Making Mobile Phones and Services Accessible for Persons with Disabilities
The modern telecommunication revolution has sometimes excluded older adults and people with disabilities due to a lack of appropriate accessibility features. Barriers to using mobile phones and services include interfaces that are difficult to understand for persons with cognitive impairments or learning disabilities, lack of alternative communication options for people who are blind or deaf, […]
Device Lets Disabled Write or Draw Using Their Eyes
Jean Lorenceau of France’s CNRS research institute has built a prototype device that enables people to write or draw on a computer screen using only their eyes. Cameras mounted on headgear track eye movements and translate them into lines on the computer screen. Eye tracking technology has been around for awhile, but Lorenceau’s system offers more […]
Accessible Transportation for the 2012 London Games
Transport for London has launched the “spectator journey planner” online in preparation for the 2012 Olympic Games. The spectator journey planner helps visitors use the public transportation system to get to Olympic venues. The spectator journey planner includes various accessibility options, and can plan a route around a traveler’s needs. Uses can request a journey with […]
Washington Post Reports on ‘Village’ groups, home alterations
An article in the Washington Post highlighted the important benefits of aging-in-place, undertaking home modifications, and joining a “Village” group. The article profiles Bill Cousins, 88, who realized that he was having trouble moving around his home. Cousins installed an elevator, increased the maneuvering space in his kitchen, added a ramp to the back of the […]
UpSense Brings Braille-Like Typing to Touchscreens
Developed by Israeli Company Inpris, UpSense is mobile app that provides a gesture based keyboard that works similarly to Braille typing. Each character has its own gesture, which adjusts to the user’s hands and can even be customizable. It is very similar to another app designed by researchers at Georgia Tech. Both apps would be […]
Ramps Blended into Stairs
Pictures of ramps incorporated into stairs have been gaining some attention on architecture and design blogs. While some of these designs are indeed beautiful to look at, they tend to be inaccessible, not ADA compliant, and downright unsafe. The ramp pictured to the left is located in Vancouver, Canada, so it is not required to […]
Google Shows Tools For an Accessible Web
At its Google I/O developer conference, Google presented new and improved accessibility tools for its Chrome browser. The extention Accessibility Developer Tools allows web developers to check for accessibility features like alt text for images, keyboard accessibility, color contrast, and closed captioning on video. Google also annouced ChromeVox, an open source screen reader that uses […]
Best Cities for Sucessful Aging
This report by the Milken Institute, a nonprofit, nonpartisan economic think tank, explores the best cities for aging in the US. The report looked at 359 metro areas across the US and generated a composite ranking for each, based on eight sub-components (general indicators, health care, wellness, living arrangements, transportation/convenience, financial well-being, employment/education, and community […]
Accessible Document Cheat Sheets
Gaining Online Accessible Learning through Self-Study (GOALS) has created a new set of “cheat sheets” that help explain how to make electronic documents accessible. The following topics are covered: • Creating accessible documents in Microsoft Word • Microsoft PowerPoint • PDF conversion in Microsoft Word • Creating accessible PDF documents in Acrobat X Click here […]
Can E-Readers Ease Reading for People With Dyslexia?
Some studies suggest that e-readers may make reading easier for people with dyslexia. Instead of printing dyslexia-friendly special-editions, e-readers can allow users with dyslexia to determine their own settings to create a personalized text that is easier for them to read. A team of researchers from the University of Padova in Italy reported that extra-large […]