Literature Reviews

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

• Validation of a keystroke-level model for a text entry system used by people with disabilities

  Heidi H. Koester, Simon P. Levine (1994) — Proceedings of the First Annual ACM Conference on Assistive Technologies (Assets '94)

  This paper develops and validates a keystroke-level model (KLM) to predict how much word prediction software improves text generation rates compared to letter-by-letter typing for users with and without disabilities. The keystroke-level model, origin…

  • text entry
  • word prediction
  • keystroke-level model
  • spinal cord injury
  • usability
  • human-computer interaction
  • performance modeling
  • assistive technology

• EEG as a means of communication: preliminary experiments in EEG analysis using neural networks

  Charles W. Anderson, Saikumar V. Devulapalli, Erik A. Stolz (1994) — Proceedings of the First Annual ACM Conference on Assistive Technologies (Assets '94)

  This paper explores the use of electroencephalography (EEG) as a communication channel for paralyzed individuals, representing early brain-computer interface (BCI) research. The core premise is that if distinct mental states can be reliably identifie…

  • brain-computer interface
  • electroencephalography
  • neural network
  • machine learning
  • paralysis
  • assistive technology
  • pattern recognition
  • alternative input

• Disabilities, Opportunities, Internetworking and Technology (DO-IT) on the electronic highway

  Sheryl Burgstahler, Dan Comden (1994) — Proceedings of the First Annual ACM Conference on Assistive Technologies (Assets '94)

  This paper describes DO-IT (Disabilities, Opportunities, Internetworking and Technology), a National Science Foundation-funded project based at the University of Washington's College of Engineering. DO-IT was designed to recruit and retain students w…

  • STEM accessibility
  • STEM education
  • digital divide
  • disability employment
  • internet accessibility
  • assistive technology
  • higher education
  • adaptive technology

• An overview of programs and projects at the Rehabilitation Research and Development Center

  David L. Jaffe (1994) — Proceedings of the First Annual ACM Conference on Assistive Technologies (Assets '94)

  This paper provides an overview of the VA Rehabilitation Research and Development Center (RR&D), a federal laboratory at the Palo Alto VA Medical Center dedicated to developing assistive technologies for disabled veterans. With approximately fifty re…

  • rehabilitation engineering
  • technology transfer
  • spinal cord injury
  • deafblindness
  • wheelchair accessibility
  • wayfinding
  • assistive technology
  • vocational rehabilitation
  • veterans

• Using the Baby-Babble-Blanket for infants with motor problems: an empirical study

  Harriet J. Fell, Hariklia Delta, Regina Peterson, Linda J. Ferrier, Zebra Mooraj, Megan Valleau (1994) — Proceedings of the First Annual ACM Conference on Assistive Technologies (Assets '94)

  This paper presents the Baby-Babble-Blanket (BBB), a patented assistive device designed for infants with severe motor problems who are at risk of developing learned helplessness due to their inability to control their environment or communicate. The …

  • early intervention
  • motor disability
  • cerebral palsy
  • infant development
  • switch access
  • environmental control
  • assistive technology
  • cause and effect
  • single-case study

• The semantic web, web accessibility, and device independence

  Lisa Seeman (2004) — Proceedings of the 2004 International Cross-Disciplinary Workshop on Web Accessibility (W4A)

  Written by Lisa Seeman of UB Access, this paper argues that Semantic Web technologies — particularly RDF (Resource Description Framework) annotations — can dramatically improve web accessibility beyond what WCAG guidelines alone can achieve, especial…

  • semantic web
  • RDF
  • cognitive accessibility
  • learning disabilities
  • personalization
  • knowledge representation
  • assistive technology

• Is accessible design a myth?

  Eric A. Meyer (2005) — Proceedings of the 2005 International Cross-Disciplinary Workshop on Web Accessibility (W4A)

  In this position paper, prominent CSS expert Eric Meyer (of Complex Spiral Consulting) examines the tensions between rich visual web design and accessibility, asking whether the two can truly coexist. Meyer traces the history of CSS image replacement…

  • screen readers
  • CSS
  • image replacement
  • skip links
  • web design
  • assistive technology
  • visual design
  • user education

• AcceSS: accessibility through simplification & summarization

  Bambang Parmanto, Reza Ferrydiansyah, Andi Saptono, Lijing Song, I Wayan Sugiantara, Stephanie Hackett (2005) — Proceedings of the 2005 International Cross-Disciplinary Workshop on Web Accessibility (W4A)

  This paper from the University of Pittsburgh presents AcceSS, a transcoding system that makes web pages more accessible to visually impaired users through two complementary strategies: simplification and summarization. The authors identify a fundamen…

  • screen readers
  • visual impairment
  • web transcoding
  • content simplification
  • web navigation
  • gestalt comprehension
  • assistive technology

• Opening up access to online documents using essentiality tracks

  Matthew T. Atkinson, Jatinder Dhiensa, Colin H. C. Machin (2006) — Proceedings of the 2006 International Cross-Disciplinary Workshop on Web Accessibility (W4A)

  This paper from Loughborough University presents extensions to the "essentiality and proficiency" approach for improving document accessibility and usability. The core concept is that web page content has varying levels of importance for different us…

  • document accessibility
  • content filtering
  • XML
  • universal design
  • information overload
  • assistive technology

• The HearSay Non-Visual Web Browser

  Yevgen Borodin, Jalal Mahmud, I. V. Ramakrishnan, Amanda Stent (2007) — Proceedings of the 2007 International Cross-Disciplinary Conference on Web Accessibility (W4A)

  This paper presents the original HearSay non-visual web browser (version 1/2), developed at Stony Brook University in collaboration with the Helen Keller Services for the Blind. HearSay is a free, open-source, cross-platform browser written in Java t…

  • non-visual web browser
  • screen readers
  • blind users
  • web accessibility
  • natural language processing
  • machine learning
  • VoiceXML
  • speech recognition
  • navigation
  • assistive technology
  • open source