Literature Reviews

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

• A Personalizable Mobile Sound Detector App Design for Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing Users

  Danielle Bragg, Nicholas Huynh, Richard E. Ladner (2016) — Proceedings of the 18th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS '16)

  This paper presents the design and evaluation of a personalizable mobile phone app that detects sounds of interest to deaf and hard-of-hearing (DHH) users by learning from training examples recorded by the user themselves. Unlike existing commercial …

  • deaf and hard of hearing
  • mobile accessibility
  • machine learning
  • sound detection
  • personalization
  • assistive technology
  • user research

• Would You Be Mine: Appropriating Minecraft as an Assistive Technology for Youth with Autism

  Kathryn E. Ringland, Christine T. Wolf, LouAnne E. Boyd, Mark S. Baldwin, Gillian R. Hayes (2016) — Proceedings of the 18th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS '16)

  This paper presents findings from a 24-month digital ethnography of Autcraft, a semi-private Minecraft server created for children with autism and their allies, examining how this community has appropriated the game into a variety of assistive techno…

  • autism
  • gaming
  • game accessibility
  • DIY assistive technology
  • social accessibility
  • self-regulation
  • sensory processing
  • online communities
  • disability identity
  • virtual reality

• Ad-Hoc Access to Musical Sound for Deaf Individuals

  Benjamin Petry, Thavishi Illandara, Juan Pablo Forero, Suranga Nanayakkara (2016) — Proceedings of the 18th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS '16)

  This poster paper presents MuSS-Bits (Music Sensory Substitution Bits), a wearable sensor-display system that enables deaf individuals to explore musical sound from various audio sources with real-time vibrotactile feedback. While existing sensory su…

  • deaf and hard of hearing
  • music accessibility
  • sensory substitution
  • haptic technology
  • wearable technology
  • assistive technology

• An Accessible Blocks Language: Work in Progress

  Varsha Koushik, Clayton Lewis (2016) — Proceedings of the 18th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS '16)

  This demonstration paper presents Pseudospatial Blocks (PB), a nonvisual blocks programming language designed to make block-based coding environments accessible to blind learners. Block languages like Scratch, Snap, MIT App Inventor, and Microsoft Bl…

  • blindness
  • programming education
  • screen reader
  • education
  • STEM accessibility
  • inclusive design
  • software accessibility

• Supporting Orientation of People with Visual Impairment: Analysis of Large Scale Usage Data

  Hernisa Kacorri, Sergio Mascetti, Andrea Gerino, Dragan Ahmetovic, Hironobu Takagi, Chieko Asakawa (2016) — Proceedings of the 18th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS '16)

  This paper analyzes large-scale remote usage data from iMove, an iOS GPS-based orientation app for people with visual impairments, to understand how users interact with assistive navigation technology in real-world conditions. Traditional assistive t…

  • visual impairment
  • blindness
  • navigation
  • orientation and mobility
  • mobile accessibility
  • data collection
  • machine learning
  • user research
  • VoiceOver

• Designing Wearable Mobile Device Controllers for Blind People: A Co-Design Approach

  Catherine Feng (2016) — Proceedings of the 18th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS '16)

  This poster paper explores the design space of wearable controllers that enable blind people to operate their smartphones more efficiently while on the go, without needing to directly interact with the phone's touchscreen. Blind people rely heavily o…

  • blindness
  • wearable technology
  • mobile accessibility
  • co-design
  • interaction design
  • screen reader
  • gesture interaction
  • on-body interaction

• Tag Thunder: Towards Non-Visual Web Page Skimming

  Elena Manishina, Jean-Marc Lecarpentier, Fabrice Maurel, Stéphane Ferrari, Maxence Busson (2016) — Proceedings of the 18th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS '16)

  This demonstration paper presents Tag Thunder, an audio equivalent of visual tag clouds designed to bring skimming capabilities to blind web users. When sighted people access a web page, they first skim the content — rapidly scanning layout, typograp…

  • blindness
  • screen reader
  • web accessibility
  • speech
  • natural language processing
  • sonification
  • auditory interface
  • content accessibility

• A Tool for Capturing Essential Preferences

  Dana Ayotte, Michelle Brennan, Nancy Frishberg, Cynthia Jimes, Lisa Petrides, Whitney Quesenbery, Madeleine Rothberg, Rich Schwerdtfeger, Jim Tobias, Jutta Treviranus, Shari Trewin, Gregg C. Vanderheiden (2016) — Proceedings of the 18th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS '16)

  This demonstration paper presents the First Discovery Tool, a multimodal web-based application designed to help people discover and set essential accessibility preferences — such as large fonts, high contrast, speech output, or one-handed keyboard us…

  • personalization
  • accessibility tools
  • aging
  • education
  • inclusive design
  • digital literacy
  • user interface design
  • universal design

• Uncovering Challenges and Opportunities for 3D Printing Assistive Technology with Physical Therapists

  Samantha McDonald, Niara Comrie, Erin Buehler, Nicholas Carter, Braxton Dubin, Karen Gordes, Sandy McCombe-Waller, Amy Hurst (2016) — Proceedings of the 18th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS '16)

  This paper investigates the feasibility and challenges of integrating 3D printing into physical therapy (PT) practice for creating customized assistive technology (AT). Physical therapists routinely modify standardized AT devices using temporary mate…

  • 3D printing
  • assistive technology
  • DIY assistive technology
  • physical disability
  • digital fabrication
  • education
  • rehabilitation
  • co-design

• LucentMaps: 3D Printed Audiovisual Tactile Maps for Blind and Visually Impaired People

  Timo Götzelmann (2016) — Proceedings of the 18th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS '16)

  This paper presents LucentMaps, a system for creating 3D printed transparent audiovisual tactile maps that work as interactive overlays on standard tablet computers and smartphones. Unlike most audio-tactile map approaches that focus exclusively on b…

  • tactile maps
  • tactile graphics
  • 3D printing
  • blindness
  • low vision
  • navigation
  • orientation and mobility
  • conductive filament
  • touchscreen accessibility
  • open source