Ability Magazine Has Joined Stuff in Isolation,” Said Nigel Lewis, Moment” for Onevoice, Said Lewis

Assistive technology at work Issue 90 Summer 2013

Lights, camera, access! Making online media accessible PLUS n The future of DSAs n The 3D printing revolution n The latest in low vision systems n AT in the workplace survey n CapturaTalk case study 4347_Olympus DM_HP_RNIB_Advert:Layout 1 09/06/2011 14:28 Page 1

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Editorial 4 Accessible Media 20-23

Hands off our Disabled Students Lights, camera access! Allowances Millions of videos online would be Why the government has got to available to disabled people, if media ISSN 1352-7665 think again on cutting computers for players were more accessible Contacts disabled students 3D Printing 24-26 Feedback 5 Editor and Publisher AT – a new dimension John Lamb Accessible PDFs The novel technology of 3D printing [email protected] David Falcus and Ted Page debate and how it could revolutionise the whether Adobe Acrobat is a broken way assistive technology is designed Production Editor technology Mandie Beckley Low Vision 27-28 mandie.beckley@abilitymagazine. News 6-12 org.uk The bigger picture • Humanware remakes the CCTV Allana Grant zooms in on the latest Circulation Manager reader developments in magnification aids Ebuni Jumaa • Global treaty opens the door to [email protected] accessible books Education 30 • Europe unveils assistive ICT Sales Manager database Talking in class Gaynor Gilbert • Minister should ‘act like a statin on Dyslexic pupils at Belvoir High [email protected] the NHS’ over communication aids School use text recognition software • Rising awareness of audio to overcome literacy difficulties Contributors description Kevin Carey • Mobile phone makers dial up apps Mobility Roadshow 31 Paul Doyle database David Falcus Report from the exhibition that Allana Grant In Memoriam 13 celebrated its 30th anniversary this Ted Page year An appreciation of accessibility Printed by advocate Cynthia Waddell, who died Resources 33-37 Micropress Printers Ltd earlier this year Fountain Way Reydon • Read&Write Gold revamped for Business Park Reydon Analysis 14-15 Windows 8 Suffolk IP18 6DH • Automatic fall detector for elderly Professional people bodies dismiss • Tobii Technology’s eye gaze aid is Published by ‘superficial’ a turn on John Lamb Media Ltd review that • Diary of events Pellingbrook House could see Lewes Road computers cut Order form 36 Haywards Heath from disabled West Sussex RH17 7NG students grant scheme A subscription is the best way to ensure you get Ability regularly Ability is a founder member of Survey 16-18 the British Assistive Technology Carey On 38 Association Assistive technology at work AT helps people work better and with Cut the crap greater motivation, says a survey Kevin Carey decides web by the British Assistive Technology accessibility comes from focusing on Association. the customer

www.abilitymagazine.org.uk Ability Issue 90 | Summer 2013 3 editorial feedback

Hands off our Disabled Students Allowances t should not come as a surprise that in the continuing hunt for cuts the £125m Disabled Students Allowances (DSAs) programme should Ifall under the beady eye of the Department for Business Innovation and Skills (BIS), which runs the scheme. The department is conducting a review of the technology that is supported under DSAs and has asked professionals involved in the field to answer a number of questions about the ICT that disabled students need now and what they might require in future (see pages 14-15). Sensible enough, you may think, given that technology is cheaper, more ubiquitous and changing at a greater rate than ever before. Why the government But what is surprising is the underlying assumption that it should be has got to think again possible to make savings by no longer providing desktop and laptop on cutting computers for computers. All students are expected to have these devices, the argument goes. disabled students BIS believes that there is a distinction between the assistive technology that a disabled student requires and the devices on which it runs, which represent about 27% of the cost of the typical system supplied under the DSAs. This notion not only ignores the fact that assistive software and hardware often require more powerful platforms on which to run, but also that many disabled students use their ICT very differently from other students. ICT is often part of a disabled student’s day-to-day life, helping them communicate or get about. It may be impossible for them to use systems provided by their educational establishment which, though free, are only available at fixed times. Not only that but the assessment, training and support that disabled students require to use assistive technology effectively is much greater than for the rest of the student body. And of course disabled students are by definition the group least likely to have the funds to splash out on desktops, tablets, smartphones and the like. Needless to say there has been a vigorous reaction from the groups involved with disabled students. “Leading and superficial” was how the National Association of Disability Professionals described the questions posed by BIS. The sensible thing would be for BIS to quietly drop the idea when it reports back in the autumn, but that could just be wishful thinking. n

4 Ability Issue 90 | Summer 2013 www.abilitymagazine.org.uk editorial feedback

arlier this year we set out order. There is just no functionality for The comment “…near universal to make the PDF version fixing overlapping text or making text view of people who work with PDFs Eof Ability more accessible. reappear when it is missing or fixing is that reflow view is a more or less However, subscriber David Falcus any other problem. completely broken technology” is sent us examples of how pages in Probably the leading expert in interesting. the more accessible version failed PDF accessibility in the US is Duff I have been searching the web to display well. Here is his letter Johnson. He is the chairman of and cannot really find anything and subsequent correspondence the PDF/UA committee and vice to back this up, perhaps this is a with our consultant Ted Page. chairman of the PDF Association. view that the experts have but are Duff recently wrote an article not really articulating to a wider Issues with Ability’s entitled ‘pdfGoHTML: PDF Reflow audience? If the reflow view is so bad accessible PDF Done Right’ (http://duff-johnson. why is there not more public criticism With regards to the accessible com/2013/01/21/pdfgohtml-pdf- of Adobe? PDF, I have done a quick test and reflow-done-right/). What led me to the original view unfortunately I did find issues. The article is not actually about was that I did find some documents I have enabled on the Adobe site that document reflow, set worked 100% correctly a high contrast colour in the reflow view – so scheme, and zoomed in to certainly with some 150%. types of document I think this configuration at least that view is is something that is quite workable. valid, and something that It is a bit of an I have tested with on PDF ironic situation that we files in the past and found now have the PDF/ the accessible ones to UA standard, but work well with. potentially the most There are many pages popular PDF viewer is in the document however that do the problems of PDF reflow view per not capable of taking full advantage not display well. I have included se, more about a product to do what of it. screenshots of a small selection of PDF reflow can’t. Whilst pdfGoHTML is interesting, them below. But I am aware that Duff’s at the moment it is only available for n Pages 7-15 just display as black. view is very much that reflow is the full version of Acrobat, which is n Page 4 has text that overlaps. currently unworkable. I have also not really a realistic option for the n Page 17 has quite a lot of had discussions with the subject of majority of users who would have the information missing. the interview, Olaf Drümmer, on the free Adobe Reader. n Page 26 has text over the image. same topic. He gave up on reflow I need to do some more David Falcus view years ago. investigation on this and will let Accessibility Practice Lead, BT TSO However, I think there is a solution you know if I come to any different which is to produce the magazine conclusions. Reflow view of PDFs is as an epub as well as a PDF. Once David Falcus a broken technology you have a well tagged PDF you can I’m really sorry, but I’m afraid I would create an ePub relatively easily from it. have to disagree with David Falcus’s Ted Page HAVE YOUR SAY view that PDF’s reflow view is a valid Director, PWS Ability welcomes letters and configuration. articles on all issues relating I think the near universal view Is Adobe Acrobat’s reflow to IT for disabled people in of people who work with PDFs is really broken? work, education and daily life. that reflow view is a more or less Thanks very much for the completely ‘broken’ technology. comprehensive reply. Contributions can be sent to A document may work in reflow I have to admit that this area is the editor, John Lamb, at view, but it is never guaranteed. The something that is relatively new to john.lamb@abilitymagazine. only control I or anyone else will have me – so I am busy trying to get up to org.uk over reflow view is in the reading speed.

www.abilitymagazine.org.uk Ability Issue 90 | Summer 2013 5 rubricnews

Humanware remakes the CCTV reader

Canadian assistive technology the whole page. And the system has company Humanware has bookmarks that help readers find redesigned the traditional desktop their place on a page. closed circuit TV (CCTV) reading “CCTV technology was first machine as a digital reading system designed 45 years ago and it is with voice output. still fundamentally the same and I Humanware’s Prodigi, launched at am embarrassed about that,” said the Sight Village exhibition in July, is Pedro Polson, chief executive of a gesture controlled device, based on Humanware Europe at a recent the Android operating system, which briefing on the project in the House combines a desktop and a portable of Lords. tablet magnifier. “Prodigi is intelligent at a reduced The Prodigi has optical character price. The XY reading table is gone. recognition software and features The optical camera has gone and the Prodigi is available in three usually associated with computer- large coloured buttons have gone. versions: a 5” portable HD magnifi er based magnification software such “There is no more losing your and reader with touch screen; an all- as contrast and colour adjustments; place on the page and no more digital magnifier and reading system and text-to-speech. nausea and visual fatigue caused with detachable tablet and a 20-inch The system has a trademarked by moving your document under the or 24” monitor; or as a magnifier and technique called Diamond Edge Text camera.” reading system (20” or 24”) without that does away with the blurring of The system has a built-in training the tablet. n text caused by high magnification. video to help users who may be www.humanware.com Users can read magnified printed unfamiliar with the tapping, swiping material in a smooth scrolling and pinching needed to control the Turn to page 27 for our feature on column, row by row or they can view system. low vision systems Stelios award takes off with £50,000 prize The Stelios Award, which has individuals who founded online and The deadline for entries to the a £50,000 prize for the winning high tech ventures. 2013 award is October 25th. Entrants disabled entrepreneur, is now open Last year’s winner was David must be disabled and have a 25% for entries. Hawkins, an entrepreneur from Hull stake in a UK business that has been Started six years ago by easyJet whose business – Cyclone Techn- trading for up to five years and has a founder Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou, ologies – supplies wheelchairs and turnover of above £10,000. n the award has gone to a number of fitness equipment to disabled people. http://bit.ly/YuxKT7 Regulator aims to rectify wonky subtitling TV companies will have to produce impairments look at live TV subtitles applications. regular reports on the quality of their in the UK, which are produced by “A news bulletin may switch from live subtitling if Ofcom gets its way. operators who respeak what is earthquakes to the weather, the The communications regulator said into voice recognition systems [subtitling software] may not keep wants more accurate live subtitling trained to their voices. up with the change and the after complaints about spelling “There are major problems respeaker operator is left struggling errors, wrong words, disappearing with voice recognition and with to correct it.” subtitles and unacceptable delays synchronising subtitles with what’s on Ofcom will be consulting with the between someone speaking and the screen,” Gareth Ford Williams, head TV industry on the proposals until appearance of text on screen. of accessible services at the BBC, July 25. n Some 1.4m people with hearing told an Ofcom seminar on accessible www.ofcom.org.uk

6 Ability Issue 90 | Summer 2013 www.abilitymagazine.org.uk news

Global treaty opens the door to accessible books The prospect of accessible books Not enough attention, campaign- holder, dramatically increasing the for all blind and print disabled people ers said, was paid to the need for amount of literature available to came a step closer last month with blind people to share books in visually impaired people, which is the signing of an international treaty accessible formats across borders. currently as low as 1% in developing by over 50 countries. But in the end they were satisfied countries,” commented Caroline Members of the World Intellectual with the agreement. Harper, chief executive of UK charity Property Organisation approved a Sightsavers. treaty in Marrakesh, Morocco, paving “While the signing of this treaty the way for published works to be is a historic and important step, I am copied freely into formats such as respectfully and urgently asking all Braille, large print text and audio governments and states to prioritise books. ratification of this treaty so that it will The treaty binds signatories to become the law of the land in your introducing legislation to allow the respective countries and states,” said reproduction and distribution of singer Stevie Wonder who spoke in published works in these accessible Morocco. formats. Stevie Wonder: pushing for speed “This history-making treaty The treaty took five-years to ends the book famine for millions of agree and earlier versions were “WIPO has taken a commendable blind and visually impaired people, criticised by campaigners for paying approach in passing a treaty providing access to publications too much attention to the rights of which benefits the public interest which have previously been locked copyright holders. rather than solely the rights- away by legal constrictions.” n

The recent AGM and council Ability joins OneVoice Coalition elections signalled a “seminal Ability magazine has joined stuff in isolation,” said Nigel Lewis, moment” for OneVoice, said Lewis. the council of the OneVoice for chief executive officer of technology “We’ve done a lot through the current Accessible ICT Coalition. access charity AbilityNet. members and their goodwill and The Coalition, which aims to act The council includes Nigel Lewis; time, and I think this is the moment as a hub for the digital inclusion and Graeme Whippy of Lloyds TSB IT we can make a real step change. “ accessible ICT sectors in the UK, Accessibility Group; John Lamb of At the recent AGM it was agreed recently elected its first council in May. Ability magazine; Peter Abrahams of that a fee structure for membership “We can help join people and Bloor Research; Fiona Miller of BT, will be introduced, and OneVoice will groups together. I think there’s a Ian Lyons of Shaw Trust, and Howard also be looking for seeded project real need for that, because there Lester, an independent disability funding as well. n are too many people doing great consultant. http://www.onevoiceict.org/home

numbers of questions and time Online forms are a barrier to work limits within which the form must be Employers should get help to remove programme. completed pose particular problems inaccessible online job application “Increasing the accessibility of for people with dyslexia. forms that prevent disabled people the application stage, could remove One Ability reader reports that finding work, according to charity another systemic barrier to more he regularly runs out of time in Shaw Trust. people with disabilities entering filling in forms and recently had to The use of digital technology work,” says the study. grapple with an online application and online application forms by “There is … a lack of subsidised for a checkout job at supermarket employers particularly acted as a support for employers to help make chain Morrissons that posed 214 barrier for those looking for work, their application processes fully questions. n concluded a report by Shaw Trust accessible. “ The full report is available at on the Work Choice employment Application forms with large http://bit.ly/19TceOU

www.abilitymagazine.org.uk Ability Issue 90 | Summer 2013 7 rubricnews

Europe unveils assistive ICT database The EU has announced the launch packages, magnification software, employers’ group Business Disability of a free online portal that will enable mouse alternatives and differently Forum. disabled people and professionals shaped and sized keyboards. “Whether you are a speech who work with them to find the ATIS4all, which took three years therapist, an occupational health right assistive information and to build, is intended to allow visitors specialist, an IT consultant or an communications technology (ICT). to browse customer reviews and HR manager, you will find objective, The €600,000 (£512,000) project, join discussion forums where both unbiased and up-to-date information called ATIS4all, will allow users end-users and professionals can on all the options in one place for to search existing product data exchange and share ideas and the first time,” says Stefan Sollinger, across national databases in UK, experiences. senior accessibility and usability France, Germany, Denmark, Italy, People involved with AT can consultant at AbilityNet. Netherlands and Belgium. register under one of four categories: “And for disabled people It will be a companion database to unregistered user, registered user, themselves, whether they have another EU database called EASTIN, supporter or guru. a vision impairment, dyslexia or which covers all kinds of assistive The project is led by Technosite, physical problem making mouse use technology. an arm of the Spanish blind charity impossible, it offers a one-stop-shop Visitors to ATIS4all, say the ONCE. Other partners include big for all their IT needs that is simple to portal’s developers, will be able names such as Blackberry and navigate and comprehensive in its to find products such as voice Vodafone, while UK participants approach.” n recognition and text to speech include the charity AbilityNet and the http://bit.ly/10RueZs BBC goes it alone on mobile standards The BBC has steps for testing. Editorial: published its own The guidelines are in n Provide clear and descriptive standards covering draft form and developer alternatives. the accessibility Henny Swan (pictured) n Alternatives must not describe the of web content for at accessibilityteam@ type of object. mobiles. bbc.co.uk is keen that n Provide unique and descriptive The Draft people comment on the screen and page titles. Mobile standard. n Use consistent editorial across Accessibility In her blog Swan platforms. Standards and highlights some of the n Localise alternatives. Guidelines are differences between Design: intended for use desktop and mobile web. n Provide alternatives for colour by anyone involved with the design “On the desktop web it is widely conveying information. or development of mobile web and accepted that a contrast level of n Provide sufficient contrast. mobile web applications. 4.5:1 is acceptable. On the mobile n Provide large enough touch areas. The standards address subjects web, where users are on the move n Provide visible changes of state. that web designers and developers in changing light conditions dealing n Layout supports a logical content need to consider, including colour, with variable levels of glare, it’s order. movement, input access, screen- questionable whether 4.5:1 is Development: reading, text links and alternatives. enough, so perhaps we should be n Provide alternatives and labels for The BBC decided to write its aiming for something closer to 7:1,” images and objects. own standards because there she says. n Update changes of state. are no internationally accepted Here are some of the things n Ensure a logical content order. guidelines available for mobile editors, designers and developers n Back buttons move users back accessibility. should be thinking about when logically one step. Each standard is listed with building accessible mobile websites n Ensure all active elements are example code for implementing in and applications, according to the focusable. n HTML, Android, and iOS and BBC. http://bbc.in/18e0qZu

8 Ability Issue 90 | Summer 2013 www.abilitymagazine.org.uk news news

Minister should ‘act like a statin on the NHS’ over communications aids Health minister Norman Lamb has In April, NHS England took on in the spokes to deliver the more been urged to “act like a statin responsibility for commissioning complex tools,” said Maynard. in the arteries of NHS England” assessments and for providing AAC “Complexity is at the heart of the to free up the system for making aids, the first time purchasing has problem in the structure.” communication aids available to been done at a national level. The ability to speak and those who need them. But MPs were concerned that communicate “is a pretty basic The call came in a recent NHS England’s decision to use human right, and that it should be Commons debate on augmentative historical data about the demand for recognised as such”, the minister and assistive communication (AAC) communication aids in setting future pointed out. aids. budgets might not end a “post code “A key priority is therefore lottery” of provision . to ensure that commissioning “I hope that the Minister can arrangements for this specialised act like a statin in the arteries of service are placed on a much more NHS England to allow what is robust and equitable footing across good to occur, and for policy to be England,” said Lamb. implemented in the way that I am “NHS England is working with sure everybody in the Department of its clinical reference groups and Health wants it to be implemented,” area teams to identify areas where said Maynard. there may be inequalities and where He also questioned whether additional resources may be required Lamb: training could not feasibly be enough training was available to to bring about better access.” provided by small-scale local services underpin the idea of ‘hubs’ of AAC Training could not feasibly experts handling complex cases be provided by small-scale local MP Paul Maynard, who led supporting ‘spokes’ delivering less services, he added. “Assessment the debate, said the demand for complicated support. and provision is needed by communication aids was three and “The only way that the hub-and- specialised tertiary providers with a half times the level currently being spoke model can work effectively is their concentration of expertise.” n supplied. if the hub can train up more people Full debate: http://bit.ly/168aJe2

Blind cyclists take to the track in Bristol Up to 30 blind cyclists negotiated Miracles of Nature, presented by TransMedia Link a cycle track in Bristol last month Richard Hammond. accessible document solutions guided by ultrasonic sensors fitted to The programme makers their bikes. commissioned Sound Foresight • Large Print Six bicycles – known as Technology to fit the UltraCane • Braille UltraBikes – have been fitted with technology onto a bike which was • Audio sensors that detect obstacles in their then ridden through a woodland path • Language Translations path and provide directional feedback by a blind cyclist. • Easy Read to their rider via vibrating buttons on The Bristol event, called the • British Sign Language either side of the handlebars. Miracle of Science challenge, will be The echo-location system is used to raise funds for cycling charity UKAAF LogoProud to be members of UK Association for Accessible Formats based on technology used in the LifeCycle UK, which organises UltraCane electronic white stick tandem rides for vision impaired developed by Sound Foresight people, among other activities. Technology. The UltraCane copies There are no plans to make the W www.transmedialink.co.uk the navigational abilities of bats and UltraBikes available commercially, a T 0870 24UK 10Association 772 for featured in the recent BBC series spokesperson told Ability. n Accessible Formats (UKAAF)

Because format quality matters

www.abilitymagazine.org.uk Ability IssueFlyer, 90 Guidance | Summer Notes 2013 and the Application9 Form

UKAAF (UK Association for Accessible Formats) is the industry association whose mission is to improve the social inclusion of blind and partially sighted people, and others with a print impairment, by promoting quality accessible formats.

It does this by: • setting standards and promoting best practice for quality accessible information based on user needs, and, • enabling businesses and organisations to deliver a quality service to meet the needs of people with print impairments.

UKAAF is a powerful blend of transcription experience, industry expertise and accessible format users. It was formed in 2009 by the merger of three former industry associations; COTIS (Confederation of Transcribed Information Services), UKABP (UK Association of Braille Producers) and BAUK (the Braille Authority of the UK).

Pathways to IndePendence naIdex Is the largest dIsabIlIty, rehabIlItatIon and homecare event In the UK. Featuring the latest products and services to aid independent living, the show brings together healthcare professionals, retailers, buyers and the public. Visit the show and you can: Discover the latest products available, all under one roof Attend a free CPD-certified onferencec Meet experts and get independent advice

Awareness of audio description on 10% to 20% of programming on 70 help them to set up audio description. TV has almost doubled in the last five TV channels in the UK. As a result of the campaign, which years, according to research carried Most modern television receivers appeared on television during Spring out by communications regulator and set top boxes now enable audio 2012, awareness among UK adults Ofcom. description, but research carried out rose to 60%. When audio description is in 2008 found that only 37% of adults Claudio Pollack, Ofcom consumer switched on, a TV viewer can hear were aware of the service. group director, said: “Audio a narrator describe on-screen Ofcom asked broadcasters to description is an important facility action, body language and facial co-ordinate a campaign to promote for blind or partially sighted people expressions for the benefit of people awareness of audio description to enjoy TV and we’re encouraged with visual impairments. amongst all UK adults – both people that consumers’ awareness of it has Audio description, which is fitted with visual impairments, as well as increased.” n in between dialogue, is available on their relatives and friends, who could www.ofcom.org.uk/ BT readies user friendly text relay for 2014 BT is developing a text relay Ofcom seminar on accessible apps. The next generation relay service, smartphone app as part of a “The text phones have small which will be able to work with all revamped service that will be screens, they need a phone socket to telephone services, will tell a user launched in April 2014. work and switching between text and whether an incoming call is from a The app is part of BT’s ‘next voice involves a gap.” text user or not. generation’ text relay service that will The free app, which will be BT plans to retain the 08001 provide a text-to-voice and voice-to- available on a wide range of number currently used to make a text translation service, using human smartphones, will be able to support call from a textphone and the 08002 operators, and a real time, word-by- different combinations of voice and number used to call a textphone from word texting service. text so that, for example, a hearing an ordinary phone. Pathways to Instantaneous texting, which can impaired person who can speak well, It will be up to phone companies, be used to communicate either with but not hear, will be able to see text who will have to pay BT a charge, other users or with relay operators, is coming in and reply using a voice whether they offer this service. vital in enabling deaf people to hold a channel. Internet-based voice over IP IndePendence conversation. The app will only be able to run phone providers are unlikely to offer “The current text relay service on smartphones that can access the the service, says Day. n requires a text phone and it is not internet and support a voice call at www.textrelay.org/ naIdex Is the largest dIsabIlIty, rehabIlItatIon very use friendly,” Michael Day, BT the same time. BT will be publishing and homecare event In the UK. text relay product manager, told an a list of phones that can do this. Featuring the latest products and services to aid independent living, the show brings together healthcare professionals, retailers, buyers AbilityNet launches Look No Hands! and the public. Visit the show and you can: AbilityNet’s website received 4,000 services for disabled people including hits after the launch of its Look No online resources, a helpline and Discover the latest products available, all under one roof Hands! campaign last month. home visits. Attend a free CPD-certified conference AbilityNet invited people to text Although Ability’s intrepid reporter Look132 to 70070 using their nose or failed to operate his smartphone with Meet experts and get independent advice their toes and make a £2 donation. his nose, plenty of others managed This photograph of canoeists With supporters that include to do so. battling it out during London champion tweeter Stephen Fry and See AbilityNet’s Look No Hands! 2012 won first prize in a recent RegisteR FoR youR FRee ticket at www.naidex.co.uk/scotland AbilityNet patron Baroness Lane- video at www.abilitynet.org.uk/ competition run by the Disabled Fox, Look No Hands! aims to raise looknohands for a demonstration of Photographers’ Society £20,000 to develop AbilityNet’s free how it is done. n

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www.abilitymagazine.org.uk Ability Issue 90 | Summer 2013 11 rubricnews in memorium

Mobile phone makers dial up apps database

Mobile phone manufacturers will be the accessibility features of mobile “It can be important to know publishing a list of accessibility apps phones. whether a certain app is compatible for tablets and smartphones. The GARI database contains with VoiceOver on iOS, if the same Developers are being invited information on some 500 phones. app can be used with TalkBack to put forward candidates for a “Hundreds of developers have on Android or if it works also on a database of apps that enhance the taken up the challenge to find Windows phone.” accessibility of mobile devices. solutions for making mobile phones People looking for an accessible A list of some 100 apps, initially, more accessible to older people or app will be able to search by keyword is being assembled by the Mobile people with disabilities and contribute and by which platform the app works Manufacturers Forum (MMF) and will to improve their daily lives,” explains on, in any of 13 languages. go live in July. Sabine Lobnig of GARI. The launch of the apps database The initiative is part of the MMF’s “The new app section will allow coincides with a makeover of the Global Accessibility Reporting users of GARI to search for mobile GARI website to make it more Initiative (GARI), a project designed phones that accommodate specific accessible. n to give consumers information about apps. http://bit.ly/171LxJi Yecco service will lighten the load of caring A mobile iOS and Android-based app communicate more effectively as a carer bringing others up-to-date: that allows a vulnerable individual with their older or more vulnerable they go into a reactive mode,” Yecco to keep in touch with people via charges. chairman Alex Jadavji told Ability at telephone and video calls, messages The service, says Yecco, is the Naidex show. and a teleconference facility is in intended to offer carers access “The Yecco social network and development by Yecco. to a shared calendar, a financial management tools provide complete calculator, a secure store of personal control and peace of mind, alleviating information about a user and the the caregiver burden.” ability to track an individual using a It has been possible to download neck pendant. a beta version of the app, but They will also be able to join a access is now suspended, says the forum, and access a directory of company, while changes are made services and products via Yecco’s to produce “a more efficient web Carers will be able to use website. service”. n the system to manage care and “People spend a lot of their time www.yecco.com Charity’s chair is a hit in the air Travelchair, an aircraft seat for conventional airline seat,” says severely disabled children designed TravelChair designer Graham Race. by children’s disability charity MERU, “As the father of a disabled child has won an aviation industry award. myself, I understand the importance The chair, which provides postural of air travel to access vital treatment support to children between the ages but many children were unable to of 3 and 11, won a Crystal Cabin use this mode of transport as their Award at the Aircraft Interiors Expo in needs on the aircraft were not being Hamburg. met.” “When I developed the The chair, manufactured by TravelChair, my sole aim was to Balform, folds in half to stow in the Meru’s TravelChair provides support provide a solution for disabled overhead locker when not in use. n for disabled children between the ages children to be able to travel in a www.meru.org.uk/travelchair of three and 11

12 Ability Issue 90 | Summer 2013 www.abilitymagazine.org.uk news in memorium

Accessibility loses its greatest champion

ireless accessibility advocate people and setting precedents in the Waddell wrote the first accessible Cynthia Waddell died earlier process. web design standard for local T this year. Her career really got started government in 1995. Waddell was a disability rights with a class action law suit against As the momentum for legislation lawyer from California who was the City of San Jose. Under the grew, Waddell broadened her original consulted by presidents and Americans with Disabilities Act work on websites to cover other government ministers from around the city was required to hire a full aspects of IT – software, operating the world on how to ensure disabled systems, internet, intranets, people could use IT. multimedia and hardware. She had a major influence on She set up the International Section 508 of the Americans with Center for Disability Resources on Disabilities Act, the ground breaking the Internet (ICDRI), to increase legislation that required government opportunities for people with departments to buy accessible disabilities by identifying barriers ICT, and she played a major role to participation and promoting the in shaping the UN Convention on universal design of technology. Disability Rights. Waddell: she had a lifelong passion “Cynthia was a tireless advocate Later Waddell acted as an for disability rights law for people with disabilities. She accessibility consultant to the had the ability to analyse technical International Telecommunication time compliance officer to ensure issues and distil them down so that Union, the UN body that organises disabled people had access to refuse everyone could understand them no communication networks around the collection, auditoria, arenas, the city matter what their view,” commented world. hall and so on. her ICDRI colleague Michael Burks. But her life could have been very But they didn’t have one. The Cynthia Says web different. Waddell was born with a As a result San Jose, which is at accessibility testing site was named hearing loss and did not speak at all the southern end of the home of high in her honour, although in typically until she was five. tech industry – Silicon Valley – set up modest fashion Waddell said it was Since she was a first child her a Disability Advisory Committee and because the site’s founders wanted a parents did not realise anything appointed Waddell as its chair. female name as an alternative to the was amiss for some years. When The mayor then made her name Bobby, which had been given Waddell’s condition was eventually Americans with Disabilities Act to the first automatic testing service. recognised, her family was told that compliance officer for the city’s She had immense influence on her disability would make it difficult airport, arenas and convention the design of accessible IT systems, for her to learn. centres. often in the teeth of criticism from Waddell’s parents decided she To begin with her job involved industry interests. should learn to lip read and enter educating and training city “If you let the market place mainstream education. employees and investigating determine consumer needs then Armed with two hearing aids she complaints. disabled people would be a minority attended school in Los Angeles and One complaint came from a and businesses would not invest each day for 15 years underwent blind city commissioner who pointed in accessibility,” she said in a 2009 speech therapy and training in lip out that San Jose’s website was interview with Ability. reading after classes. not accessible. She couldn’t read “We created a marketplace Eventually she won a place in documents produced in pdf format. and said if businesses wanted to law school. It was there that Waddell Waddell herself was affected participate in the public sector they formed her lifelong passion for when the city began audio streaming would have to provide accessibility. disability rights law and the way it is council meetings: they lacked the “My lifetime goal in my work as a implemented. captioning that would allow her to disability rights advocate has been Working at the Impact access them. to understand how best to bring Employment Law Center, Waddell Determined to ensure that about systemic change to improve cut her teeth pursuing class actions disabled people could be fully the quality of life for persons with on behalf of groups of disabled involved with local democracy, disabilities.” n

www.abilitymagazine.org.uk Ability Issue 90 | Summer 2013 13 analysis analysis

Government looks for savings in Disabled Students Allowances Professional bodies dismiss ‘superficial’ review that could see computers cut from grant scheme

Government review that questions whether Professionals working with students have reacted disabled students need a grant to cover the cost strongly to the suggestion that disabled students might A of a computer has been dismissed by bodies that have to provide their own computers. represent professionals who work with disabled students. Some professionals point out that while non-disabled The Department of Business, Innovation and Skills students who cannot afford a computer can access (BIS), queried the need to provide equipment for disabled library machines; this option is not open to many disabled students, such as a computer, in a series of questions students, who also need to use IT where they live. aimed at professionals involved in the £125m Disabled Students commented on their difficulties accessing Students Allowances grant scheme. The questions were posed as part of a Review of Targeted Support for Higher Education Students, which is due to be completed this autumn. “Technological advancements have been unprecedented, which has resulted in a huge shift in the way that people conduct their everyday lives, from shopping and relaxation to working and studying,” says BIS. “There has also been a rapid expansion in the type of technology that individuals own and use on a day-to-day basis.” “It is against this background that we should review what ‘extra costs’ a disabled student might be DSAs open the doors to higher education for disabled students required to incur, over and above the costs incurred by all students, with a specific focus on technologies via shared facilities in a 2011/12 survey by information technology equipment.” EA Draffen of Southampton University. BIS is also likely to examine the need for DSAs to Some 62.4% of the students with a chronic medical cover applications such as literacy support software that condition, 43.1% who had mental health issues and 67% are available either as freeware or that could be made with mobility impairments spoke about the way they available by universities and colleges under a universal managed their studies more successfully having been in licence. receipt of DSAs. Some 54,000 disabled students received grants worth The British Assistive Technology Association (BATA) over £125m in the 2010/2011 academic year. IT related and the National Association of Disability Professionals products and services accounted for some £50m of that (NADP) described some of the questions posed by BIS expenditure. as “leading and superficial”. The DSAs scheme is widely regarded as a success, BIS asked those involved in the Disabled Students opening the doors of higher education to some of the Allowances scheme to list IT equipment that was required UK’s most disadvantaged citizens, and enabling them to by all students and detail IT equipment that should contribute to the country’s economy. continue to be regarded as additional.

14 Ability Issue 90 | Summer 2013 www.abilitymagazine.org.uk analysis analysis

But the bodies, representing members from over that required by the majority of students, said the NADP. 1,000 organisations involved in supporting students “The primary purpose of the DSAs Study Needs and supplying IT, rejected the idea that any student Assessment is to determine what constitutes an was required to have IT equipment to study and said additional cost.” that disabled students needed access to equipment for The financial consequences of a more complicated different reasons to non-disabled students. assessment process may well outweigh any potential “Equipment supplied under DSA is very much a savings, the NADP concluded. system of support; a package of IT and AT that includes course-long support with training, and is not merely a set Those four controversial questions from BIS are: of items,” explained BATA in its submission to BIS. n Based on your knowledge of Disabled Students’ “BATA sees the equipment supplied under DSA as Allowances, disabled students and the general providing students with the means of studying anywhere, student population, is there any IT equipment currently at any time, promoting independent learning, and, in supplied through DSAs that you think is generally combination with personal support, enabling the vast required by the majority of students entering HE? majority to study successfully and to achieve their n If you haven’t done so, please indicate what IT potential.” equipment you feel is generally required by all The Association pointed out that out of a total DSAs students. expenditure of £125.7m in 2010/2011, only £12.9m was n What types of IT equipment do you believe should accounted for by standard equipment. Similarly, standard continue to be regarded as additional, i.e. it is required equipment only accounted for £330 of a typical £1200 specifically by disabled students as a result of their computer package. disability? Please refer to any evidence to support “I feel that a move to a ‘no-DSA-computer’ your answer. environment would create a logistical nightmare for n Is there any IT hardware or software that you feel students, suppliers, assessors, disability advisors and disabled students need that they are currently unable AT trainers, and should be resisted strongly at every to get? available opportunity,” said one DSA Needs Assessor. NADP argued “that the savings to be gained by Submissions to BIS can be found here: assuming that all students require a particular piece of British Assistive Technology Association IT equipment, and using this assumption as the basis for http://bit.ly/15MAQqR removing IT equipment from the DSAs process, would National Association of Disability Professionals come at an extremely high cost. http://bit.ly/18QWDPq “Disabled students may be placed at a severe AMOSSHE, the Student Services Organisation financial disadvantage; disabled people may drop out of http://bit.ly/17bnchI the DSAs system altogether, and not be fully supported National Institute of Adult Continuing Education on their programmes.” http://bit.ly/147rEwM Being more adaptable to advances in technology and British Dyslexia Association the provision of equipment, would ultimately reduce the http://bit.ly/11ERmZP need to rely on support workers and reduce costs. All the equipment that a disabled student had been The call for evidence, which closed on May 31, is assessed as needing to study effectively is ‘additional’ to at http://bit.ly/ZhHGWi

What proportion and amount of a typical DSA AT system is represented by standard ICT equipment?

Component Cost (£) Total (£) Comments Full system (with three-years’ support) 1200 1200 All hardware, software and peripherals. Less assistive software -380 820 Less warranty -70 750 Course long warranty /maintenance / support. Less insurance -50 700 Specialist no excess, all risks insurance. Less system build, delivery and installation/familiarisation -100 600 Comprehensive ‘one stop shop’ approach. Less assistive hardware -160 440 £550 (44%) could be considered as standard IT equipment. Less IT peripherals -50 390 May be specialist keyboards / mice etc. Less printer/scanner -60 330 May be specialist printer/scanner for VI. Less computer -330 0 £330 (27%) is represented by the computer.

Source: British Assistive Technology Association

www.abilitymagazine.org.uk Ability Issue 90 | Summer 2013 15 survey survey AT in the workplace Assistive technology helps people work better and with greater motivation, says a survey by the British Assistive Technology Association.

hree quarters of employees who use assistive of AT in the workplace is a legal obligation, the rest did technology (AT) say it has improved their not know or thought that did not apply to them. T effectiveness at work, although employers could AT solutions are much more likely to be offered to do more to promote the use of AT, according to a survey employees as a result of individual requests for support of workers and employers commissioned by the British than because they are embedded in the culture and Assistive Technology Association (BATA). Some 78% of those who took part in the Assistive Technology in the Workplace study said AT had improved their effectiveness at work. Other benefits included improved job satisfaction (64%), greater motivation (50%), reduced sickness absence (30%), and a higher opinion of their employer (55%). The online survey, sponsored by assistive technology company iansyst, was conducted in 2012 by Gareth Headley of The Clear Company, specialists in inclusive recruitment. More than 8,000 organisations and employees were invited to participate in the survey, with more than 2,400 visits to the online questionnaire. The aim of the survey was to gain a clearer picture of the use of AT in the workplace, how it is requested and how it is implemented. In 2012, there were an estimated 11m disabled people in the UK (19% of the population of 63m). The population is predicted to rise to 70m by 2030, with a greater number of people over 65, many of whom will still be working. The majority of AT users who responded said they were not disabled: only 48% of respondents said that they had a disability. Among respondents who use AT at work, 52.3% said they were either not disabled or would rather not say. Around two thirds of employees do not know how many people have AT in their workplace. This could be simply because the figures on AT use are not known to individual employees, according to BATA, but it may also indicate that AT use is not obvious to others or that the culture encourages AT users to conceal the fact. Since 1995, UK organisations have been required by law to make reasonable adjustments, including the provision of AT, to accommodate disabled employees and to give customers equal access to goods and services. Although 91% of AT users said that they knew who to ask for support, if they needed it, and 88% were aware support is a legal obligation, less than 40% had a procedure in place known to managers for obtaining AT for staff. Although 75% of employers knew that provision

16 Ability Issue 90 | Summer 2013 www.abilitymagazine.org.uk survey survey survey

procedures of an organisation: only 21% of employers were said by employees to be actively promoting AT. “Despite the growing use of technology in our to play their part. Working with others, we need to find everyday lives, the general level of understanding of better ways of making objective information and advice what AT is and how it can be used is still patchy at best,” about AT more readily available.” commented Baroness Walmsley, patron of BATA, in the The report suggests specific actions employers could foreword to Assistive Technology in the Workplace. take, such as doing more to identify employees whose “As this report shows, when the right AT is used, performance could be enhanced by assistive technology, employees report high levels of satisfaction and ensuring there is no discrimination against them and improvements in all those areas – such as sickness making sure that managers are aware of the legal absence, motivation – that employers know are key requirements around AT. indicators of effective organisations.” BATA chair Mark McCusker said, “To me, one of the There are positive responses from those who are other keys to progress is ensuring that Government and benefiting from using AT, but also reluctance by others other agencies include AT in their policy documents and to ask for AT, and a low level of impact measurement by action plans and communicate better how effective AT employers on the use of AT, the report points out. can be. BATA executive director Barbara Phillips said, “Work “BATA is already working to increase awareness needs to be done to educate and inform employees and understanding about the use of AT in education about AT and about what they are entitled to expect from and training but if the Government was more proactive an employer. But there is also more that needs to be on this, more people with disabilities would be better done by AT suppliers and advisers to equip employers prepared for future employment and more able to work productively and happily in the jobs they have.” Keeping a newly disabled person in employment has a cost benefit of at least 2.5 times an employer’s investment, according to the RNIB. This is particularly true when it comes to the growing number of older employees. n

A full copy of the AT in the Workplace survey is available at http://bit.ly/1aoUH2c

18 Ability Issue 90 | Summer 2013 www.abilitymagazine.org.uk GPS Lite Don’t lose it, locate it! Don’t lose it, locate it!

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Millions of videos online would be available to disabled people if media players were more accessible, as Go ON Gold, a campaign to get more people online, found out

ideos, photographs and voice recordings now Most online media content is generated by internet dominate the internet, but many people are not users sending each other short clips and entertainment V able to access the images and sounds they companies delivering services such as catch-up TV and contain because software-based media players and the video on demand. But video is also increasingly being content they play are not accessible enough. used by organisations to sell their products and services. Last year over 50% of consumer internet traffic consisted of videos, according to networking company The world of media players Cisco, which also forecasts that within four years nearly Online video is accessed through media players – 70% of online activity will involve moving images. software with a screen and buttons that mimic those This trend is of particular concern to Go ON Gold, found on a physical recording device. Some players are a campaign to get more people online, which has used quite complicated with features for manipulating and video to get its message across about the benefits of storing files, together with options to change the look and the internet. “With just a little bit of extra thought and feel of the player itself, what is known as its skin. preparation video makers can make their work available The majority of video players are free and can be to millions of people who otherwise might be excluded,” readily downloaded. Some are proprietary such as the says Dan Jellinek, campaign manager. BBC’s Embedded Media Player, which is used to play the

Videos – from short clips of friends to blockbuster movies – will soon account for 70% of all content on the internet

20 Ability Issue 90 | Summer 2013 www.abilitymagazine.org.uk accessible media accessible media

broadcaster’s own material; a few – often with special dialogue from other sounds and enhance it. features – have to be paid for. n Audio description for blind users. Rather than being Media players can either be embedded in the code of displayed visually, audio description is usually spoken a web page or available as a separate plug-in that may out loud by a screen reader, benefitting viewers who have to be downloaded first. Well-established players cannot see the video. The descriptions explain what is – such as Microsoft’s Windows Media Player; iTunes happening in a scene. Audio description requires skill and Quicktime from Apple; and RealPlayer, developed in selecting what to describe, how to say it and fitting by RealNetworks – can be used either standalone or the description around a video’s dialogue. embedded in a webpage. n Transcripts of the text in captions and audio description help people with reading difficulties to Reliant on the use of a mouse access a video. Despite the efforts of software developers, many of the n Accessible controls that can accessed from screen over 10m disabled people in the UK, struggle to access readers, keyboards and switches. Autoplay is a video material through these media players; particularly particularly difficult issue for vision-impaired users those who are blind, deaf or have mobility problems that because it prevents users from listening to control make it difficult for them to use a mouse. buttons. Accessible players should give users Blind people cannot easily locate the whereabouts, the option to turn this feature off, according to the function and status of media player controls. People who Worldwide Web Consortium (W3C). have problems using a mouse, such as users who cannot n User defined text-size and colours allow people with grip things with their hands, may need to use a keyboard low vision, colour blindness or conditions such as or voice controls to operate a player. dyslexia to adjust the appearance of a media player Unless a site has a media player with built-in and the text it produces. accessibility features that cater for these requirements n Intuitive operation: the player should be easy to and that also works with assistive software, visitors will use and understand to help people with cognitive not be able to activate the video player’s play, pause, difficulties. rewind, and volume buttons. Equally those with a cognitive disability may need Which media players are most accessible? to read a transcript of a video to understand its content There are over 36 media players listed on Wikipedia, but properly. People who are deaf or hard of hearing, need to what extent are these mainstream players accessible? captions to make sense of what is said; while blind Most web-based media players have some support for people require audio description to describe what is accessibility, though extra effort is usually required to get happening in a video. them to work. Some browsers turn off or inhibit access to These are only a few examples of the barriers users media player accessibility features. face if a media player is not designed to be used by Widely used players such as Windows Media Player, everyone. However, inexpensive solutions to most of Quicktime, and RealPlayer all provide some accessibility these problems are available. These include: features for web-based media content. However, not n Captions designed for viewers who can’t hear the a great deal of multimedia is presented online in these audio of a video. They contain descriptions of non- formats any more, experts say. The primary formats dialogue sound: for example, if a character in a are Flash and HTML5, in which the controls, such as video slams a door off-camera. Captions are not be buttons and links, are provided by the browser itself or confused with subtitles which are what viewers might via standard web controls, expect to see while watching a foreign-language film “Historically, great effort was required for website – they are a transcription of the video’s dialogue only. authors to provide accessible media players,” explains Closed captions are not visible until activated by a Jared Smith of WebAIM, an American organisation that viewer, while open captions are hardcoded and are campaigns for web accessibility. “Flash, which is used visible to all viewers. Synchronising text with speakers commonly to present multimedia, could be quite difficult on screen is an important step in captioning a video for authors to create accessible media players.” file correctly. That hasn’t stopped developers from having a go. n Sign translation for deaf people is similar to captions JW Player from LongTail Video is generally regarded as but with an image of a signer presenting both speech having a high level of accessibility. It is keyboard and and non-speech information. screen reader accessible and supports captions and n Clean audio for hard of hearing people is a relatively audio description. It can be easily placed in a web page. recent development which takes advantage of the The software tries to deliver video content using HTML5 increased adoption of multichannel audio to separate by default. If the browser doesn’t support HTML5, it

www.abilitymagazine.org.uk Ability Issue 90 | Summer 2013 21 accessible media

offers the video using Flash. increasing, decreasing and muting volumes. In the UK, there have been a number of efforts The popular YouTube player provides Flash and to produce accessible media players. For example, HTML5 options, depending on end user preferences; its education web design company The Workshop has player controls have some accessibility support. Vimeo produced a free player that has been used by the also has accessibility features. Canadian tax authorities, among other organisations. Web experts are convinced that browser-native HTML5 media player controls are the way forward and The Open University goes for accessibility will provide an answer to most accessibility issues. The Open University (OU) has developed a player for use HTML5 provides new commands such as

22 Ability Issue 90 | Summer 2013 www.abilitymagazine.org.uk accessible media

interviewees talk about their experiences with digital insist that captions and transcripts are included if you media. don’t have the in-house resources to produce them. Graeme Whippy, the web designer for Go ON Gold n Post transcripts – in HTML or a separate text file – of opted for the Nomensa player. Each video begins with a your media on your website. Including a transcript brief audio description to set the scene and provide an with your video and audio products will be beneficial end message. Transcripts of the interviews are made to your users with cognitive disabilities, who may find available along with captions on screen. that having a transcript aids comprehension. The Dan Jellinek, who prepared the content, said bonus is that it will also help with site indexing and captioning was surprisingly easy. It took about half an search engine optimisation. hour to produce captions, using YouTube to find the right n Rather than setting videos and other multimedia with place on the audio. sound to start playing when your web page loads, “YouTube provides automatic captioning which allow your users to start the media. Otherwise, the uses speech recognition software to attempt to create sound will interfere with content read by screen captions. The results are never perfect and sometimes readers and refreshable Braille displays. comical or useless,” commented Peter Abrahams of n Enable videos to be played in full screen or larger Bloor Research. “However YouTube also provides a sizes. facility to edit the automatic captions, this is much easier n Avoid flickering or strobing effects. than generating a caption file from scratch.” n Carry out user testing and accessibility testing with There were some issues: the Go ON Gold team found a screen reader and keyboard to identify potential there is no accessible way of going to a full screen of issues. It’s important to consider the needs of users YouTube. Other problems included a missing tooltip on with various disabilities rather than just focusing on one of the buttons: Go ON Gold suggested Nomensa keyboard accessibility or screen reader accessibility. made a small change to its layout. n Be careful not to lock yourself into something that you can’t upgrade and above all try to plan and design Choosing the right media player future-proof solutions. What steps can a website owner take to ensure their players are accessible? We asked a number of experts Inaccessible videos are only one barrier to enabling for their views. more disabled people to get online, but with moving “Survey the current open source multimedia players,” images now accounting for the majority of material was Nick Freear of the OU’s suggestion. “Look for moving around the worldwide web, it is becoming an recent development activity and releases, an active user increasingly significant obstacle. community, statements about accessibility, bugs created In future, media players themselves will inevitably and fixes to do with accessibility, and future-proof become more accessible as the HTML5 language solutions - currently this means HTML5.” becomes more widely used, but content producers will For Robin Christopherson of AbilityNet the issue was also have to play their part by ensuring that captioning, straightforward: “Basically don’t use the standard players transcripts and audio description, where appropriate, are offered by video streaming services such as YouTube included with their videos. n or Vimeo,” he said. “Consider the HTML 5 player as your main default player if you can, with a fall back to a third party player if the page detects that HTML 5 is not Some useful links: supported.” n Go ON Gold – www.go-on-gold.co.uk Here are some more tips from the people we spoke to n J W Player – www.longtailvideo.com/support/ for implementing accessible media: jw-player n S tart by planning your content. Most of the work in n MediaElement.js – http://mediaelementjs.com making your video accessible will be in this area | https://github.com/johndyer/mediaelement n Aim to use native HTML5 or an HTML5-based n Nomensa – http://accessibility.nomensa.com/ browser, but be aware of legacy operating systems n Open University – http://freear.org.uk/content/ such as Windows XP which cannot access current ou-media-player-project HTML5 versions of Internet Explorer. Around one third n The Workshop video player – www. of all browser users still use Windows XP. theworkshop.co.uk/video-player n When planning your multimedia project, include n U K government portal – www.gov.uk development time for adding accessibility features and n WebAIM – http://webaim.org/techniques/ testing. captions/mediaplayers/ n If your videos will be produced by a third party supplier

www.abilitymagazine.org.uk Ability Issue 90 | Summer 2013 23 3D printing survey AT – a new dimension Paul Doyle of Hereward College talks to Allana Grant about the novel technology of 3D printing and how it could revolutionise the way assistive technology is designed

eople with disabilities are often confined to controlled or additive manufacturing methods during my using assistive equipment that is ugly, bulky and previous role as an industrial maintenance engineer. Pconspicuous. Such technologies, although expensive, were used While these aids function well; most manufacturers in the rapid prototyping and manufacture of automotive only pay lip service to aesthetic appearance. components. A new technology, 3D printing, could transform the However, it must be said many of the technologies in lives of assistive technology users by allowing them to the early days were reliant on the removal of materials become involved in designing better looking assistive from a blank or solid component rather than the addition technology that is both faster and cheaper to make. of multiple layers to create a three dimensional form. I recently had the good fortune of meeting Paul Doyle, access research and development manager at Hereward AG: What was it about 3D printing that interested you? College, a further education college that specialises in PD: The availability of cheap and easily programmable teaching disabled students. devices piqued my interest, especially as I have had Paul has many strings to his bow: he is an expert in contact over my years at Hereward with users of assistive the field of industrial electronic engineering as well as technologies who are more akin to consumers than the having a thorough grounding in assistive technologies. usual older and generally passive recipients of assistive A strong advocate of 3D printing, Paul explained technologies. Having worked with students on a number of projects – where they have built, for example, simple robots – I have become aware that there is an appetite among this community for customisation and the development of highly personalised solutions. This appetite in part can be met using innovative technologies such as 3D printing.

AG: Could you give us an insight into how the process of 3D printing works? PD: 3D printing or additive manufacturing is a process where a three-dimensional object is built up by applying repeated layers of material in three dimensions. The process relies on technologies that at first appearance are very much like a traditional printer in that the ‘printer head’ 3D Printing is being used to make parts from metal and plastic and has a moves in two dimensions as in the case of big potential in assistive technology a standard printer. However, once the first layer of material how it would make a concrete difference to the lives has been deposited, the 3D printer has the capacity to of assistive technology users and shared his plans to move in a 3rd dimension to print on top of what it has participate in an exciting 3D printing project. already printed. The materials employed in additive manufacturing Allana Grant (AG): When did you first come across can range from simple plastics, high impact plastics or 3D printing? polypropylene to specialised metals as in the case of jet Paul Doyle (PD): I first became aware of computer- engine turbine manufacture.

24 Ability Issue 90 | Summer 2013 www.abilitymagazine.org.uk 3D printing survey

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Untitled-1 1 04/07/2013 11:19 3D printing

AG: Does Hereward College have a 3D printer in AG: I understand that you and a group of your house? students will be collaborating with Warwick PD: No we don’t have one at the college yet, but we will University to produce assistive technologies using have one in the next couple of months. 3D printing? PD: The project is scheduled to commence in AG: Could you give some examples of the types September 2013. It is anticipated students will of custom parts or products that have been design and create a range of very personal assistive successfully created using this technology? technologies, including components for their personal PD: 3D printing can be used to create prototype wheelchairs, as part of a project to engage young technologies ranging from highly specialised jet engine people in the areas of science technology engineering components to aesthetically pleasing prosthetic limb and maths (STEM). fairings. Recently a 3D printed open source prosthetic limb has AG: What was the inspiration for this project? been demonstrated on the internet. PD: The current focus for assistive technologies is on the ageing society and individuals with long-term conditions. AG: What are the advantages of 3D printing over However, there is a significant unmet need to satisfy more traditional methods of manufacturing? the requirements of younger users who are not just PD: The capacity to build 3D models and create whole passive consumers but who judge assistive technologies and complete artefacts in this manner reduces the need in the same way they would the latest gadget or iPhone. for complex material skills. In addition it is possible to manufacture a highly AG: What expertise do the two institutions bring to developed artefact without employing traditional the project? manufacturing methods, which means that the cost PD: Hereward College is an innovative FE College of making specialist tooling for such cases is reduced catering for students with complex needs. We have 60 significantly and the cost of the project overall is residential and over 260 day students with a range of reduced. physical, sensory and cognitive abilities. As early adopters of innovative assistive technologies, AG: Why do you believe that 3D printing could make embedded in the students is a residual expertise around a concrete difference to the lives of people using the design, aesthetics and ergonomics of assistive assistive technologies? technologies that is currently untapped. PD: I believe that by enabling access to 3D printing Warwick University’s Warwick Manufacturing Group technologies, people with disabilities will have a capacity has expertise in 3D design and manufacture. to create solutions that meet their immediate needs (not having to wait for weeks for parts to arrive), and also be AG: What are the project’s aims and objectives? manufactured in a manner that they find aesthetically PD: This method of working can and will enable pleasing. individuals to develop highly bespoke and cost effective Having worked with users of assistive technology solutions at a fraction of the cost of traditional assistive for 18 years I have found that many of the technologies technologies. are abandoned not because of what they fail to provide Furthermore, the capacity to extend the project’s in terms of functionality, but instead how they make scope in order to allow the development of low cost the user feel including how it looks to their friends and robotic solutions will help stimulate a bottom up approach peers. to developing an assistive robotics market. Effective use of assistive technology is very much Currently many of the assistive robotics available are based on an emotional transaction, whereby the low production run, multi-function and correspondingly individual sacrifices an emotional element in order to high cost solutions that sit far outside what most people benefit from the functional capacity of the technology. would consider an economically viable cost bracket. When the emotional sacrifice outweighs the functional benefit to the user they will often abandon the AG: How do you see the future of 3D printing technology. panning out? If the user is involved in the design and manufacture PD: 3D printing will change manufacturing processes of at least some of the elements of their assistive across the world. I believe there will be a 3D printing technology (as in the case of 3D printing) part of the shop on every high street where we can bring in broken emotional transaction will have already taken place or worn out components or indeed ideas for new before the user actually uses the technology. components or artefacts. n

26 Ability Issue 90 | Summer 2013 www.abilitymagazine.org.uk low vision The bigger picture

Allana Grant zooms in on the latest developments in magnification aids

ith an estimated two million people suffering The DaVinci 3-in-1 magnifier turns text into speech output from some form of sight loss in the UK, it is W hardly surprising that there is a plethora of and aren’t available on the NHS. Desktop magnifiers are, electronic and software magnification products on the in addition, bulky, which makes them less portable. market specifically geared toward improving the lives of DaVinci 3-in-1, costing £2,634, has an outstanding people with low vision. array of features. DaVinci, available from Enhanced Although low vision cannot be corrected by glasses, Vision, is a multipurpose magnifier with a 3-in-1 camera, contact lenses, through the use of medication, or by HD display, and text to speech. surgery, there are many options to help those with a loss The HD camera can be positioned for self-viewing, of eyesight make the most of their residual vision. desktop and distance magnification, making it ideal for They include low cost magnification apps for performing all manner of tasks. smartphones, desktop video magnifiers for use at home, The 24 inch HD screen allows for up to 77 times portable video magnifiers to use on the move and magnification and 28 alternative viewing modes ensure software that turns a PC into a magnifier. contrast and brightness settings can be adjusted to A video or CCTV magnifier is basically an electronic achieve the best viewing experience possible. DaVinci version of a glass magnifier that utilises a video camera also has an integrated text to speech function that reads connected to a screen to produce magnified images. text aloud. These magnifiers have several advantages over Portable video magnifiers are intended for use on the conventional magnifying glasses: most notably, move. They have an integrated screen which is handy the capacity to produce much higher degrees of for checking labels and price tags, food packaging and magnification. menus. Users also benefit from a whole host of special They are generally small enough to carry around in a features – a range of contrast modes or brightness bag or pocket. Users will also benefit from many of the settings – which further enhance their reading specialist features typical of electronic magnifiers. experience. Video magnifiers are categorised into three However, they offer limited magnification due to groups according to their functionality and intended use. the physical constraints of a smaller screen. These Desktop magnifiers, as the name would suggest, are magnifiers are, in the main, also expensive. designed for use on a work surface. Being standalone The Optelec Compact 5HD portable video magnifier, devices, they offer the greatest range of features available to low vision users from £695, packs in a lot of compared to other types of magnifier. great features. Most models have a fixed camera positioned above a It boasts a 5 inch full colour, widescreen display which reading table which is mounted on rollers. Printed images allows for magnification up to 18 times and an auto focus are viewed on an integral monitor. Desktop magnifiers HD camera that enables you to read text close up or from offer a higher degree of magnification in comparison to a distance of 1.2 metres. other, smaller electronic devices. The Optelec also has an in-built LED light, which is Contrast, magnification and colour settings can particularly handy in dimly lit surroundings or to eradicate all be adjusted to suit the user’s needs, making these glare from glossy photographs. magnifiers particularly suitable for sustained reading and This magnifier has definitely been designed with ease viewing. of use and comfort in mind: large, highly visible icons They also leave a user’s hands free for writing or help navigate menus and controls and the screen may be typing. However, such magnifiers remain very expensive tilted to suit its user’s posture.

www.abilitymagazine.org.uk Ability Issue 90 | Summer 2013 27 low3D printing vision

TV video magnifiers plug into a television set via a allows users to view text in high-definition that’s easy to SCART cable and tend to be the cheapest option. They read even at the highest levels of magnification. usually replicate a computer mouse in design, with a Smooth, bold and condense settings are adjusted so small camera at the base of the magnifier. that the thickness and spacing of text suit a user. Users can choose from models with a black and In addition, a user can choose from eight zoom white or colour camera, or high or low magnification. windows to magnify a specific part of the screen. Battling Magnification levels will however depend on the size of with minuscule text and images should be consigned to the TV. history. Costing just £300, the TV-Eye is an economic A user’s reading experience should be further alternative to other, larger, more expensive electronic improved using ZoomText’s colour features that include magnifiers. It is capable of magnification up to 12 times colour dyes (screen and text in two shades of a single and has integral adjustable lighting. colour), two-colour modes and replacement of problem A range of colour and contrast settings – including colours. colour, grey scale and black and white – make reading Navigating documents, menus, applications and the and writing more pleasurable. web is also made much easier with ZoomText’s locators Pamtrad should be commended for designing a and size and colour enhancements. device that is both simple to utilise and compact. Plug it Additionally, Version 10 includes an impressive in to a TV and get started. Controls are large and have camera function – use a webcam to magnify objects on been kept to a minimum. The TV-Eye is unobtrusive, the computer screen. folding away for convenient storage. The third alternative, and by far the most cost effective low vision aid, is a magnification app purchased from the App Store or Google play. Aside from being Pamtrad’s extremely cheap, these apps are ideal for those who feel £500 conspicuous using magnifiers in public. PC-Eye This solution is perfect for use on the move. Due to camera the slim, light design of phones and tablets these days; and portability certainly isn’t an issue. desktop Unfortunately, a user can only achieve a limited level software of magnification due to the size of the phone or tablet’s screen. Apps are also unsuitable for long distance The magnification or for users who cannot focus a camera. company recently launched its £500 PC-Eye portable Magnifying Glass with Light by Falcon in Motion is electronic magnifier. This versatile two-in-one system a free app that is taking US markets by storm. Simple connects to a PC as well as to a television; enabling a gestures and a user friendly interface mean that you can user to surf the net, read newspapers, fill out forms and turn an iPhone into an illuminated magnifier. watch their favourite DVD with relative ease. With up to 5 times magnification, it is particularly Screen magnification software provides a cheaper useful for reading tiny print on medicine bottles or menus. solution for many users with low vision. The software Other stand-out features include an in-built light which interfaces with a PC’s graphical output to produce automatically comes on in dim surroundings and a magnified screen content including applications and web capture image feature. material. As you will see from this guide; electronic High contrast modes, different viewing modes, text magnification aids, which will allow people with low vision smoothing and mouse customisation are just a few of the to live and work with a greater degree of independence, specialist features typical to screen magnifiers. are plentiful. Additionally, these magnifiers take up no physical However, consult the NHS for a low vision space. One disadvantage, however, is that they only assessment to find out your particular needs before usually magnify the contents of a computer screen, rather purchasing a magnifier. n than objects in the real world. For further information: ZoomText magnifier Version 10, from Sight and Sound n DaVinci – http://bit.ly/16GApyb in the UK, is available from £375. The program enlarges n TV-Eye – http://bit.ly/11PSdaa and enhances the quality of everything on a computer n PC-Eye – http://bit.ly/11UiwZj screen, making it easier to use. n ZoomText – http://bit.ly/11PSkCJ ZoomText offers magnification up to 36 times: n Magnifying Glass with Light – http://bit.ly/15R2yQK including fractional increments. Its xFont technology n Optelec Compact 5HD – http://bit.ly/18mEmMz

28 Ability Issue 90 | Summer 2013 www.abilitymagazine.org.uk Is Low Vision Affecting Your Independence?

For friendly, expert and impartial advice on the latest low vision aids - Speak to...

01775 711 977 www.visionaid.co.uk

FREE no obligation in-home demonstrations of over 400 products education mobility roadshow Talking in class Dyslexic pupils at Belvoir High School sight seem too advanced for them. Pupils with dyslexia, who may require access to use CapturaTalk software to overcome reading materials in a certain font size, colour or need literacy difficulties to listen to it read aloud, were quickly able to convert web pages, course books and word documents into their or the past year pupils at Belvoir High School in preferred format. Leicestershire who have difficulty reading and They were encouraged to take them into all lessons F writing have been involved in a trial of assistive and use the voice-activated software and text-to-speech. technology that allows them to take a photo of a piece of All teachers were also shown the tablets and asked to text and have it read aloud. encourage pupils to use them for literacy-based tasks. Using tablets running software called CapturaTalk The school found that CapturaTalk was really good for for Android, supplied by assistive technology company research as the talking browser enabled learners to hear iansyst, year eight students have any web page read aloud. been improving their literacy The text could then be levels. copied and used as the basis They use the software to take for extended writing. The pictures of text, which are digitised predictive text feature within using optical character recognition the Android operating system (OCR) technology, and then the also proved to be a hit with the words are read back to them. learners as it was a feature that Belvoir High School is a they were already familiar with specialist science school catering from their own mobile phones. for 623 students from 11-16 years Another four machines old. The school was awarded an were reserved for a group of ‘outstanding’ report from Ofsted in year seven pupils with greater 2010 for progress from year seven CapturaTalk synchronises colour highlighting learning difficulties. This was through to Year 11. of words or sentences as they are read aloud not successful as they found The school is keen to maintain the tablets too difficult to use, standards as well as cater for each individual child’s even with supervision. learning requirements. There were few problems on the trial, although pupils Studies suggest that in dyslexic people, the had to be stopped playing games because they were connections between different language areas of the using up battery charge too quickly. The school put a brain do not work as efficiently as they should. software lock on the devices to prevent further misuse. And there is evidence that many dyslexic people CapturaTalk is already getting wider use in the have strengths and abilities in tasks that involve creative, school: Helen Bett has loaned a device to a very dyslexic auditory and visually-based thinking. year 13 student. “He has a greater maturity than the “The offer of being in the trial was too good to refuse. younger pupils and also greater IT skills and has used it I wanted to see how new technology could support, responsibly,” she said. engage and inspire pupils with some degree of learning “He has used the device widely in writing up his A level difficulty, especially dyslexia,” Helen Bett, head of work and has been able to swap files between his tablet inclusion at the school, told Ability. and his computer because he has used a memory stick.” Six tablets were allocated to a group of year eight Some schools are using the translation and voice pupils. They were given some initial training but were feedback service in CapturaTalk to translate information keen to discover things themselves. about the school into lots of different languages for Helen Bett noticed the improvement in self-esteem, families who do not speak English. confidence and motivation of the group, particularly the One student at Belvoir commented, “I liked the way girls, in a very short period of time. She says CapturaTalk that CapturaTalk translated text into Spanish for me and enabled the children to work with texts that might at first then it read it back.” n

30 Ability Issue 90 | Summer 2013 www.abilitymagazine.org.uk education mobility roadshow

Wheelchairs that keep on rolling It may seem that there is little room for innovation in from ultra-light aluminium, helping to keep weight to a wheelchair design, but manufacturers are still squeezing minimum at approximately 8kg,” says Simon Tempest, extra performance out of their products. Ottobock’s mobility solutions manager. One area that is crucial in wheelchair design is how “What’s really important is the Ventus will roll further. far it will roll, which is dictated by a chair’s weight, the It may be 2kg heavier than the competition, but it will let quality of its wheel bearings and its geometry. you go further.” The configuration of the wheels is an important Ottobock drew on its experience with three earlier factor in overcoming rolling resistance. A larger distance rigid chairs to improve the Ventus. It is possible to make between rear wheels and castors decreases the pressure over 100 adjustments to the chair to gain optimum on the castors, making it roll easier. performance. At this year’s Mobility Roadshow in Telford, German Unlike folding models, rigid chairs provide a firmer firm Ottobock launched a new rigid frame wheelchair ride and can be either custom made or adjustable. Over called the Ventus, which the company claims can roll 100 adjustments are possible on the Ventus which also further than rival chairs. comes in 14 colours. n “The frame, footrests and side panels are built www.ottobock.co.uk Trabasack dresses in Harris Tweed Few products at the Mobility The flat side of the Curve Connect is velcro-receptive, Roadshow were as stylish as which means you can use the sticky-back hook tapes the latest Trabasack bag, which provided to attach almost any item to the tray without fear sports Harris Tweed trimmings. of the item falling off or getting lost. The Trabasack Max bag has a You cut the desired length of hook tape to size and lightweight desk surface built into stick it to the back of a child’s favourite toy, book or one side and a bean bag cushion communication aid. on the other. For attaching larger items, especially those that need The bean bag enables the to be held at a specific angle, Trabasack has come up Trabasack Max to sit securely on with Media Mount. lumpy surfaces such as its user’s Basically a soft roll that can wrap around remote knees, enabling them to work, controls, switches and iPads – Media Mount provides the play or even eat lunch. best angle for using touch screen technology. At the show there was a lot of interest in Trabasack’s The Media Mount features a velcro strip along one Curve Connect, a ‘lapdesk’ bag designed to hold sensory side to ensure it stays firmly attached to the Connect tray toys, communication aids and other equipment when surface. working with children with additional needs. Also included in a £44.95 offer bundle is the Traba- The Curve Connect bag is curved to fit around a sack Non-Slip Mat – a durable PVC cover for the Curve child’s waist, and has a bean bag insert, to provide Connect that helps to keep the lap desk clean and dry. stability while the lap tray is in use on a child’s knee. http://communicationaids.info/ n

Roadshow for use by disabled people. Sit up, it’s the Slouch Mat “This ergonomic mouse mat is a great computer aid The Slouch Mat is another take on the idea of using a for the disabled,” says the company. “It can be used bean bag to provide a stable base for working with IT. virtually anywhere On one side the mat has a bean bag base with raised – even on narrow grip dots that enable it to mould itself to uneven surfaces. surfaces such On the other it has a flat, oval mat for mice and other as the arm of a control devices. wheelchair.” n Originally designed as a mouse mat for armchair www.slouchmat. surfers, Slouch Mat was promoted at the Mobility co.uk

www.abilitymagazine.org.uk Ability Issue 90 | Summer 2013 31 rubric

LAPD – Lewisham Association of People with Disabilities

Did you know we run daash? (diabetes, awareness, action and self help) We provide help, support and Advice to disabled people with – Diabetes, sickle-cell, lupus and HIV.

The group meets monthly – details from 0303 999 3455 or www.lapdonline.org.uk resources

Read&Write Gold revamped for Windows 8

Texthelp has introduced a revamped include improved text-to-speech for Google Chrome and Firefox: version of its Read&Write gold voices with Nuance Vocalizer Read&Write Gold features can be literacy support software for desktop expressive male and female voices used directly from the toolbar within systems. and the addition of Voice Note, Chrome and Firefox. The company has given the so users can create and embed The literacy suite also supports software a fresh look based on the recorded voice notes within a Word Google Docs (in Chrome only) Windows 8 operating system and document or save as a .wav file. and sports enhancements to added improved voices and browser Some 150 subject-specific word Spell Checker, Speech Maker and support. banks are included with the software Scanning. n Changes in Read&Write Gold which also has better support www.texthelp.com Free software from Sensory App House The Sensory App House has several. Shapes can be developed, the gestures used. developed a series of six free iPhone shrinking and reshaping. Touch each n CineFx uses the camera of and iPad apps for people with of the round buttons around the edge the iPhone or iPad and changes sensory disabilities. and all sorts of sounds are heard and anything that is viewed to some great The gesture control apps are shapes appear constantly changing. fun views from floating bubbles to a designed to help younger children n Electra is like a constant square face or bulging one. and people with a learning disability shimmering lightning bolt that you n FotoFrez has many more views to develop a greater sense of ‘cause can touch to make a zapping noise via the camera – turn it on yourself and effect’ through sound and visual and then use gestures to change its and you will look like some awful stimuli. shape and make more sounds. monster ever changing and causing Sensory App House describes n Magma literally starts with a many a fright or giggle. the apps as follows: magma blob in bright yellow to n Just Touch is another app without n iMeba starts with an animated orange but once touched moves, sound that can be made to look like a blob-like spot that can be multiplied splits and causes two different kaleidoscope. n by each touch with one finger or sounds to emanate as a result of www.sensoryapphouse.com

‘Eye-free’ smartphone launched in US built-in apps and content. n Multiple built-in services for the The first mobile smartphone users traditionally rely blind and visually impaired within for blind and visually on an array of specialty a single device – including voice impaired people in the US devices, each with a unique calls, email, messaging contact has been launched by Odin user interface, which makes list services, calendar, GPS, Mobile and Project RAY. them difficult to use and WEB remote assistance, voice Odin Mobile, a new prohibitively expensive, say recorder, panic and emergency mobile phone service the developers. services, colour identification, for blind people, will be Features of what Odin pictures transcription and banknote selling the $300 Ray Mobile describes as recognition. Huawei Vision smartphone America’s first full mobile n Communication and lifestyle supported by an accessible service include: services such as book and magazine website and a call centre. n Odin Mobile’s telephone subscriptions built into the off-the- Project Ray is a two year Israeli service including voice, text and shelf device. government-backed research data, with customized ‘eye-free’ n Operating system and user programme to develop software for setup and services. interface specially developed for flat touch-screen phones that could n Smartphone developed by eye-free operation including single be easily operated by a blind person. Project RAY especially for the blind, gesture access to frequently used Most blind and visually impaired including ‘eye-free’ operation and numbers and functions. n

www.abilitymagazine.org.uk Ability Issue 90 | Summer 2013 33 resources

Automatic fall detector for elderly people

Telehealthcare company Tunstall has with a base station in the home of people aged above 75 in the UK and launched a fall detection alarm that the person using the system. Once a major cause of disability. automatically calls for help when its a fall is detected, the base station Some 14,000 people die wearer falls. automatically dials the response annually in the UK as a result of an The iVi pendant alarm, which is centre. osteoporotic hip fracture, according manufactured in the UK, could save An operator uses a loudspeaker to NICE. hundreds of lives a year and the NHS in the home unit to talk to the More than 400,000 older people millions of pounds, person and arrange help, or call in England attend A&E departments claims the company. the emergency services if they are following a fall. Age UK estimates The automatic unable to raise a response. one-in-three people over the age of pendant contains a To date, manual alarms have 65 suffer a fall each year, costing detection algorithm depended on the person to press the the NHS an estimated £4.6m a day, that reacts to changes button, but research from the National or £1.67 billion a year. in barometric Institute for Clinical and Healthcare The waterproof, lightweight pressure, acceleration Excellence (NICE) reveals that many pendant is also the only device and orientation and elderly and frail people with alarms automatically to notify a telecare works out whether a thought they had pressed the button response centre if it has not fall has taken place. when they had not. registered movement for a period of It is likely to Others could not reach their time, suggesting that the person has replace tens of alarm or do not see any advantage not worn it. thousands of the 1.7m in having a pendant. Some are The iVi pendant can be ordered red button telecare confused about what to press, or through a Local Authority, or direct pendants currently in when. from Tunstall, as part of a monitoring use in the UK. Falls are the leading cause of service. n The alarm wirelessly connects mortality resulting from injury in www.tunstall.co.uk Portset solutions set wheelchair users free Portset has developed two interfaces Students who use wheelchairs the Portset Bluetooth 4 Switch device that replace cables with wireless have to connect their devices to fixed takes up to four standard SEN switch Bluetooth links to connect devices equipment in classrooms, offices inputs but without the need for a USB used by students with special or workshops. They usually need a connection. education needs. helper to carry out this task and to Treloars, National Star and The interfaces connect switches, disconnect them, so that they can Chailey Heritage colleges have keyboards, joysticks and mice to move around. all successfully trialled the new computers or other equipment via a The Portset USB to Bluetooth system. n radio transceiver connected to the converter enables existing USB www.portset.co.uk/category/sen- fixed systems. devices to become wireless, while products.

social situations. Claro’s apps help communication ClaroCom Pro adds editing, ClaroCom and ClaroCom Pro are comprehension of spoken or written privacy and communication new apps from Claro Software language. features to the high-quality speech, designed for AAC (Augmentative ClaroCom has a user user-editable phrases, and word and Alternative Communication), interface appropriate for users prediction found in ClaroCom. available on iOS for iPad or iPhone. who face challenges with social ClaroCom is available via the An AAC app helps to replace communication and helps AAC Apple App Store and is free for a speech or assist writing for those users to communicate with people limited time only. n with impairments in the production or outside their family in a variety of www.claroapps.com

34 Ability Issue 90 | Summer 2013 www.abilitymagazine.org.uk resources

Tobii Technology’s eye gaze aid is a turn on

People who need help to turn on a device,” explains Hector detailed computer applications on- communicate can now access Minto, Tobii’s UK sales manager. screen. augmentative and alternative (AAC) “With the new Tobii system a user Extended battery life means the systems without assistance, says can go to sleep and wake up in the I-Series can work for nine hours, Swedish eye tracking firm Tobii night and switch it on without any while Bluetooth technology similar Technology. help.” to that found in executive cars has AAC devices are used to generate Designed for people with been used to connect devices to the speech and text – sometimes with conditions such as Lou Gehrig’s machines. the aid of symbols – as well as to disease (ALS), autism, Rett Both versions have an integral control household appliances such syndrome, cerebral palsy and wedge-shaped stand, so they can be as TVs and telephones. muscular dystrophy, the I-Series used standing up for eye applications Tobii’s latest I-Series of eye has a number of features that, and lying flat for touchscreen use. controlled communication devices according to Minto, make it a “quality Infrared eye tracking cameras can be switched on and off by staring device”. are incorporated into the body of the at them. The feature is called Wake- Last year Tobii demonstrated machines at the front and back and On-Gaze and Sleep-On-Gaze. improved eye gaze technology that their screens are protected by tough Putting the devices to sleep allows users to zoom in on objects ‘Gorilla glass’. during periods of inactivity on screen to make eye selection Social media applications such significantly prolongs battery life more precise. as Skype and Facebook also run on and enhances accessibility, says the The I-Series devices come in the class one medical devices, which company. two versions – a portable one with a are available to some users on the “People want to live 24/7. They 12” touch screen and a 15” version NHS. n don’t want to have to call a carer to for users who want to display more www.tobii.com/i-series Returning veterans are to be offered Buddy app Military personnel returning from dramatically improve attendance currently being used by 92 ex-service Afghanistan with mental health at therapy sessions, enables personnel in the North West, with issues, such as post-traumatic stress patients to set goals for themselves another 500 users returning from disorder, will be using an app called and receive reminders from their Afghanistan expected to take up the Buddy as part of their therapy. therapist. app in the next six months. Buddy, developed by the Military Buddy also allows patients to “Buddy allows the user and Veterans’ Improving Access to keep a diary of their mood; an therapist to collaborate to set goals Psychological Therapies service, important part of therapy. Up until and agree timely SMS reminders enables therapists to keep in contact now the diaries have been written to prompt the user,” says Military with their clients via SMS messaging. on paper. Veterans. n The app, which is said to The award-winning service is www.buddyapp.org

International association champions accessibility

Leading figures in accessible SSB BART Group and The Paciello The mission of the IAAP is to IT have set up a group called Group. “define, promote and improve the the International Association of It is chaired by Microsoft’s accessibility profession globally Accessibility Professionals (IAAP). accessibility guru Rob Sinclair, through networking, education and The lobbying organisation has with Nigel Lewis of the UK charity certification in order to enable the seven founding members: AbilityNet, AbilityNet as vice chair. Rob Barrett creation of accessible products, Adobe Systems, Ai Squared, of Lloyds Banking Group is also a content and services”. n Avepoint, AT&T, IBM, Interactive member of the organisation’s interim Email info@accessprofessional. Accessibility, Microsoft, Nomensa, board. org for further information.

www.abilitymagazine.org.uk Ability Issue 90 | Summer 2013 35 01 Front cover A78:Layout 1 23/6/10 20:40 Page 1

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Contacts Ability magazine Diary of events Editorial, advertising and other enquiries: [email protected] QUEEN ALEXANDRA COLLEGE SIGHT Each July thousands of visitors travel to www.abilitymagazine.org.uk VILLAGE, BIRMINGHAM Birmingham to find out at first hand the AbilityNet 16-17 July latest technology, products and support Charity advising disabled people, New Bingley Hall, Birmingham services available to people who are blind employers and others on assistive IT. 0800 269545 Sight Village is the leading exhibition for or partially-sighted. Now those further www.abilitynet.org.uk people who are blind or partially-sighted north get their own exhibition at which to and for professionals supporting and catch-up with the latest in technology for GOV.UK advising visually impaired people and for people who are vision impaired. Government site with help on all businesses and other organisations Fees: None employment, training, education, financial wishing better to meet the needs of their For further information: support, transport, rights and other issues for disabled people. vision impaired customers. Ability will be Tel: 0121 428 5050, email: [email protected] or www.gov.uk filing a special report from this year’s event, visit www.qac.ac.uk/sightvillage which includes seminars from Sight and Business Disability Forum Sound Technology, New College Worcester DISABILITY NORTH EXHIBITION (DNEX) Claims to be the world’s leading and Freedom Scientific. 25-26 September employers’ organization focused on disability as it affects business, including Fees: None Newcastle Racecourse recruitment and retention of disabled staff For further information: Disability North promotes social inclusion, and serving disabled customers. Tel: 0121 428 5050, email: [email protected] or independence and choice for disabled and www.businessdisabilityforum.org.uk visit www.qac.ac.uk/sightvillage older people in the North East of England Emptech and Cumbria. DNEX showcases suppliers A database that provides information INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON of digital technology, aids and adaptations resources on assistive technologies, USING NEW TECHNOLOGIES FOR for independent living and accessible which are designed to help those with INCLUSIVE LEARNING leisure facilities. specific disabilities work and study. 28 August Fees: Free Emptech includes product descriptions, Caledonian University, Glasgow For further information: links to manufacturers, suppliers’ This is the first international conference Tel: 0191 284 0480, text: 18001 0191 284 addresses, as well as other related organised by the Enable Network for 0480, email: [email protected] resources. ICT Learning for Disabled People.The or visit www.disabilitynorth.org.uk www.emptech.info conference will be organised into the IT Can Help following four tracks: REHACARE INTERNATIONAL Volunteers offering disabled people free • Tablets and mobile technologies 25-28 September local help with computers. • Game based learning Dusseldorf Exhibition Centre, Germany 0800 269545 www.itcanhelp.org.uk • International and European projects Rehacare promises everything for making • Free and open source learning life easier for persons with special needs Leonard Cheshire Fees: Not available at press time. and requiring care. Over 650 exhibitors Disability care charity providing support For further information: from 32 countries will provide an overview services for people with physical disabilities and learning difficulties. visit http://is.gd/E7zbJx of assistive technologies for independent 020 3242 0200 living in five fully booked exhibition halls. www.lcdisability.org COMMUNICATION MATTERS NATIONAL A congress, numerous themed areas CONFERENCE and information events enable visitors to Shaw Trust 15-17 September gather information on the latest trends in Charity that champions the abilities of University of Leeds rehabilitation, care and growing old. disabled people, enabling over 60,000 people per year experiencing all types of The Communication Matters National Fees: Online, €7; onsite, €12; disabled disability to make the most of their skills, augmentative and alternative visitors, €7 (both online and onsite). abilities and employment opportunities. communication (AAC) conference is For further information: 01225 716300 the UK’s leading annual AAC event, Tel: +49 (0)211/4560 – 984 or visit www. www.shaw-trust.org.uk with a diverse programme of plenaries, rehacare.com Suitability presentations and exhibition held over two- Services to help employers fill vacancies and-a-half days. The conference provides E-ACCESS 13 and disabled people to get jobs. Part of a unique forum to meet and exchange 17 October charity Leonard Cheshire Disability. information with representatives from all 1 Victoria Street, Westminster 0845 671 7173 disciplines associated with AAC. This conference has been rescheduled www.lcdsuitability.org.uk Fees: Two nights residential full rate £440, from June this year. Speakers include Remploy £385 if booked before July 31. One night Ed Vaizey MP, Minister for Culture, Employment services for disabled people residential £385 or £330, Non-residential Communications and Creative Industries; and employers, plus other business £325 or £270. Subsidised places for people Simon Stevens, the leading Disability services, including IT equipment who use AAC and their carers. Consultant and Campaigner and recycling. For further information: E.A. Draffan, Research Fellow, Web www.remploy.co.uk Tel: 0845 456 8211, email: admin@ and Internet Science, University of U Can Do IT communicationmatters.org.uk or visit www. Southampton, on whether open source A charity that provides computer training communicationmatters.org.uk software is up to the job yet of helping with for blind, deaf and disabled people in their accessibility. own homes. SIGHT VILLAGE MANCHESTER Fees: To be confirmed 020 7730 7766 24 September For further information: www.ucandoit.org.uk Renaissance Marriott Hotel visit http://bit.ly/13onNxs

www.abilitymagazine.org.uk Ability Issue 90 | Summer 2013 37 carey on Cut the crap

Kevin Carey decides web accessibility comes from focusing on the customer

ecently, all the usual department so we should abandon The moral I draw from that suspects gathered at the the theory of universality. As passage of play is that we need to R Google Campus in London somebody at the Google grasp the economics of our case to celebrate the 20th anniversary of gathering pointed out, we have to and be less self-obsessed with our the World Wide Web. My train from educate every generation of moral right. Paris was late so I came in part way designers so our work is never done. The third point, which was not through a lively discussion. It is time to put an end to this raised in the discussion but which Now you might think that ‘lively’ palpably expensive and futile soap is central to understanding market is a complimentary term but in this opera. share, is that the technological case I was appalled. The subject paradigm at the centre of the under discussion was whether discussion was the use of screen usability is a necessary attribute of readers to access the web via a PC. web design. Only a tiny minority of blind My riposte at the top level was people use that package either that this is not a question that would because they are well off or are in be asked in the air traffic control or receipt of equipment from Access to food business. What enterprise is it Work, whereas the big issues are all that wants to communicate or sell around ‘smart’ phone access. that isn’t bothered whether its This is particularly so for those customers can understand what they with learning and cognitive are being told and buys what they impairments who don’t require a are being sold? great deal of investment in special In a private discussion afterwards features but do require complete Kevin Carey is Chair of RNIB Sturgeon’s Law – ‘Nothing is always client side control to customise absolutely so’ – was put to me. (www.rnib.org.uk), and Director of content. Theodore Sturgeon, a science humanITy (www.humanity.org.uk) It’s difficult to draw a neat and fiction writer (1918-1985), opined tidy conclusion: fighting a legal case in 1951 that 90% of science fiction The plain facts of our situation are to the finish is difficult without the books were crud and this was soon that the percentage of websites that capacity for class action; charities transposed into a general law about meet appropriate task completion prefer moralists to economists; everything. criteria is falling. and, contrary to what they say of Thus, as 90% of everything is We know from the recent revela- themselves, paradigm shifts aren’t crap, then why complain if this tions about corporate taxation that the natural territory of techies. applies to the web? major companies won’t do anything But there is one unifying point Everyone reading this is absolute unless the consequences of breaking from which we should all start, which proof that the proposition is bogus. the law are more costly than will overthrow our prejudices, hurl us None of us would be here if 90% of complying. It’s a straightforward out of our comfort zone, disrupt our air traffic control, let alone processed calculation about shareholder value. moribund strategies, re-calibrate our food, were crap. Which brings me to the next point: activities and re-direct our resources, I was told that we must expect during the discussion there was quite and that is customer focus. rubbish on the web as a natural a lot of defensive rhetoric about the The rhetoric is easy but shifting a consequence of freedom of speech. cost of making websites ‘accessible’, bureaucracy from the introvert to the In practice we would not want to but nobody seemed to know what the extrovert is tough. Unless we do that apply the same design criteria to an cost was and how that might relate to all the rest, as Sturgeon might have individual as to a government market share. said, is crap. n

38 Ability Issue 90 | Summer 2013 www.abilitymagazine.org.uk sv ability ad june 13:Layout 1 24/6/13 13:48 Page 1

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