The document discusses accessibility innovation through natural user interfaces. It provides examples of projects using gesture recognition technologies like Microsoft Kinect to develop sign language recognition and movement games for blind and visually impaired children. The examples emphasize user-centered design approaches that involve representative users to understand needs and iteratively test prototypes. Focusing on accessibility was found to open opportunities to benefit broader audiences. Inclusive design approaches that listen to diverse users can identify challenges leading to innovative solutions.
UiPath Solutions Management Preview - Northern CA Chapter - March 22.pdf
Accessibility innovation through gestural and sign-language interfaces
1. jonathanhassell@yahoo.co.uk
Accessibility innovation through gestural and sign-language interfaces
Prof Jonathan Hassell (@jonhassell)
Director, Hassell Inclusion
Visiting Professor, London Metropolitan University
CSUN, San Diego, USA 19th March 2013
22. None of those guys were available… so you’ve got me: Jonathan
Hassell
• >13 years experience in accessibility and inclusion
• lead author of BS 8878 British Accessibility Standards
• former Head of Usability & Accessibility, BBC
• led work to embed accessibility across
BBC web, mobile and IPTV production teams
• won BIMA 2008 & Access-IT@Home awards
for the accessibility features of BBC iPlayer
• Product Manager of innovative products:
• won IMS Global Learning Impact Award 2010
for MyDisplay
• won ‘Best Usability & Accessibility’ BIMA 2006
for My Web, My Way
• 3 x Bafta-nominated for breakthrough rich-media
eLearning projects for disabled children
24. “Fresh thinking that creates value”
http://www.economist.com/specialreports/PrinterFriendly.cfm?story_id=9928154
25. “The process of translating an idea or
invention into a good or service that
creates value or for which customers
will pay.”
www.businessdictionary.com/definition/innovation.html#ixzz2iko2wNHH
28. jonathanhassell@yahoo.co.uk
How to source ideas…
From following
market trends
(e.g. everything
goes social…)
From listening
to users’
unmet needs
and finding
ways to meet
them
From
encouraging
your team to
come up with
ideas
From following
technology
possibilities
(Freeview =>
Youview)
29. jonathanhassell@yahoo.co.uk
How inclusion helps ideation…
From following
market trends
(e.g. everything
goes social…)
From listening
to users’
unmet needs
and finding
ways to meet
them
From
encouraging
your team to
come up with
ideas
From following
technology
possibilities
(Freeview =>
Youview)
35. jonathanhassell@yahoo.co.uk
How focusing on users takes you beyond inclusion…
From following
market trends
(e.g. everything
goes social…)
From listening
to users’
unmet needs
and finding
ways to meet
them
From
encouraging
your team to
come up with
ideas
From following
technology
possibilities
(Freeview =>
Youview)
37. Keep listening through iterative user-testing
Do initial
audience
research
User test to
get better
audience
research
Develop
minimal,
flexible
next version
If more
improvement
justified,
cycle…
44. The Funding Vision
• Learners with disabilities may lack independence due to an
inability to communicate by speech or due to lack of motor
control
• If signs and gestures can be easily learned, recognized and
converted to digital data, a whole new world of opportunity
opens up.
TechDis, BIS, TSB SBRI ‘Making Waves’ competition
46. The “breakthrough” inspiration
• http://www.fastcoexist.com/1680081/a-
device-to-translate-sign-language-into-
speech and http://www.uh.edu/news-
events/Fulbright/2012/may/0529MyVoice.ph
p
47. It takes time… – cf. Siri
Speech recognition was able to
understand digits in the 1950s…
Siri’s intelligence has been
worked on for at least 10 years
51. The way ahead
Looked for
people who
could benefit
from each of
our (baby)
steps…
52. Why choose Makaton-users
as our target audience?
British Sign Language Makaton
Thousands of signs (> 21,000) Hundreds of signs
Individual sign vocab > 5,000 Individual sign vocab < 200
Long sequences of signs 1 or 2 sign sequences
Sign quality fairly uniform Sign quality very variable, plus
personal (idiosyncratic) signs
Many competing teams
innovating in this field
Very few competing teams
innovating in this field
56. Users and contexts of use
Signing
e-Learning game
Users with comms difficulties
through LDs, Autism, stroke
Education Employment
Independent
Living
Supporters of these users:
colleagues, teachers, carers, parents
59. Hints of a new opportunity
“Boris was so engaging
that blind students were
also asking to use it to
learn to sign…”
60. Example 2: The Nepalese Necklace
A Movement Game for Blind and VI Children
61. The Nepalese Necklace Original concept
• The idea:
• using audio-games & Microsoft Kinect’s
gesture recognition to encourage blind and
partially-sighted children to engage more
readily with their mobility training
• The project:
• an inexpensive, 3 month Proof of Concept
to investigate the idea’s potential in a
concrete, testable way
62. The Nepalese Necklace UCD Approach
• Initial user-research
• found experts in the learning, and
representatives of the learners
• created a way of giving both an initial
idea of what we were talking about, to
get their attention and buy-in
• asked questions to “get into their world”
• then created what they needed/wanted
• Iterative user-testing
• we did this every couple of weeks
• there’s no substitute for it
63. The Nepalese Necklace Validation
• Did final research to prove value
• in all contexts of use
(in homes as well as as schools)
• over longer periods of testing, without
expert presence (over at least a week,
without you propping the PoC up)
• observed and interviewed users &
experts to understand how they
behave and feel about the PoC
• Got the results on video
• nothing else quite proves your case
68. • the full guide on how to transform your organisation
to achieve the consistent creation of web sites and
apps that are usable and accessible to all your
customers, at the most efficient cost
• with practical case-studies from leading
accessibility experts worldwide, including:
• Jennison Asuncion (Canada),
• Debra Ruh & Jeff Kline (USA),
• Andrew Arch (Australia)
• David Banes (Qatar)
• Axel Leblois (UN)
for information on the book,
free access to video case-
studies, and a chance of winning
the book for free
Click here for
chance to
win book
There’s more on accessibility
innovation in my book
70. More Hassell Inclusion at CSUN-14:
Web Accessibility Myths for the mobile generation
• Do disabled people really
use ATs?
• Is the most important
accessibility issue for
images alt-text?
• Does inclusive design really
benefit everyone?
• Are the most important
people in accessibility
developers?
• challenging some of the
accepted views we hold that
may no longer be true…
71. More Hassell Inclusion at CSUN-14:
7 Signs of maturing in accessibility and inclusion
• The accessibility industry is
aging and growing…
• But is it maturing…?
• how do you measure
maturity in accessibility
- in organisations,
and as an industry?
• from Tim Cook’s latest
shareholder comments
to the IAAP – here are 7
signs that we’re maturing
as we grow…
72. Get in touch…
e: jonathan@hassellinclusion.com
t: @jonhassell
w: www.hassellinclusion.com
Editor's Notes
Digital TV has brought many advances for disabled and elderly people in recent years… access services - subtitles, signing, and audio descriptionIt’s brought problems too…“what box do I need… and how expensive is it?”“how do I find the programmes with the access services I need?”especially if the electronic programme guide doesn’t include speech…
Digital TV has brought many advances for disabled and elderly people in recent years… access services - subtitles, signing, and audio descriptionIt’s brought problems too…“what box do I need… and how expensive is it?”“how do I find the programmes with the access services I need?”especially if the electronic programme guide doesn’t include speech…
Digital TV has brought many advances for disabled and elderly people in recent years… access services - subtitles, signing, and audio descriptionIt’s brought problems too…“what box do I need… and how expensive is it?”“how do I find the programmes with the access services I need?”especially if the electronic programme guide doesn’t include speech…
And we found…
Working with the students to work out what they’d like…
Here’s a summary of what we were able to achieve in our Phase One.
Here’s a summary of what we were able to achieve in our Phase One.