Glossary
Terms used in accessibility research and practice. Each entry has a definition, common aliases, and category tags.
Search results
- Echolocation(also: Human echolocation, Active echolocation)
- The ability to determine the location and characteristics of objects by emitting sounds and interpreting their echoes. While commonly associated with bats and dolphins, many blind and low-vision individuals develop echolocation skills for spatial navigation, using self-generated…
- Electronic Travel Aid(also: ETA)
- An electronic device designed to help blind or visually impaired people navigate their environment by detecting obstacles and conveying spatial information through non-visual feedback such as audio cues, vibrations, or tactile signals. Electronic travel aids range from simple…
- Environmental Flow(also: Optic Flow, Sensory Flow)
- The ordered changes in a pedestrian's distances and directions to surrounding objects that occur while walking, providing continuous feedback about spatial position and movement through the environment. For sighted people, environmental flow is primarily visual (optic flow), but…
- Environmental Legibility(also: Legibility of the Environment, Spatial Legibility)
- The ease with which people can perceive, understand, and form mental maps of a physical environment in order to orient themselves and navigate through it. Coined by urban planner Kevin Lynch, legibility refers to the visual clarity of a cityscape or built environment — how…
4 results.