Assistive Technology

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Assistive Technology Universal Design

• Providing access and assistance to people with
  special needs

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Agenda

• Questions

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Assistive technology

• Application of technology to compensate for loss
  or lack of physical, sensorial, or cognitive
  functions
• Assists people with disabilities in their
  activities in life

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Universal design

• Design with the intent of having the broadest
  range of ability levels possible be able to use a
  product or an environment
• Roots in architectural design
• Evolved in last 30 years to include most areas of
  design involved in interaction between people
  with products and environments

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Universal design principles

• Equitable use
• Flexibility in use
• Simple and intuitive to use
• Perceptible information
• Tolerance for error
• Low physical effort
• Size and space for approach and use

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Why an important class of systems?

• Whats the impact of aging in America over the
  next decade?
• Over 70 million baby boomers
• Controlling 9 trillion in assets
• Will start to acquire significant disabilities

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Examples of disabilities

• Visual impairment
• Hearing impairment
• Speech impairment
• Physical impairment
• Dyslexia
• Autism
• Others

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Other needs for universal design

• Age groups
• Older people
• Children
• Cultural differences
• Influence of nationality, generation, gender,
  race, sexuality, class, religion, political
  persuasion, etc. on interpretation of interface
  features
• Interpretation and acceptability of language,
  cultural symbols, gesture and colour

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Range of physical impairments

• Complete lack of function
• Absence of a limb
• Paralysis usually due to spinal injury, the
  higher the damage the greater the degree of
  paralysis
• Tetraplegia / quadriplegia all four limbs
• Paraplegia lower limbs only
• Lack of strength
• Tremor / lack of accuracy
• Slowness

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Keyboard modifications

• Keyguards
• Alternative layouts
• Reduce movement
• One-handed keyboards, possible chords
• Membrane surfaces (minimize required pressure)
• Software modifications
• Sticky keys
• Slow keys or disable auto-repeat
• Modify keyboard mappings
• On-screen keyboards

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Alternative input devices

• Speech input
• Dictation versus control
• Pen input
• Handwriting recognition
• Gesture recognition
• Software keyboards
• Switches
• Keyboard has approximately 50 switches
• Scanning interfaces

EdgeWrite Jacob Wobbrock http//www-2.cs.cmu.ed
u/edgewrite
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Possible switches

• Foot pedal
• Leaf switch highly sensitive
• Sip and puff
• Dual switch (can be used for Morse code)
• Joy stick
• Muscle switch
• Neural implant
• Eye gaze

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Scanning interfaces
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Mouse alternatives

• Trackball
• Proportional joystick
• Switched joystick or cursor keys
• Head sensor or mouth stick
• Eye-gaze
• Keyboard only

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Vision

• Low-vision
• Color blindness
• Blindness
• affordances of different media
• interface model
• special purpose doesnt work
• challenge of generality
• The vast majority of visually disabled people
  have some sight

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Myopia and hypermetropia

• Myopia Hypermetropia
• (short-sighted) (far-sighted)

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Macular degeneration
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Diabetic retinopathy
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Cataracts
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Tunnel vision
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Accommodating partial sight

• Large monitor, high resolution, glare protection
• Control of color and contrast
• Control of font size everywhere
• Keyboard orientation aids

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Hardware or software magnification

• 2 to 16 times
• Virtual screen
• Viewport, control
• Notification of outside events
• CRTs for physical items

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Magnification not always a help
Now is the time,
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Accommodating blind users

• Capture and model graphical interface
• Translate graphical objects
• Support efficient and intuitive interaction
• Screen readers
• Full-featured
• Cursor-tracking, routing
• Dialogue focus
• View areas

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Screen reader output

• Braille
• Only 10?
• Many Braille codes
• Real and virtual displays
• Tactile pads
• Synthesized speech
• Good design matters
• Why?
• IBM aDesigner http//www.alphaworks.ibm.com/tech/
  adesigner

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Hearing

• Redundant output
• hardware (flashing title bar)
• software (text to speech)
• Sometimes necessary
• An increasing problem?
• Population
• Phone interfaces

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Deafness

• Communication aids
• Sign language
• Speech training
• Writing aids
• Preventable form of mental retardation
• Importance of language development
• Seeing Voices (Sacks)

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Sign language

• Sign languages are true languages
• Syntax, semantics, pragmatics
• Differ dramatically from oral-based languages
• Many different sign languages
• American (ASL) close to French Sign Language but
  different than British (BSL)
• Signed Exact English for one-to-one translation

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Minicoms and TDDs

• Universal telephone technology
• Text terminal (keyboard, LED display, modem)
• Deaf relay centers
• TypeTalk
• Automation?

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Most significant new communication device is

• The mobile phone
• with SMS
• Sidekicks, Blackberry, etc. extremely popular

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Computing assistance

• Translators
• Speech to sign
• Sign to speech
• Gesture recognition
• Need sign language grammars
• Video phones
• Word processors (Write This Way)
• Speech training (Speech Viewer, IBM)

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Speech conversation

• Conversation is a dialogue in which the one
  taking a breath is called the listener
• 150 words/minute
• Predictive interface, stored phrases, iconic
  boards
• Chat

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Generating Words
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Input techniques

• Word boards
• Switch input
• Scanning techniques
• Predictive input

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Speech synthesis

• Quality of synthetic speech
• Similarity to human speech

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Cognitive impairments

• Memory
• Perception
• Problem-solving
• Learning impairments
• redundant input-output, motivation
• Language impairments
• dyslexia (spelling corrector)
• aphasia (symbolic languages)
• Everyday impairments - in-place information
• Writing Home

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Impaired mental capabilities

• Memory
• Short or long term, recall and recognition
• Perception
• Attention, discriminating sensory input
• Problem solving
• Recognizing the problem, implementing solutions
  and evaluation
• Concepts
• Generalizing, skill development

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Common causes

• Learning disability
• Head injury or stroke
• Alzheimers
• Dementia

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Design guidelines

• Input / interface Control
• e.g., touchpad, prompts and menus
• Presentation format
• e.g., blank space to focus attention
• Informational content and prompting
• e.g., match vocabulary level to user

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Learning impairment

• Infinite patience
• Risk-free environment
• Accommodate cognitive impairment
• Motivate

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Direct Brain Interfaces
Melody Moore Computer Information Systems Dept.
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What is a Direct Brain-Computer Interface?
a system that captures signals directly from
the human brain, providing a channel to control
computers and other devices. The GSU
BrainLab Mission is to pioneer real-world
applications research for biometric technologies
to improve the quality of life for people with
severe disabilities, and to explore mainstream
applications.
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Brain signal detection techniques
Invasive implanted electrodes (single neuron)
Noninvasive scalp electrodes (EEG)
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Neural Internet

• Neurally controlled Internet Access
• Specialized web browser and email program
• Uses
• communication
• shopping
• education
• handling of personal finances
• employment

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Restoring Motion - Neural Prosthetics

• Brain re-learns how to move limbs via an
  artificial
• nervous system
• Simulation
• Virtual reality hand
• Restoring Physical Motion
• Robotic arm

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The Aware Chair

• Integrated communication and environmental
  control
• Intelligent, neurally controlled wheelchair
• Conversation and environmental control
  prediction
• Learns users habits and context
• Provides emotional expression