Literature Reviews

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

• Exploring Aural and Haptic Feedback for Visually Impaired People on a Track: A Wizard of Oz Study

  Kyle Rector, Rachel Bartlett, Sean Mullan (2018) — Proceedings of the 20th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS 2018)

  This University of Iowa study investigates how to make outdoor jogging tracks accessible to people who are blind or have low vision, addressing a gap in exercise accessibility research. Standard 400-meter tracks rely entirely on visual lane markings,…

  • blindness
  • low vision
  • exercise accessibility
  • navigation
  • haptic technology
  • audio feedback
  • vibration feedback
  • Wizard of Oz
  • physical activity

• Understanding the Power of Control in Autonomous Vehicles for People with Vision Impairment

  Robin N. Brewer, Vaishnav Kameswaran (2018) — Proceedings of the 20th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS 2018)

  This University of Michigan study investigates how people with vision impairments perceive control in semi-autonomous versus fully autonomous vehicles, a distinction previous research had not explored. The researchers conducted design-based focus gro…

  • blindness
  • low vision
  • autonomous vehicles
  • accessible transportation
  • independence
  • agency
  • participatory design
  • voice interface
  • haptic technology

• 3D HapticWebBrowser: towards universal web navigation for the visually impaired

  Nikolaos Kaklanis, Konstantinos Votis, Konstantinos Moustakas, Dimitrios Tzovaras (2010) — Proceedings of the 2010 International Cross Disciplinary Conference on Web Accessibility (W4A)

  This paper presents the 3D HapticWebBrowser, a free open-source web browser that uses haptic (touch feedback) technology to enable visually impaired users to navigate web pages and explore 2D maps. The system transforms HTML elements into "hapgets" —…

  • haptic technology
  • visual impairment
  • blindness
  • multimodal interaction
  • accessible maps
  • web navigation
  • assistive technology
  • 3D interaction
  • open source

• HapticRiaMaps: Towards Interactive Exploration of Web World Maps for the Visually Impaired

  Nikolaos Kaklanis, Konstantinos Votis, Panagiotis Moschonas, Dimitrios Tzovaras (2011) — Proceedings of the International Cross-Disciplinary Conference on Web Accessibility (W4A)

  This paper presents HapticRiaMaps, a free open-source web application from the Centre for Research and Technology-Hellas (CERTH) in Greece that makes online 2D maps accessible to visually impaired users through haptic force feedback and audio sonific…

  • blind and low vision
  • haptic technology
  • accessible maps
  • sonification
  • multimodal interaction
  • navigation
  • assistive technology
  • spatial cognition

• Haptic Gloves for Audio-Tactile Web Accessibility

  Andrii Soviak (2015) — Proceedings of the 12th International Web for All Conference (W4A)

  This doctoral consortium paper proposes FeelX, a haptic glove system that would enable blind users to explore web page layouts through touch on any flat surface such as a desk or table. The core problem is that screen readers linearise web pages into…

  • blindness
  • haptic technology
  • tactile interface
  • screen reader
  • web accessibility
  • wearable technology
  • web page segmentation
  • braille display
  • computer vision

• HoliBraille: Multipoint Vibrotactile Feedback on Mobile Devices

  Hugo Nicolau, Kyle Montague, Tiago Guerreiro, André Rodrigues, Vicki L. Hanson (2015) — Proceedings of the 12th International Web for All Conference (W4A)

  This paper introduces HoliBraille, a hardware prototype that enables both Braille input and output on standard mobile touchscreen devices using vibrotactile motors. The system attaches six small vibration motors to a 3D-printed case that fits over a …

  • braille
  • blind and low vision
  • haptic technology
  • mobile accessibility
  • vibrotactile feedback
  • deafblindness
  • assistive technology
  • multitouch

• Developing a Wearable Tactile Prototype to Support Situational Awareness

  Flynn Wolf (2016) — Proceedings of the 13th International Web for All Conference (W4A)

  This doctoral consortium paper from UMBC describes dissertation research into head-mounted tactile displays for spatial and situational awareness, with applications for people who are blind and those experiencing situational impairments. The research…

  • haptic technology
  • wearable technology
  • tactile accessibility
  • blindness
  • situational impairment
  • navigation
  • participatory design
  • spatial awareness

• TactBack: VibroTactile braille output using smartphone and smartwatch for visually impaired

  Aritra Dhar, Aditya Nittala, Kuldeep Yadav (2016) — Proceedings of the 13th International Web for All Conference (W4A)

  This extended abstract presents TactBack, a system that uses vibration patterns on off-the-shelf smartphones and smartwatches to convey braille characters haptically. The system was motivated by the limitations of audio-based screen reader feedback (…

  • braille
  • haptic technology
  • wearable technology
  • visual impairment
  • deafblindness
  • mobile accessibility
  • vibrotactile feedback
  • assistive technology

• μGraph: Haptic Exploration and Editing of 3D Chemical Diagrams

  Cristian Bernareggi, Dragan Ahmetovic, Sergio Mascetti (2019) — Proceedings of the 21st International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS 2019)

  This paper presents μGraph (Multimodal Graph), a system that combines haptic force feedback and speech to enable people who are blind or visually impaired (VIB) to explore and edit three-dimensional structural chemical formulae. Chemical diagrams rep…

  • haptic technology
  • STEM accessibility
  • blind
  • visual impairment
  • chemistry education
  • force feedback
  • 3D interaction
  • graph accessibility
  • multimodal interaction

• RoboGraphics: Dynamic Tactile Graphics Powered by Mobile Robots

  Darren Guinness, Annika Muehlbradt, Daniel Szafir, Shaun K. Kane (2019) — Proceedings of the 21st International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS 2019)

  This paper introduces RoboGraphics, a novel approach to creating dynamic tactile graphics by combining a touchscreen tablet, static laser-cut tactile overlays, and small mobile robots (Ozobot Bit 2.0, approximately one cubic inch, ~$60 each). Traditi…

  • tactile graphics
  • robotics
  • blind
  • tangible interaction
  • data visualization
  • education
  • haptic technology
  • low-cost accessibility
  • dynamic display