Glossary

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Capability model(also: User capability profile)

A structured representation of an individual user's abilities across relevant dimensions such as sight, hearing, mobility, and cognition. In accessibility and adaptive interface design, capability models are used to characterize what interaction modalities and design spaces are…

Circuit Design(also: Electronic Circuit Design, Circuit Schematic Design)

The process of creating and representing electrical circuits that perform specific functions, using standard symbolic representations called schematics to show how components like resistors, capacitors, transistors, and switches are connected. Circuit design is foundational to…

Co-Making(also: Co-Fabrication, Collaborative Making)

Co-making is a participatory practice in which people with disabilities work directly with collaborators — researchers, AI assistants, peers, or family members — to build physical assistive technology together, rather than being passive recipients of devices designed and…

Co-design(also: Co-creation, Cooperative design)

A design methodology that actively involves end users, stakeholders, and communities as equal partners throughout the design process, going beyond consultation to shared decision-making and creative collaboration. In accessibility and disability research, co-design is valued for…

Code-Based Modeling(also: Programmatic Modeling, Scripted 3-D Modeling)

An approach to creating 3-D models by writing code rather than using visual direct manipulation interfaces. Code-based modeling tools like OpenSCAD allow users to define shapes, transformations, and boolean operations through programming languages. This approach is inherently…

Collaborative Ideation(also: Group brainstorming, Co-ideation)

The joint process by which a group generates, refines, clusters, and converges on ideas, typically alternating between divergent and convergent thinking. Collaborative ideation is a cornerstone of design, research, and creative practice and is commonly supported by digital…

Color Theory(also: Colour Theory)

A body of principles and guidelines for understanding how colors interact, combine, and affect perception. In accessibility contexts, color theory is important for ensuring sufficient contrast ratios, avoiding color-only information encoding, and designing for color vision…

Color Universal Design(also: CUD, Colour Universal Design)

A set of guidelines and principles developed to ensure that colour use in designs, products, and environments is accessible to people with all types of colour vision, including those with colour vision deficiency. Color Universal Design emphasizes selecting colour palettes that…

Colour contrast ratio(also: Contrast ratio, Luminance contrast ratio, Color contrast)

A numerical measure of the perceived brightness difference between a foreground colour (typically text) and its background, expressed as a ratio ranging from 1:1 (no contrast, identical colours) to 21:1 (maximum contrast, black on white). WCAG defines minimum contrast ratios to…

Colours of Confusion(also: Confusion Colors, Confusable Colours, Metameric Pairs)

Pairs or sets of colours that appear distinct to people with typical colour vision but appear identical or nearly identical to people with a specific type of colour vision deficiency. These colour pairs are predicted by CVD colour models and underlie CVD simulation tools.…

Constructive Solid Geometry(also: CSG)

A technique in 3-D modeling that creates complex shapes by combining simpler geometric primitives (cubes, spheres, cylinders) using boolean operations such as union, difference, and intersection. CSG is the foundational approach used by code-based modeling tools like OpenSCAD.…

Context Engineering(also: Context management)

The practice, in LLM-based systems, of deliberately selecting, structuring, and injecting the information an AI model sees on each call — beyond just the user's latest message — so that outputs are grounded, relevant, and aligned with the user's actual situation. Typical context…

Contrast Ratio(also: Color Contrast Ratio, Luminance Contrast Ratio)

A numerical measure of the difference in perceived brightness between two colors, expressed as a ratio ranging from 1:1 (no contrast) to 21:1 (maximum contrast, black on white). WCAG 2.2 requires a minimum contrast ratio of 4.5:1 for normal text and 3:1 for large text (Level…

Crip technoscience(also: Crip tech, Critical disability technoscience)

A framework from disability studies, articulated by Aimi Hamraie and Kelly Fritsch, that positions disabled people as expert knowledge-makers and innovative technologists rather than passive recipients of assistive solutions designed by non-disabled professionals. Crip…

Culturally Grounded Design(also: Culturally Responsive Design, Culture-Centered Design)

A design approach that centers the cultural values, epistemologies, and practices of a specific community throughout the technology development process. Rather than adapting mainstream designs for different cultural contexts, culturally grounded design starts from community…

Culturally-Situated Design(also: Culturally-Embedded Design, Culturally-Responsive Design)

An approach to technology design that treats culture — including national identity, religion, ethnicity, language, geo-politics, and community traditions — as central to user needs and design decisions rather than as a surface localisation concern. Culturally-situated design…

Curb cut(also: Curb ramp, Dropped kerb, Pram ramp)

A small ramp built into the curb of a sidewalk at intersections and pedestrian crossings, providing a smooth transition between the sidewalk and the street. Originally mandated for wheelchair users under disability rights legislation such as the ADA, curb cuts have become a…

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