Glossary
Searchable terminology from accessibility, web standards, and related fields.
840 results found in assistive technology.
- Face Tracking (Facial Tracking, Face Detection and Tracking)
- A computer vision technology that detects and follows the position and movement of a user's face in real time using a camera or depth sensor. In accessibility, face tracking enables hands-free compute…
- Facial Action Unit (Action Unit, AU, FACS Action Unit)
- A component of the Facial Action Coding System (FACS) that represents a specific movement or position of facial muscles. Each action unit corresponds to a distinct facial movement, such as raising the…
- Fall Detection (Automatic Fall Detection, Fall Alert System)
- Technology that automatically identifies when a person has fallen and triggers an alert or emergency response. Fall detection systems typically use sensors such as accelerometers and gyroscopes in wea…
- Feature Extraction (Feature Engineering, Representation Learning)
- Feature extraction is the process of identifying and isolating measurable properties or characteristics (features) from raw data such as images, audio, or text, for use in machine learning tasks. In i…
- Few-Shot Learning (N-Shot Learning, Low-Shot Learning)
- Few-shot learning is a machine learning approach that enables AI models to learn new concepts from only a small number of examples — typically 1 to 10 — rather than the hundreds or thousands tradition…
- Fiducial Marker (AR Marker, Visual Marker, Reference Marker)
- An artificial visual landmark placed in a physical environment to serve as a reference point for image processing systems. Fiducial markers — such as QR codes, ArUco markers, and BCH matricial markers…
- Finger Braille (Tactile Finger Spelling)
- A communication method used primarily by deaf-blind people, in which a sender taps or presses on the fingers of the receiver to represent Braille dot patterns, simulating typing on a Braille typewrite…
- Finger Reading (Touch Scanning, Tactile Scanning)
- A touch interaction technique used on accessible touchscreen interfaces where users continuously pan or slide their finger across the screen to explore content, receiving feedback for every position t…
- Finger Tracking (Fingertip Tracking, Finger Detection, Hand Tracking)
- Computer vision or sensor-based technology that detects and follows the position and movement of a user's fingers in real-time. In accessibility applications, finger tracking enables hands-free intera…
- Finger-mounted Camera (Fingertip Camera, Wearable Finger Camera)
- A small camera device worn on the finger that enables direct, tactile interaction with printed documents for blind and low-vision users. Unlike handheld or phone-based cameras, finger-mounted systems …
- Fire Vox (FireVox)
- An open-source, cross-platform screen reader implemented as a Firefox browser extension, created by Charles Chen as part of the CLC-4-TTS Suite. Fire Vox was notable as one of the earliest assistive t…
- Fitness Tracker (Activity Tracker, Wearable Fitness Device)
- A wearable electronic device that monitors and records physical activity metrics such as steps taken, distance covered, calories burned, and heart rate. Most commercial fitness trackers use step-count…
- Flash Pattern Analyzer (FPA, PEAT, Photosensitive Epilepsy Analysis Tool)
- Software tools designed to detect potentially dangerous flashing or strobing patterns in digital media that could trigger seizures or other photosensitive reactions. The Harding Flash Pattern Analyzer…
- Focus Mode
- A privacy technique in visual assistance technologies that spotlights a specific object of interest while obfuscating or hiding all other elements in the image or video. For example, a user might acti…
- Focusmate
- An online platform that facilitates virtual body doubling by matching users with accountability partners for timed video co-working sessions. Users keep their cameras on, state their goals at the begi…
- Force Feedback (Haptic Force Feedback, Kinesthetic Feedback)
- A type of haptic technology that applies physical forces to the user through a device such as a stylus, joystick, or glove, simulating the sensation of touching or interacting with virtual objects. Un…
- Force-Sensing Resistor (FSR, Force Sensor)
- A sensor that decreases in electrical resistance when physical pressure is applied to its surface. Force-sensing resistors are commonly used in assistive technology and accessibility applications to c…
- Force-sensitive resistor (FSR, Pressure sensor)
- An electronic sensor whose electrical resistance changes in response to applied physical pressure, enabling detection of both the presence and intensity of touch or force. In accessibility application…
- Foundation Model (Large Pretrained Model, General-Purpose AI Model, GPAI)
- A foundation model is a large AI model trained on broad, general-purpose data — typically at massive scale using self-supervised or unsupervised learning — that can be adapted (fine-tuned) for a wide …
- Frame differencing (Temporal differencing, Background subtraction)
- A computer vision technique that detects motion or changes in video by comparing consecutive frames pixel by pixel. In accessibility applications, frame differencing can identify instructor actions in…