Glossary
Searchable terminology from accessibility, web standards, and related fields.
31 results found in Non-Visual Interaction.
- Active Exploration (User-Directed Exploration)
- An interaction paradigm in non-visual interfaces where users physically control their navigation through information, discovering content by directing a pointer, stylus, or finger across a surface or …
- Audio-Based Virtual Environment (Audio Virtual Environment, Sound-Based Virtual World, Auditory Virtual Environment)
- An audio-based virtual environment is a computer-generated interactive space that uses sound — including 3D spatial audio, stereo effects, and environmental audio cues — as the primary channel for con…
- Audio-to-Haptics Translation (Audio-haptic translation, Audio-to-vibration conversion)
- A class of techniques that convert audio signals — either recordings of real-world interactions or AI-generated sounds — into vibrotactile patterns that can be rendered through actuators embedded in p…
- Auditory User Interface (AUI, Audio User Interface)
- A user interface that relies primarily on audio output — including synthesised speech, earcons, auditory icons, and sonification — to convey information and enable interaction. Auditory user interface…
- Dialog Interface (Dialogue Interface, Conversational Interface)
- A user interface paradigm in which interaction occurs through a structured exchange of prompts and responses, typically using speech or text. In assistive technology contexts, dialog interfaces presen…
- Displayless Interface (Screenless Interface, Eyes-Free Interface)
- A displayless interface is a computer interaction system that operates without a visual display, relying instead on audio, speech, haptic, or other non-visual output modalities. These interfaces serve…
- Focus and Context (Focus+Context, Detail in Context)
- An information visualization and interaction design principle that simultaneously presents detailed information about a specific item of interest (focus) alongside an overview of the surrounding struc…
- Geo-referenced Data (Geospatial Data, Geographic Data, Georeferenced Data)
- Data that is associated with specific geographic locations or regions, such as population statistics by county, crime rates by neighbourhood, or election results by district. Geo-referenced data is ty…
- Hand-Object Interaction (Hand-Object Interactions, HOI)
- The full range of physical actions people perform when grasping, touching, holding, manipulating, or gesturing toward objects with their hands. In accessibility research, hand-object interactions are …
- Haptic Icon (Hapticon)
- A short, structured vibrotactile or force pattern designed to carry meaning in the same way a graphical icon or audio earcon does, allowing users to recognize a category of information — an alert, mat…
- Haptic Rendering (Haptic display rendering)
- The process of computing and outputting touch-based signals — forces, vibrations, textures, or friction — so that a user can perceive virtual or remote objects through the sense of touch. Haptic rende…
- Hearcon (3D Earcon)
- An extension of the earcon concept that adds three-dimensional spatial audio properties to non-speech audio cues used in computer interfaces. While earcons are abstract synthesized sounds that represe…
- Hyperstory (Interactive Story, Branching Narrative, Hypertext Story)
- A hyperstory is an interactive, non-linear narrative structure in which users make choices that influence the direction and outcome of the story. Adapted from hypertext concepts, hyperstories combine …
- Kinaesthetic Perception (Kinesthetic Perception, Kinaesthesia, Kinesthesia, Proprioception)
- The sensory awareness of the position, movement, and force of body parts, derived from receptors in muscles, tendons, and joints. In the context of haptic technology and accessibility, kinaesthetic pe…
- Logical Navigation (Structural Navigation, Semantic Navigation)
- A non-visual navigation strategy in which a user moves through a web page by its semantic structure — jumping between heading levels, ARIA landmarks, skip links, form fields, or other role-tagged regi…
- Mid-Air Ultrasound Haptics (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 h…
- Non-Contact Haptics (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 ultras…
- Non-Speech Audio (Non-Verbal Audio, Non-Speech Sound)
- Auditory output that conveys information through sounds other than spoken words — for example tones, clicks, earcons, auditory icons, musical motifs, or vowel-like timbres. Non-speech audio is widely …
- Non-Visual Drawing (Blind Drawing, Drawing Without Sight)
- The practice of creating graphical representations — such as diagrams, shapes, charts, or illustrations — without relying on visual feedback. Non-visual drawing can be accomplished through tactile met…
- Nonvisual Access (Non-Visual Access, Nonvisual Web Access, Non-Visual Web Access)
- The use of digital content, particularly web pages and applications, through means other than sight. Nonvisual access typically involves screen readers that convert text to speech, braille displays th…