1,721,269 research outputs found
A software architecture for a personalized and context-aware indoor navigation system
No full textThis paper proposes a context-aware model for a mobile indoor navigation system in which users' needs play a key role. We will present an overview of the underlying architecture, describe the main data involved, and show how they are used; we will especially focus on the role of the users' preferences and accessibility needs, since they are the key elements that allow to build a personalized and inclusive user experience. Thanks to a service-oriented architecture, a mobile application will be able to retrieve the most adequate information for its user about a specific point of interest in the environment, and issue a personalized notification. Examples of interaction with the system from the perspective of back-end operators will also be provided, in which we will show how the model entities are translated into practice during the configuration phase of the system. We will pay particular attention to the case of visually impaired users, for whom accessible navigation apps have proven to be effective assistive solutions to achieve better social inclusion and autonomy. We will assume to be using BLE beacons and an Android mobile app for our simulations, anyway we will show that our model is generalizable. Finally, future possible enhancements of the system will be discussed
Exploring WAI-Aria techniques to enhance screen reader interaction: the case of a portal for rating accessibility of cultural heritage sites
No full textCultural heritage sites (museums, archaeological parks, exhibition spaces, etc.) do not always guarantee accessibility to all users, regardless of their abilities. Often services are not really as usable and functional as expected. Currently there is no website offering accessibility information on heritage sites in a format accessible to all. People with disability or their caregivers are forced to spend considerable time and effort to obtain accessibility information, sometimes encountering difficulties. The Axem portal aims to fill this gap by offering information on the degree of accessibility of cultural sites (museums, archaeological parks, libraries, art galleries, places of worship, exhibition spaces, etc.). It has been designed as a facility for people with disabilities and in general for all individuals who have special needs and require specific services. In this paper the Axem web site is presented as a case study to (1) investigate the use of web techniques for enhancing screen reading interaction, and (2) propose a portal to collect information on accessible services supported by the cultural sites. Regarding web accessibility, the use of WAI ARIA, an accessible web design, is discussed in order to improve screen reading interaction. Accessibility functions and features as well as the ranking algorithm for easy search and the rating mechanism are presented. This work offers a further contribution to the web accessibility field, while proposing a portal which could be exploited by cultural heritage sites and promote their accessible services to people with disability
An interactive cognitive-motor training system for children with intellectual disability
No full textIt is increasingly evident that engaging in regular physical activity is important for people's health and well-being. However, physical training is still a big challenge for individuals with cognitive disabilities since it is difficult to motivate them and provide them with sustained pleasant training experiences over time. Active Video Games and Exergames may help achieve this, especially in the younger population. This paper describes an accessible Interactive Cogni-tive-Motor Training system (ICMT) created to encourage physical activity in children with cognitive disabilities by combining cognitive and gross motor train-ing. The system was developed at a low cost, on top of an open source rhythm game, which has built-in support for dance pads and large video screens. The application employs user profiling in order to deliver personalized training. Per-formance data are recorded for further analysis to verify the training's efficacy and if needed, to tune the intervention. A pilot study showed the effectiveness of the proposed system, which by taking advantage of the positive effects of playing videogames, appears to encourage cognitively impaired people's physical activ-ity
Naïve physics in vehicle steering control
No full textWallis and colleagues have reported that drivers have a surprisingly limited understanding of the relation between steering movements and vehicle heading [1-3]. They suggest that popular models based on wholly open-loop or closed-loop control fail to capture a driver's true behavior. One limitation of Wallis et al.'s studies has been that they were all conducted on a straight road. Because of the tendency of passenger vehicles to self-center their steering wheels, it is possible that the effects which they report are due to drivers not actively centering the steering wheel, but simply releasing it. This report describes an experiment conducted on a circular road, which required a non-zero steering wheel angle to be actively selected by the driver at all times. Despite this added requirement, the results were highly consistent with previous experiments carried out on a straight road [1-3], confirming that the errors are due to the drivers' poor understanding of basic vehicle dynamics
Adaptive Techniques for Universal Access
No full textAbstract. This paper discusses the contribution of adaptive techniques to Universal Access in Human^Computer Interaction. To this effect, the paper revisits the concept of Universal Access, brie£y reviews relevant work on adaptive techniques, and follows their application in efforts to provide accessibility of interactive systems, from the early, product-and environment-level adaptation-based approaches, to more generic solutions oriented towards Universal Access. Finally, the paper highlights some of the research challenges ahead. The normative perspective of the paper is that adaptive techniques in the context of Universal Access have the potential to facilitate both accessibility and high quality interaction, for the broadest possible end-user population. This implies the design of systems that undertake context-sensitive processing so as to manifest their functional core in alternative interactive embodiments suitable for different users, usage patterns and contexts of use. Such a capability needs to be built into the system from the early phases of conception and design, and subsequently validated throughout its life cycle
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