Show & Tell What Fun Can Do

ÂUmwelt is a German word meaning Âenvironments, or Âsurroundings. In English, we use the word to describe the world as it is perceived by a given organism. As sighted people, we can only imagine the disconnect that arises when another personÂs Umwelt doesnÂt include sight

Interactive maps for visually impaired people : design, usability and spatial cognition

Connaître la géographie de son environnement urbain est un enjeu important pour les personnes déficientes visuelles. Des cartes tactiles en relief sont généralement utilisées mais elles présentent des limitations importantes (nombre limité d'informations, recours à une légende braille). Les nouvelles technologies permettent d'envisager des solutions innovantes. Nous avons conçu et développé une carte interactive accessible, en suivant un processus de conception participative. Cette carte est basée sur un dispositif multi-touch, une carte tactile en relief et une sortie sonore. Ce dispositif permet au sujet de recueillir des informations en double-cliquant sur certains objets de la carte. Nous avons démontré expérimentalement que ce prototype était plus efficace et plus satisfaisant pour des utilisateurs déficients visuels qu'une carte tactile simple. Nous avons également exploré et testé différents types d'interactions avancées accessibles pour explorer la carte. Cette thèse démontre l'importance des cartes tactiles interactives pour les déficients visuels et leur cognition spatiale.Knowing the geography of an urban environment is crucial for visually impaired people. Tactile relief maps are generally used, but they retain significant limitations (limited amount of information, use of braille legend, etc.). Recent technological progress allows the development of innovative solutions which overcome these limitations. In this thesis, we present the design of an accessible interactive map through a participatory design process. This map is composed by a multi-touch screen with tactile map overlay and speech output. It provides auditory information when tapping on map elements. We have demonstrated in an experiment that our prototype was more effective and satisfactory for visually impaired users than a simple raised-line map. We also explored and tested different types of advanced non-visual interaction for exploring the map. This thesis demonstrates the importance of interactive tactile maps for visually impaired people and their spatial cognition

Can We Work Together?

People have a versatility to adapt to various situations in order to communicate with each other regardless of a person's disability. We research separate computer interfaces to support remote synchronous collaboration in two situations. First, a deaf person collaborating with a hearing person uses a shared workspace with video conferencing, such as the Facetop system. Second, a blind person collaborating with a sighted person uses our loosely coupled custom shared workspace called Deep View. The design features of the respective interfaces accommodate the disability of a deaf person or a blind person and enable communication with a person without a disability. The interfaces expand the ways in which people with disabilities participate in a collaborative task to a level of detail not possible without our interfaces. The design features of our user interfaces provide alternative channels for the collaborators with disabilities to communicate ideas or coordinate actions that collaborators without disabilities would otherwise do verbally or visually. We evaluate the interfaces through three user studies where collaborators complete full fledged tasks that require managing all aspects of communication to complete the task. Throughout the research we collaborated with members of the Deaf community and members of the blind community. We incorporated the feedback from members of these communities into the implementation of our interfaces. The members participated in our user studies to evaluate the interfaces

Tabletop tangible maps and diagrams for visually impaired users

En dépit de leur omniprésence et de leur rôle essentiel dans nos vies professionnelles et personnelles, les représentations graphiques, qu'elles soient numériques ou sur papier, ne sont pas accessibles aux personnes déficientes visuelles car elles ne fournissent pas d'informations tactiles. Par ailleurs, les inégalités d'accès à ces représentations ne cessent de s'accroître ; grâce au développement de représentations graphiques dynamiques et disponibles en ligne, les personnes voyantes peuvent non seulement accéder à de grandes quantités de données, mais aussi interagir avec ces données par le biais de fonctionnalités avancées (changement d'échelle, sélection des données à afficher, etc.). En revanche, pour les personnes déficientes visuelles, les techniques actuellement utilisées pour rendre accessibles les cartes et les diagrammes nécessitent l'intervention de spécialistes et ne permettent pas la création de représentations interactives. Cependant, les récentes avancées dans le domaine de l'adaptation automatique de contenus laissent entrevoir, dans les prochaines années, une augmentation de la quantité de contenus adaptés. Cette augmentation doit aller de pair avec le développement de dispositifs utilisables et abordables en mesure de supporter l'affichage de représentations interactives et rapidement modifiables, tout en étant accessibles aux personnes déficientes visuelles. Certains prototypes de recherche s'appuient sur une représentation numérique seulement : ils peuvent être instantanément modifiés mais ne fournissent que très peu de retour tactile, ce qui rend leur exploration complexe d'un point de vue cognitif et impose de fortes contraintes sur le contenu. D'autres prototypes s'appuient sur une représentation numérique et physique : bien qu'ils puissent être explorés tactilement, ce qui est un réel avantage, ils nécessitent un support tactile qui empêche toute modification rapide. Quant aux dispositifs similaires à des tablettes Braille, mais avec des milliers de picots, leur coût est prohibitif. L'objectif de cette thèse est de pallier les limitations de ces approches en étudiant comment développer des cartes et diagrammes interactifs physiques, modifiables et abordables. Pour cela, nous nous appuyons sur un type d'interface qui a rarement été étudié pour des utilisateurs déficients visuels : les interfaces tangibles, et plus particulièrement les interfaces tangibles sur table. Dans ces interfaces, des objets physiques représentent des informations numériques et peuvent être manipulés par l'utilisateur pour interagir avec le système, ou par le système lui-même pour refléter un changement du modèle numérique - on parle alors d'interfaces tangibles sur tables animées, ou actuated. Grâce à la conception, au développement et à l'évaluation de trois interfaces tangibles sur table (les Tangible Reels, la Tangible Box et BotMap), nous proposons un ensemble de solutions techniques répondant aux spécificités des interfaces tangibles pour des personnes déficientes visuelles, ainsi que de nouvelles techniques d'interaction non-visuelles, notamment pour la reconstruction d'une carte ou d'un diagramme et l'exploration de cartes de type " Pan & Zoom ". D'un point de vue théorique, nous proposons aussi une nouvelle classification pour les dispositifs interactifs accessibles.Despite their omnipresence and essential role in our everyday lives, online and printed graphical representations are inaccessible to visually impaired people because they cannot be explored using the sense of touch. The gap between sighted and visually impaired people's access to graphical representations is constantly growing due to the increasing development and availability of online and dynamic representations that not only give sighted people the opportunity to access large amounts of data, but also to interact with them using advanced functionalities such as panning, zooming and filtering. In contrast, the techniques currently used to make maps and diagrams accessible to visually impaired people require the intervention of tactile graphics specialists and result in non-interactive tactile representations. However, based on recent advances in the automatic production of content, we can expect in the coming years a growth in the availability of adapted content, which must go hand-in-hand with the development of affordable and usable devices. In particular, these devices should make full use of visually impaired users' perceptual capacities and support the display of interactive and updatable representations. A number of research prototypes have already been developed. Some rely on digital representation only, and although they have the great advantage of being instantly updatable, they provide very limited tactile feedback, which makes their exploration cognitively demanding and imposes heavy restrictions on content. On the other hand, most prototypes that rely on digital and physical representations allow for a two-handed exploration that is both natural and efficient at retrieving and encoding spatial information, but they are physically limited by the use of a tactile overlay, making them impossible to update. Other alternatives are either extremely expensive (e.g. braille tablets) or offer a slow and limited way to update the representation (e.g. maps that are 3D-printed based on users' inputs). In this thesis, we propose to bridge the gap between these two approaches by investigating how to develop physical interactive maps and diagrams that support two-handed exploration, while at the same time being updatable and affordable. To do so, we build on previous research on Tangible User Interfaces (TUI) and particularly on (actuated) tabletop TUIs, two fields of research that have surprisingly received very little interest concerning visually impaired users. Based on the design, implementation and evaluation of three tabletop TUIs (the Tangible Reels, the Tangible Box and BotMap), we propose innovative non-visual interaction techniques and technical solutions that will hopefully serve as a basis for the design of future TUIs for visually impaired users, and encourage their development and use. We investigate how tangible maps and diagrams can support various tasks, ranging from the (re)construction of diagrams to the exploration of maps by panning and zooming. From a theoretical perspective we contribute to the research on accessible graphical representations by highlighting how research on maps can feed research on diagrams and vice-versa. We also propose a classification and comparison of existing prototypes to deliver a structured overview of current research

Instructional eLearning technologies for the vision impaired

The principal sensory modality employed in learning is vision, and that not only increases the difficulty for vision impaired students from accessing existing educational media but also the new and mostly visiocentric learning materials being offered through on-line delivery mechanisms. Using as a reference Certified Cisco Network Associate (CCNA) and IT Essentials courses, a study has been made of tools that can access such on-line systems and transcribe the materials into a form suitable for vision impaired learning. Modalities employed included haptic, tactile, audio and descriptive text. How such a multi-modal approach can achieve equivalent success for the vision impaired is demonstrated. However, the study also shows the limits of the current understanding of human perception, especially with respect to comprehending two and three dimensional objects and spaces when there is no recourse to vision

WAYFINDING AID FOR THE ELDERLY WITH MEMORY DISTURBANCES

A global increase in aging population, combined with a growing number of people with dementia, creates new challenges to develop guiding technology for people with memory disturbances in their daily activities. In this study we have tested the prototype of a wayfinding aid using predefined routes. The orientation advice was given through three modalities, visual, audio and tactile signals, two of which were used at a time. Nine subjects, aged 59–90 years (with a median age of 84 years) participated in the user study at a rehabilitation unit in Pyhäjärvi, Finland. Their severity of dementia ranged between mild and severe, and walking abilities ranged from “frail to hobby skier”. In addition, two elderly persons were recruited as control subjects. In most cases, the orientation with the wayfinding aid on predefined routes succeeded, with a few misinterpretations. The most common difficulties included: straying from the defined route, finding the right door, and the attractions of real-life context like other people. The severity of dementia didn’t seem to predict success in orientation with the wayfinding aid. Using the landmarks wasn’t as successful as using “left”, “right” and “go straight on” commands as the wayfinding advice

Handbook for Organizations of and for the Blind and Visually Impaired

[Excerpt] This handbook is designed for people in developing countries who work with organizations of and for the blind and visually impaired. It is a guide for organizational development initiatives with an emphasis on the inclusion of blind people in all aspects of their organizations. It is also a guide and reference for those who work on behalf of blind people. Rather than being a “how-to” book, this handbook is a set of guidelines. Individuals and organizations must meet the challenges imposed by their own unique set of circumstances. Therefore, these guidelines are to be used and modified according to the specific needs of each individual and each organization. These guidelines have evolved gradually based on the experiences of the Institutional Development Project (IDP) over a five-year period in Africa, the Caribbean, and the Pacific Islands

Teaching Learners with Visual Impairment

This book, Teaching Learners with Visual Impairment, focuses on holistic support to learners with visual impairment in and beyond the classroom and school context. Special attention is given to classroom practice, learning support, curriculum differentiation and assessment practices, to mention but a few areas of focus covered in the book. In this manner, this book makes a significant contribution to the existing body of knowledge on the implementation of inclusive education policy with learners affected by visual impairment

A Formal Approach to Computer Aided 2D Graphical Design for Blind People

The growth of computer aided drawing systems for blind people (CADB) has long been recognised and has increased in interest within the assistive technology research area. The representation of pictorial data by blind and visually impaired (BVI) people has recently gathered momentum with research and development; however, a survey of published literature on CADB reveals that only marginal research has been focused on the use of a formal approach for on screen spatial orientation, creation and reuse of graphics artefacts. To realise the full potential of CADB, such systems should possess attributes of usability, spatial navigation and shape creation features without which blind users drawing activities are less likely to be achieved. As a result of this, usable, effective and self-reliant CADB have arisen from new assistive Technology (AT) research. This thesis contributes a novel, abstract, formal approach that facilitates BVI users to navigate on the screen, create computer graphics/diagrams using 2D shapes and user-defined images. Moreover, the research addresses the specific issues involved with user language by formulating specific rules that make BVI user interaction with the drawing effective and easier. The formal approach proposed here is descriptive and it is specified at a level of abstraction above the concrete level of system technologies. The proposed approach is unique in problem modelling and syntheses of an abstract computer-based graphics/drawings using a formal set of user interaction commands. This technology has been applied to enable blind users to independently construct drawings to satisfy their specific needs without recourse to a specific technology and without the intervention of support workers. The specification aims to be the foundation for a system scope, investigation guidelines and user-initiated command-driven interaction. Such an approach will allow system designers and developers to proceed with greater conceptual clarity than it is possible with current technologies that is built on concrete system-driven prototypes. In addition to the scope of the research the proposed model has been verified by various types of blind users who have independently constructed drawings to satisfy their specific needs without the intervention of support workers. The effectiveness and usability of the proposed approach has been compared against conventional non-command driven drawing systems by different types of blind users. The results confirm that the abstract formal approach proposed here using command-driven means in the context of CADB enables greater comprehension by BVI users. The innovation can be used for both educational and training purposes. The research, thereby sustaining the claim that the abstract formal approach taken allows for the greater comprehension of the command-driven means in the context of CADB, and how the specification aid the design of such a system