VXML)

VoiceXML (Voice Extensible Markup Language) is a W3C standard markup language for creating voice-based user interfaces, particularly interactive voice response (IVR) systems and voice browsers. VoiceXML allows developers to define dialogs between a user and a system using…

Voicemark(also: Voice Bookmark, Audio Bookmark)

A navigable audio marker or bookmark that allows users to quickly locate and access specific sections of web content or documents through speech or keyboard interaction. Voicemarks are created by analyzing and labeling content segments, then storing these labeled references in a…

VoxLens

An open-source JavaScript plug-in developed at the University of Washington that improves the accessibility of online data visualizations for screen-reader users through a multimodal approach. VoxLens provides three interaction modes: a Question-and-Answer mode where users can…

Wavefront Analyzer(also: Aberrometer, Wavefront Sensor)

An optical instrument that measures how light waves are distorted as they pass through the eye's optical system, producing a detailed map of the eye's refractive characteristics called a wavefront aberration function. Unlike standard eye exams that measure only basic refractive…

Wearable Assistive Technology(also: Wearable AT, Assistive Wearables)

Electronic devices worn on the body—such as smartwatches, smart glasses, rings, or headbands—that provide assistive functionality for people with disabilities. Wearable assistive technology leverages built-in sensors (accelerometers, gyroscopes, cameras) and connectivity to…