Literature Reviews

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

• From the Lab to People's Home: Lessons from Accessing Blind Participants' Interactions via Smart Glasses in Remote Studies

  Kyungjun Lee, Jonggi Hong, Ebrima Jarjue, Ernest Essuah Mensah, Hernisa Kacorri (2022) — Proceedings of the 19th International Web for All Conference (W4A)

  This paper from the University of Maryland explores using smart glasses as an observational tool in remote usability studies with blind participants. The COVID-19 pandemic forced accessibility researchers to shift from in-person to remote methods, bu…

  • blindness and low vision
  • smart glasses
  • remote usability testing
  • user research
  • assistive technology
  • wearable technology
  • research methods

• AIDE: Automatic and Accessible Image Descriptions for Review Imagery in Online Retail

  Rachana Sreedhar, Nicole Tan, Jingyue Zhang, Kim Jin, Spencer Gregson, Eli Moreta-Feliz, Niveditha Samudrala, Shrenik Sadalgi (2022) — Proceedings of the 19th International Web for All Conference (W4A)

  This paper from the Wayfair Next team presents AIDE (Automatic Image Description Engine), a multi-modal system that automatically generates alt-text for user-submitted review photos on e-commerce sites. While product images on retail sites sometimes …

  • alternative text
  • image description
  • online shopping
  • blindness and low vision
  • computer vision
  • natural language processing
  • user-generated content
  • e-commerce accessibility

• Sounds and (Braille) Cells: Co-Designing Music Technology with Blind and Visually Impaired Musicians

  William Payne (2022) — Proceedings of the 19th International Web for All Conference (W4A)

  This doctoral consortium paper outlines a three-phase dissertation addressing the accessibility barriers that blind and visually impaired (BVI) musicians face when using music creation technologies. Music software has democratized composition, produc…

  • visual impairment
  • blindness
  • music technology
  • braille music
  • co-design
  • participatory design
  • assistive technology
  • screen readers

• Creating an Open Source, Customizable Accessibility Checker for Content Authors

  Adam Chaboryk (2022) — Proceedings of the 19th International Web for All Conference (W4A)

  This extended abstract introduces Sa11y, an open-source, in-page accessibility checker specifically designed for content authors rather than developers. Created at Ryerson University (now Toronto Metropolitan University) to manage accessibility acros…

  • automated testing
  • accessibility tools
  • content management
  • open source
  • quality assurance
  • web accessibility

• On the Identification of Accessibility Bug Reports in Open Source Systems

  Wajdi Aljedaani, Mohamed Wiem Mkaouer, Stephanie Ludi, Ali Ouni, Ilyes Jenhani (2022) — Proceedings of the 19th International Web for All Conference (W4A)

  This paper addresses a significant gap in software engineering research: the automated identification of accessibility-related bug reports in open-source projects. While bug tracking systems like Bugzilla and Monorail accumulate vast numbers of repor…

  • accessibility bug reports
  • machine learning
  • open source
  • bug classification
  • automated testing
  • text classification
  • software quality

• Personalized Wearable Interactions with WearSkill

  Ovidiu-Andrei Schipor, Laura-Bianca Bilius, Ovidiu-Ciprian Ungurean, Alexandru-Ionut Siean, Alexandru-Tudor Andrei, Radu-Daniel Vatavu (2022) — Proceedings of the 19th International Web for All Conference (W4A)

  This extended abstract presents WearSkill, a web-based middleware application that enables people with upper-body motor impairments to control connected smart home devices through personalised wearable interactions. The system addresses a significant…

  • wearable technology
  • motor impairment
  • personalization
  • smart home
  • gesture input
  • assistive technology
  • middleware
  • ability-based design

• Investigating Older Adults' Adoption and Usage of Online Conferencing Tools During COVID-19

  Hirak Ray, Ravi Kuber, Adam J. Aviv (2022) — Proceedings of the 19th International Web for All Conference (W4A)

  This qualitative study examines how 25 older adults (aged 60-89) in the United States adapted to online conferencing tools during the COVID-19 pandemic, with a particular focus on usability challenges, privacy and security concerns, and the trade-off…

  • older adults
  • aging
  • technology adoption
  • privacy
  • usability
  • digital divide
  • telehealth
  • COVID-19
  • online communication

• How and Why We Run: Investigating the Experiences of Blind and Visually-Impaired Runners

  Sidas Saulynas, Mei-Lian Vader, Apoorva Bendigeri, Tristan King, Anirudh Nagraj, Ravi Kuber (2022) — Proceedings of the 19th International Web for All Conference (W4A)

  This qualitative study investigates the running experiences of 13 legally blind individuals in the United States, exploring where and how they run, what assistance they use, the challenges they face, and how technology could better support them. Part…

  • blindness
  • visual impairment
  • physical activity
  • assistive technology
  • wearable technology
  • haptic feedback
  • guide runners
  • independent living
  • user research

• "I'm Ok Because I'm Alive": Understanding Socio-cultural Accessibility Barriers for Refugees with Disabilities in the US

  Foad Hamidi, Zulekha Karachiwalla (2022) — Proceedings of the 19th International Web for All Conference (W4A)

  This qualitative study investigates the accessibility barriers faced by refugees with disabilities in the United States, drawing on interviews with six experts who serve refugee populations in Baltimore, Maryland. The research was conducted during th…

  • refugees
  • disability
  • mental health
  • cultural barriers
  • language access
  • healthcare accessibility
  • intersectionality
  • assistive technology

• Framework for Experiential Transcoding of Web Pages with Scanpath Trend Analysis

  Idil Ece Trabzon, Furkan Yagiz, Elmas Eda Karadavut, Mahmoud Elhewahey, Sukru Eraslan, Yeliz Yesilada, Simon Harper (2022) — Proceedings of the 19th International Web for All Conference (W4A)

  This paper presents EXTRA, an automated framework for experiential transcoding of web pages — a technique that restructures web content based on how sighted users actually interact with pages, rather than relying solely on source code analysis. The c…

  • screen readers
  • web transcoding
  • eye tracking
  • web page segmentation
  • content reordering
  • browser extension
  • visual impairment