Literature Reviews

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

• Making Memes Accessible

  Cole Gleason, Amy Pavel, Xingyu Liu, Patrick Carrington, Lydia B. Chilton, Jeffrey P. Bigham (2019) — Proceedings of the 21st International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS 2019)

  This paper presents two semi-automatic methods for making internet image macro memes accessible to people with vision impairments: rich alternative text descriptions and audio macro memes. Memes are a pervasive form of online communication, yet they …

  • alternative text
  • blind
  • low vision
  • social media
  • image accessibility
  • screen readers
  • OCR
  • computer vision
  • memes
  • web accessibility
  • audio description

• Am I Too Old to Drive? Opinions of Older Adults on Self-Driving Vehicles

  Earl W. Huff, Natalie DellaMaria, Brianna Posadas, Julian Brinkley (2019) — Proceedings of the 21st International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS 2019)

  This paper explores the opinions, preferences, and concerns of 39 older African American adults (aged 57-91, mean 74) regarding fully autonomous (Level 5) self-driving vehicles through seven focus group sessions conducted over five days in South Caro…

  • autonomous vehicles
  • older adults
  • aging
  • accessible transportation
  • mobility
  • African American
  • intersectionality
  • participatory design
  • driving cessation
  • independence

• DarkReader: Bridging the Gap Between Perception and Reality of Power Consumption in Smartphones for Blind Users

  Jian Xu, Syed Masum Billah, Roy Shilkrot, Aruna Balasubramanian (2019) — Proceedings of the 21st International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS 2019)

  This paper presents DarkReader, a modified Android screen reader that truly turns off the smartphone screen while preserving full touchscreen interaction for blind users, saving 24-52% of power compared to the default TalkBack screen reader. The work…

  • blind
  • screen readers
  • TalkBack
  • VoiceOver
  • Android
  • power consumption
  • battery life
  • privacy
  • mobile accessibility
  • shoulder surfing

• Demo: Expanding Blocks4All with Variables and Functions

  Jacqueline Shao Yi Ong, Nana Adwoa O. Amoah, Alison E. Garrett-Engele, Mariella Irene Page, Katherine R. McCarthy, Lauren R. Milne (2019) — Proceedings of the 21st International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS 2019)

  This demonstration paper describes extensions to Blocks4All, an accessible blocks-based programming environment (BBPE) for iPad designed to enable children with visual impairments to learn programming through touchscreen interaction with screen reade…

  • programming education
  • blind
  • low vision
  • visual impairment
  • screen readers
  • VoiceOver
  • STEM accessibility
  • blocks-based programming
  • motor impairment
  • color blindness
  • robotics
  • Switch Control

• Development of a Real-time Bionic Voice Generation System based on Statistical Excitation Prediction

  Farzaneh Ahmadi, Kazuhiro Kobayashi, Tomoki Toda (2019) — Proceedings of the 21st International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS 2019)

  This demonstration paper presents the first real-time implementation of the Pneumatic Bionic Voice (PBV) system, a voice prosthesis for people who have undergone laryngectomy — surgical removal of the larynx, typically due to advanced throat cancer. …

  • voice prosthesis
  • laryngectomy
  • speech accessibility
  • voice conversion
  • assistive technology
  • bionics
  • signal processing

• Prefigurative Politics and Passionate Witnessing

  Rua M. Williams, LouAnne E. Boyd (2019) — Proceedings of the 21st International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS 2019)

  This experience report traces the unlikely partnership between two researchers — Rua Williams, an autistic disability studies scholar and activist, and LouAnne Boyd, a former behaviour therapist turned HCI researcher — whose work initially placed the…

  • critical disability studies
  • autism
  • research ethics
  • disability justice
  • participatory design
  • research methodology
  • ableism
  • neurodiversity
  • reflexivity

• BrailleBlocks: Braille Toys for Cross-Ability Collaboration

  Vinitha Gadiraju (2019) — Proceedings of the 21st International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS 2019)

  This student research abstract presents BrailleBlocks, a tangible learning system designed to help blind or visually impaired children learn Braille collaboratively with their sighted parents. Braille literacy in the United States is critically low —…

  • braille
  • blind
  • education
  • children
  • tangible interaction
  • cross-ability collaboration
  • game-based learning
  • computer vision
  • braille literacy

• An Intelligent Decision Support System for Stroke Rehabilitation Assessment

  Min Hun Lee (2019) — Proceedings of the 21st International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS 2019)

  This student research abstract presents an interactive multimodal machine learning approach for automatically assessing upper-limb stroke rehabilitation exercises and supporting therapist decision-making. Physical rehabilitation is critical for peopl…

  • stroke rehabilitation
  • machine learning
  • human-AI interaction
  • decision support
  • motor disability
  • kinematic analysis
  • interactive machine learning
  • Kinect

• HowToApp: Supporting Life Skills Development of Young Adults with Intellectual Disability

  Andrew A. Bayor (2019) — Proceedings of the 21st International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS 2019)

  This student research abstract describes the co-design and preliminary evaluation of HowToApp, a mobile application that helps young adults with intellectual disability (ID) search for, watch, archive, and share YouTube videos related to their person…

  • intellectual disability
  • co-design
  • social media
  • YouTube
  • skills development
  • ability-based design
  • digital inclusion
  • self-determination
  • cognitive accessibility

• User Perspectives on Robotics for Post-stroke Hand Rehabilitation

  Chloe Ng (2019) — Proceedings of the 21st International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS 2019)

  This student research abstract presents a preliminary qualitative study investigating user perceptions of an exoskeleton robotic device designed for post-stroke hand rehabilitation. Impaired hand motor function is one of the most significant disabili…

  • stroke rehabilitation
  • exoskeleton
  • robotics
  • motor disability
  • assistive technology
  • user experience
  • hand function
  • rehabilitation
  • caregiver perspectives