Literature Reviews

Reviewed research papers, articles, and publications relevant to digital accessibility.

• "Dump it, Destroy it, Send it to Data Heaven": Blind People's Expectations for Visual Privacy in Visual Assistance Technologies

  Abigale Stangl, Emma Sadjo, Pardis Emami-Naeini, Yang Wang, Danna Gurari, Leah Findlater (2023) — Proceedings of the 20th International Web for All Conference (W4A)

  This paper investigates the visual privacy expectations of 16 totally blind individuals who use visual assistance technologies (VATs) such as Aira, Be My Eyes, Seeing AI, and Envision AI. VATs provide blind users access to visual information by conne…

  • visual privacy
  • blind users
  • visual assistance technology
  • privacy expectations
  • data protection
  • AI ethics
  • camera-based assistive technology
  • obfuscation

• ImageExplorer Deployment: Understanding Text-Based and Touch-Based Image Exploration in the Wild

  Ruolin Xu, Yuxuan Cai, Shuying Hou, Yu-Jung Chang, Anhong Guo (2024) — Proceedings of the 21st International Web for All Conference (W4A)

  This paper presents the real-world deployment and evaluation of ImageExplorer, an iOS application that enables blind and low-vision users to explore images through two complementary modalities: text-based sequential exploration and touch-based spatia…

  • image accessibility
  • screen readers
  • touch exploration
  • blind users
  • image description
  • mobile accessibility
  • computer vision
  • object detection

• Increasing Agency of Screen-Reader Users in Consuming Information From Online Data Visualizations

  Ather Sharif, Andrew Zhang, Jacob Wobbrock (2025) — Proceedings of the 22nd International Web for All Conference (W4A)

  This paper addresses a fundamental equity problem in data visualization accessibility: screen-reader users are limited to consuming only the information that visualization creators choose to provide, with no agency to customize what they hear. Prior …

  • data visualization accessibility
  • screen readers
  • user agency
  • sonification
  • alt text
  • data tables
  • customization
  • blind users

• AccessMenu: Enhancing Usability of Online Restaurant Menus for Screen Reader Users

  Nithiya Venkatraman, Akshay Kolgar Nayak, Suyog Dahal, Yash Prakash, Hae-Na Lee, Vikas Ashok (2025) — Proceedings of the 22nd International Web for All Conference (W4A)

  This paper addresses the significant accessibility barriers that blind and visually impaired (BVI) screen reader users face when trying to access online restaurant menus, which are typically presented as images or PDFs. The research proceeds in two p…

  • screen readers
  • blind users
  • visual document understanding
  • LLM accessibility
  • multimodal AI
  • browser extension
  • web accessibility
  • OCR

• Adapting Online Customer Reviews for Blind Users: A Case Study of Restaurant Reviews

  Mohan Sunkara, Akshay Kolgar Nayak, Sandeep Kalari, Yash Prakash, Sampath Jayarathna, Hae-Na Lee, Vikas Ashok (2025) — Proceedings of the 22nd International Web for All Conference (W4A)

  This paper addresses the significant usability challenges blind screen reader users face when navigating online customer reviews, using restaurant reviews on Google Maps as a case study. The research proceeds in two phases. First, an interview study …

  • screen readers
  • blind users
  • online reviews
  • LLM accessibility
  • content summarization
  • sentiment analysis
  • web accessibility

• QuickQue: Enabling Quick Access to Information in User Reviews for Screen Reader Users

  Mohan Sunkara, Akshay Kolgar Nayak, Sandeep Kalari, Yash Prakash, Sampath Jayarathna, Hae-Na Lee, Vikas Ashok (2025) — Proceedings of the 22nd International Web for All Conference (W4A 2025)

  This paper presents QuickCue, a Google Chrome browser extension that helps blind screen reader users efficiently access online customer reviews by using LLM-powered aspect and sentiment classification to organize and summarize review content. The cur…

  • screen readers
  • blind users
  • online reviews
  • large language models
  • browser extension
  • information accessibility
  • sentiment analysis

• The Promise and Pitfalls of Web Accessibility Overlays for Blind and Low Vision Users

  Tlamelo Makati, Garreth W. Tigwell, Kristen Shinohara (2024) — Proceedings of the 26th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS 2024)

  This study provides the first substantial empirical evidence from blind and low-vision users about their experiences with web accessibility overlays—third-party JavaScript tools that claim to enhance website usability for people with disabilities by …

  • web accessibility
  • accessibility overlays
  • screen readers
  • blind users
  • low vision
  • assistive technology
  • WCAG

• Trying to Piece It Together: Exploring Accessible Error Detection in Emerging Privacy Techniques With Blind People

  Rahaf Alharbi, Angela D Cheong, Jaylin Herskovitz, Robin N. Brewer, Sarita Schoenebeck (2025) — ASSETS 2025: 27th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility

  This paper investigates how blind people might detect errors in AI-enabled privacy techniques (obfuscation) used within visual assistance technologies (VAT). Blind people routinely use VAT apps like Seeing AI, Be My Eyes, Aira, and TapTapSee to acces…

  • visual assistance technologies
  • privacy
  • obfuscation
  • AI error detection
  • assessment descriptors
  • blind users
  • sighted bias
  • transparency
  • trust
  • qualitative research
  • focus groups

• GestureVoice: Enabling Multimodal Text Editing for Blind Users Using Gestures and Voice

  Prerna Khanna, Sai Pravallika Reddy, IV Ramakrishnan, Xiaojun Bi, Aruna Balasubramanian (2025) — ASSETS 2025: 27th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility

  This paper introduces GestureVoice, a multimodal text editing system that enables blind smartphone users to edit text using mid-air hand gestures detected by a smartwatch combined with voice commands, eliminating the need for touchscreen interaction.…

  • text editing
  • blind users
  • multimodal interaction
  • gesture recognition
  • voice commands
  • smartwatch
  • wearable technology
  • screen readers
  • mobile accessibility
  • eyes-free interaction

• Crippin' WhatsApp's Interaction Design: Learnings from the blind/visually impaired users of India

  Hrittika Bhowmick, Atharva Shrivastava, Sandeep Ysp, Shilpaa Anand, Dipanjan Chakraborty (2025) — Proceedings of the 27th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS 2025)

  This paper examines how blind and visually impaired users in India navigate WhatsApp, using critical disability studies and Roland Barthes' concept of myth to argue that WhatsApp's design naturalizes visual interaction as universal while marginalizin…

  • screen readers
  • blind users
  • social media accessibility
  • Global South accessibility
  • critical disability studies
  • mobile accessibility
  • interaction design
  • digital divide