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• Personalized Wearable Interactions with WearSkill

  Ovidiu-Andrei Schipor, Laura-Bianca Bilius, Ovidiu-Ciprian Ungurean, Alexandru-Ionut Siean, Alexandru-Tudor Andrei, Radu-Daniel Vatavu · 2022 · Proceedings of the 19th International Web for All Conference (W4A)

  This extended abstract presents WearSkill, a web-based middleware application that enables people with upper-body motor impairments to control connected smart home devices through personalised wearable interactions. The system addresses a significant gap: most wearable devices…

  wearable technology · motor impairment · personalization · smart home · gesture input

• Sounds and (Braille) Cells: Co-Designing Music Technology with Blind and Visually Impaired Musicians

  William Payne · 2022 · Proceedings of the 19th International Web for All Conference (W4A)

  This doctoral consortium paper outlines a three-phase dissertation addressing the accessibility barriers that blind and visually impaired (BVI) musicians face when using music creation technologies. Music software has democratized composition, production, and songwriting for…

  visual impairment · blindness · music technology · braille music · co-design

• From the Lab to People's Home: Lessons from Accessing Blind Participants' Interactions via Smart Glasses in Remote Studies

  Kyungjun Lee, Jonggi Hong, Ebrima Jarjue, Ernest Essuah Mensah, Hernisa Kacorri · 2022 · Proceedings of the 19th International Web for All Conference (W4A)

  This paper from the University of Maryland explores using smart glasses as an observational tool in remote usability studies with blind participants. The COVID-19 pandemic forced accessibility researchers to shift from in-person to remote methods, but standard remote setups —…

  blindness and low vision · smart glasses · remote usability testing · user research · assistive technology

• AIDE: Automatic and Accessible Image Descriptions for Review Imagery in Online Retail

  Rachana Sreedhar, Nicole Tan, Jingyue Zhang, Kim Jin, Spencer Gregson, Eli Moreta-Feliz, Niveditha Samudrala, Shrenik Sadalgi · 2022 · Proceedings of the 19th International Web for All Conference (W4A)

  This paper from the Wayfair Next team presents AIDE (Automatic Image Description Engine), a multi-modal system that automatically generates alt-text for user-submitted review photos on e-commerce sites. While product images on retail sites sometimes have alt-text, customer…

  alternative text · image description · online shopping · blindness and low vision · computer vision

• The Use of ADKAR to Instil Change in the Accessibility of University Websites

  Silvia Rodríguez Vázquez · 2022 · Proceedings of the 19th International Web for All Conference (W4A)

  This short paper applies the ADKAR change management model — Awareness, Desire, Knowledge, Ability, and Reinforcement — to understand what interventions are needed to improve web accessibility at the University of Geneva (UNIGE) in Switzerland. The author argues that…

  organizational accessibility · change management · higher education · web accessibility · accessibility policy

• IMAGE: A Deployment Framework for Creating Multimodal Experiences of Web Graphics

  Juliette Regimbal, Jeffrey R. Blum, Jeremy R. Cooperstock · 2022 · Proceedings of the 19th International Web for All Conference (W4A)

  This short paper from McGill University introduces IMAGE (Internet Multimodal Access to Graphical Exploration), an open-source framework for converting web graphics into accessible multimodal outputs including audio, haptic, and text representations for blind and low vision…

  multimodal · web graphics · image accessibility · haptic feedback · sonification

• Teaching accessibility as a shared endeavour: building capacity across academic and workplace contexts

  Andy Coverdale, Sarah Lewthwaite, Sarah Horton · 2022 · Proceedings of the 19th International Web for All Conference (W4A)

  This short paper reports on qualitative research with 30 expert accessibility educators from academia and the workplace, drawn from a larger study called "Teaching Accessibility in the Digital Skill Set" (2019-2024). Using expert panel method — a participatory approach that…

  accessibility education · pedagogy · higher education · workplace training · capacity building

• For one or for all? Survey of educator perceptions of Web Speech-based auditory description in science interactives

  Brett L. Fiedler, Taliesin L. Smith, Jesse Greenberg, Emily B. Moore · 2022 · Proceedings of the 19th International Web for All Conference (W4A)

  This paper investigates how educators perceive a Web Speech API-based auditory description feature called Voicing, implemented in two PhET Interactive Simulations (John Travoltage and Gravity Force Lab: Basics) used globally for science education. Unlike traditional screen…

  auditory description · web speech · science education · interactive simulations · universal design

• Toward supporting quality alt text in computing publications

  Candace Williams, Lilian de Greef, Ed Harris, Leah Findlater, Amy Pavel, Cynthia Bennett · 2022 · Proceedings of the 19th International Web for All Conference (W4A)

  This paper investigates the state of alternative text for figures in computing research publications, an understudied context where figures often convey dense, complex visual information quite different from social media or news imagery. The researchers conducted two…

  alternative text · scientific figures · data visualization · screen readers · document accessibility

• FootUI: Designing and Detecting Foot Gestures to Assist People with Upper Body Motor Impairments to Use Smartphones on the Bed

  Xiaozhu Hu, Jiting Wang, Weiwei Gao, Yongquan Hu · 2022 · Proceedings of the 24th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS)

  This paper presents FootUI, a vision-based interaction technique that enables people with upper body motor impairments but sound lower limbs to use smartphones through foot gestures while reclining on a bed. The system uses the phone's front-facing camera, mounted on a phone…

  motor accessibility · foot-based interaction · gesture recognition · smartphone accessibility · computer vision

• The story behind Dytective: how we brought research results on dyslexia and accessibility to Spanish public schools

  Luz Rello · 2022 · Proceedings of the 19th International Web for All Conference (W4A)

  This invited talk paper presents the decade-long research and entrepreneurial journey behind Dytective, a platform that combines machine learning and gamified exercises to detect risk of dyslexia and provide personalized interventions. Dyslexia affects up to 10% of the global…

  dyslexia · machine learning · screening · serious games · social entrepreneurship

• Where Are You Taking Me? Reflections from Observing Ridesharing Use By People with Visual Impairments

  Earl W. Huff Jr., Robin N. Brewer, Julian Brinkley · 2022 · Proceedings of the 24th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS)

  This paper presents a methodological case study of conducting quasi-naturalistic observations of 17 blind or visually impaired participants using the Uber ridesharing service. Rather than reporting substantive findings about ridesharing accessibility (which are reserved for a…

  visual impairment · ridesharing · transportation accessibility · observation study · mobile accessibility

• Creating 3D Printed Assistive Technology Through Design Shortcuts: Leveraging Digital Fabrication Services to Incorporate 3D Printing into the Physical Therapy Classroom

  Erin Higgins, William Berkley Easley, Karen L. Gordes, Amy Hurst, Foad Hamidi · 2022 · Proceedings of the 24th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS)

  This paper investigates how to integrate 3D printing into physical therapy (PT) education without requiring PT students to become experts in CAD or digital fabrication. Previous research showed that while 3D printing has great potential for creating customized assistive…

  3D printing · assistive technology · digital fabrication · physical therapy · education

• Accessible Blockly: An Accessible Block-Based Programming Library for People with Visual Impairments

  Aboubakar Mountapmbeme, Obianuju Okafor, Stephanie Ludi · 2022 · Proceedings of the 24th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS)

  This paper presents Accessible Blockly, a prototype library that augments Google's Blockly — the open-source library underlying most mainstream block-based programming environments (Scratch, MakeCode, AppInventor) — with keyboard and screen reader interaction capabilities.…

  block-based programming · screen readers · keyboard navigation · blind programmers · computer science education

• Applying Technology in a Hybrid-Fashion to Create Dementia-Inclusive Community Spaces

  Elaine Czech · 2022 · Proceedings of the 24th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS '22)

  This doctoral consortium paper presents PhD research exploring how technology can improve accessibility to community spaces and social programs for people living with dementia (PLWD) and their informal carers. The work is grounded in the growing practice of social prescribing —…

  dementia · cognitive accessibility · social prescribing · community-based design · hybrid spaces

• Exploring Smart Speaker User Experience for People Who Stammer

  Anna Bleakley, Daniel Rough, Abi Roper, Stephen Lindsay, Martin Porcheron, Minha Lee, Stuart Alan Nicholson, Benjamin R. Cowan, Leigh Clark · 2022 · Proceedings of the 24th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS '22)

  This paper investigates how people who stammer experience smart speakers in their daily lives over a three-week period. The researchers deployed Google Nest devices in the homes of 11 participants (mean age 33, recruited through the STAMMA charity in the UK) and collected data…

  stammering · stuttering · speech disfluency · smart speakers · voice interface

• Uncovering Visually Impaired Gamers' Preferences for Spatial Awareness Tools Within Video Games

  Vishnu Nair, Shao-en Ma, Ricardo E. Gonzalez Penuela, Yicheng He, Karen Lin, Mason Hayes, Hannah Huddleston, Matthew Donnelly, Brian A. Smith · 2022 · Proceedings of the 24th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS '22)

  This paper investigates how visually impaired players (VIPs) gain spatial awareness within 3D video games by comparing four leading spatial awareness tool (SAT) approaches. The researchers built Dungeon Escape, a 3D third-person adventure game using Unity, featuring four dungeon…

  game accessibility · visual impairment · blindness · spatial awareness · audio navigation

• AAC with Automated Vocabulary from Photographs: Insights from School and Speech-Language Therapy Settings

  Mauricio Fontana de Vargas, Jiamin Dai, Karyn Moffatt · 2022 · Proceedings of the 24th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS '22)

  This paper presents Click AAC, a prototype mobile application that automatically generates situation-specific communication boards from photographs using computer vision and natural language processing. Traditional symbol-based AAC devices organize vocabulary hierarchically by…

  augmentative and alternative communication · AAC · autism · computer vision · just-in-time vocabulary

• Depending on Independence: An Autoethnographic Account of Daily Use of Assistive Technologies

  Felix Fussenegger, Katta Spiel · 2022 · Proceedings of the 24th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS '22)

  This experience report uses autoethnography to examine the daily realities of depending on assistive technologies (AT) from the first-person perspective of Felix Fussenegger, a person living with a high spinal cord injury (C6 level) resulting in complete sensory and motor…

  assistive technology · autoethnography · disability studies · independence · interdependence

• Low-Cost Tactile Coloring Page Fabrication on a Cutting Machine: Assembly and user experiences of cardstock-layered tangible pictures

  Nicole Johnson, Tom Yeh, Ann Cunningham · 2022 · Proceedings of the 24th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS '22)

  This short paper presents a design inquiry into using a consumer-grade Cricut cutting machine to create tactile pictures and coloring pages by layering cardstock, as a low-cost alternative to traditional tactile image production methods. The technique, developed over three…

  tactile graphics · blindness · low vision · early learning · DIY assistive technology

• Assistive or Artistic Technologies? Exploring the Connections between Art, Disability and Wheelchair Use

  Giulia Barbareschi, Masa Inakage · 2022 · Proceedings of the 24th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS '22)

  This paper explores the reciprocal influences between art, disability, and assistive technology use through semi-structured interviews with 17 artists who use wheelchairs for mobility. Participants spanned diverse artistic disciplines — dance (7), music and DJing (5), visual art…

  disability art · wheelchair accessibility · assistive technology · creativity · disability identity

• Evaluating Haptic Technology in Accessibility of Digital Audio Workstations for Visual Impaired Creatives

  Christina Karpodini · 2022 · Proceedings of the 24th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS '22)

  This doctoral consortium paper proposes a two-stage research programme to make Digital Audio Workstations (DAWs) more accessible for musicians with visual impairments through haptic feedback. The author argues that modern music production has become an increasingly visual…

  haptic technology · visual impairment · music accessibility · digital audio workstation · vibrotactile feedback

• Designing Post-Trauma Self-Regulation Apps for People with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities

  Krishna Venkatasubramanian, Tina-Marie Ranalli · 2022 · Proceedings of the 24th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS '22)

  This paper explores how to design mobile apps that help people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD) engage in post-trauma self-regulation (PTSR) — activities that help manage negative emotional effects like anxiety, grief, and stress that arise from traumatic…

  intellectual disability · developmental disability · trauma-informed care · self-regulation · mental health

• Supporting Physical Activity in Later Life: Perspectives from Older Adults

  Muhe Yang · 2022 · Proceedings of the 24th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS '22)

  This doctoral consortium paper presents a research plan to investigate how behaviour change technology can be better designed to support physical activity among older adults living alone, with a specific focus on walking. The author identifies a core problem: existing health…

  aging · older adults · physical activity · behaviour change technology · persuasive technology

• Access on Demand: Real-time, Multi-modal Accessibility for the Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing based on Augmented Reality

  Roshan Mathew, Brian Mak, Wendy Dannels · 2022 · Proceedings of the 24th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS '22)

  This experience report documents two deaf researchers' hands-on evaluation of Access on Demand (AoD), an augmented reality application developed at Rochester Institute of Technology that delivers real-time captioning and American Sign Language (ASL) interpretation through Vuzix…

  augmented reality · deaf and hard of hearing · smart glasses · captioning · sign language interpretation