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Related Concept Videos

Learning Disabilities01:25

Learning Disabilities

Learning disabilities are cognitive disorders caused by neurological impairments that affect cognitive functions like language and reading, without indicating overall intellectual or developmental challenges. These disabilities differ from global intellectual or developmental disabilities as they are limited to distinct cognitive functions. Common learning disabilities include dysgraphia, dyslexia, and dyscalculia, each of which impacts unique aspects of learning.
Dyslexia
Dyslexia is a...
Blind Procedures02:07

Blind Procedures

Ideally, the people who observe and record the children’s behavior are unaware of who was assigned to the experimental or control group, in order to control for experimenter bias. Experimenter bias refers to the possibility that a researcher’s expectations might skew the results of the study. Remember, conducting an experiment requires a lot of planning, and the people involved in the research project have a vested interest in supporting their hypotheses. If the observers knew which child was...
Visual Agnosia01:12

Visual Agnosia

Visual agnosia is a condition characterized by the inability to recognize visually presented objects despite having normal vision. For instance, a person with visual agnosia can describe the shape and color of an object but cannot identify or name it. This impairment does not affect their visual field, acuity, color vision, brightness discrimination, language, or memory. An example of this condition in a social setting is someone at a dinner party asking for "that silver thing with a round end"...
Intellectual Disability01:29

Intellectual Disability

Intellectual disability (ID) is a neurodevelopmental condition characterized by deficits in intellectual and adaptive functioning that manifest during the developmental period. This condition encompasses challenges in reasoning, memory, problem-solving, and learning, accompanied by impairments in everyday life skills, such as communication, self-care, and social interactions. Intellectual disability affects approximately 1% of the population in the United States, impacting an estimated 5...
Design Example01:23

Design Example

The innovation of touch-tone telephony revolutionized the telecommunications industry by replacing the traditional rotary dial with a dual-tone multi-frequency (DTMF) signaling system. This system uses a matrix-style keypad with buttons arranged in four rows and three columns, creating 12 distinct signals each assigned to a pair of frequencies. Each button press results in a simultaneous generation of two sinusoidal tones – one from a low-frequency group (697 to 941 Hz) and one from a...
Design Example: Resistive Touchscreen01:14

Design Example: Resistive Touchscreen

A device engineer plays a crucial role in designing user interfaces for mobile devices. One such interface is the resistive touchscreen, which fundamentally consists of two metallic layers: a flexible upper layer and a rigid lower layer, separated by a narrow gap. The high resistance between these two layers is a key characteristic of this design.
When a user touches the screen, the two layers make contact at a specific point known as the touchpoint. This contact reduces the resistance between...

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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jun 24, 2026

Development of an Audio-based Virtual Gaming Environment to Assist with Navigation Skills in the Blind
09:01

Development of an Audio-based Virtual Gaming Environment to Assist with Navigation Skills in the Blind

Published on: March 27, 2013

Toward improving internet navigation for visually impaired screen Reader users: Co-designing an open-source assistive

Juan Nino1,2, Jocelyne Kiss1,2, Frédérique Poncet3,4,5

  • 1School of Design, Laval University, Quebec, Canada.

Assistive Technology : the Official Journal of RESNA
|June 6, 2025
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Touch Matrix Assistive Technology Navigator (TOMAT) offers visually impaired users an interactive, audio-tactile web experience. This open-source system enhances screen reader navigation and understanding of complex webpage structures.

Keywords:
assistive technologyco-designinternet navigationopen sourcevisually impaired

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A Standardized Obstacle Course for Assessment of Visual Function in Ultra Low Vision and Artificial Vision

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Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Jun 24, 2026

Development of an Audio-based Virtual Gaming Environment to Assist with Navigation Skills in the Blind
09:01

Development of an Audio-based Virtual Gaming Environment to Assist with Navigation Skills in the Blind

Published on: March 27, 2013

Practical Methodology of Cognitive Tasks Within a Navigational Assessment
05:19

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A Standardized Obstacle Course for Assessment of Visual Function in Ultra Low Vision and Artificial Vision
09:29

A Standardized Obstacle Course for Assessment of Visual Function in Ultra Low Vision and Artificial Vision

Published on: February 11, 2014

Area of Science:

  • Assistive Technology
  • Human-Computer Interaction
  • Web Accessibility

Background:

  • Visually impaired individuals (285 million globally) face challenges accessing complex web information using screen readers.
  • Current screen readers often fail to convey the spatial and relational context of webpage elements, requiring significant user memory.
  • Limited contextual understanding hinders efficient and independent internet navigation for visually impaired users.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To develop and evaluate an open-source system, TOMAT, that provides an interactive audio-tactile representation of webpage structure.
  • To enhance the ability of visually impaired users to understand and interact with web content beyond traditional screen reader capabilities.
  • To improve digital participation and independence for visually impaired internet users.

Main Methods:

  • Participatory design approach involving visually impaired users, healthcare professionals, engineers, and community organizations.
  • Co-design sessions, prototype demonstrations, and focus groups to iteratively develop and refine the system.
  • Development of an open-source system that extracts and presents non-linear web information at multiple levels of detail.

Main Results:

  • TOMAT provides an interactive, audio-tactile representation complementing screen reader software.
  • Users reported enhanced understanding of webpage structure and improved navigation.
  • The system allows dynamic adjustment of information granularity for efficient interaction.

Conclusions:

  • TOMAT demonstrates potential to significantly improve the internet navigation experience for visually impaired users.
  • The system fosters greater independence and digital inclusion.
  • Open-source release encourages further development and collaboration in web accessibility.