Touch Screen Technologies for the Blind

Touch screens have greatly changed the way we use mobile phones and other devices. However, there is one inherent disadvantage over keyboards and keypads–tactile feedback. And so, visually-impaired people usually have difficulty using touch interfaces.

Various companies have sought ways to work around this limitation. Some use tactile overlays that help feel for the on-screen keyboard. Some technologies use voice prompts that identify the item that one’s finger is hovering on. New technologies being built by big laboratories will involve actual feedback from the screen in the form of vibrations or movement, which can help both visually-impaired and those who can see normally.

Most of these applications currently cost several hundred dollars, though, sometimes reaching a big percent of how much you expect to spend on the smartphone itself. Still, some accessibility features are as simple as enhancing contrast or voice-overs, which are normally included as standard smartphone features

Meanwhile, some applications don’t just focus on the interface, but with how smartphones can help visually-impaired individuals navigate and do other things. For example, some applications can help describe landmarks when you shake your phone. Some applications can help describe items that the smartphone’s camera “sees.”

With the fast pace at which touch interfaces are developed, it’s only fair that we also consider accessibility when designing user interfaces. These developments go both ways. Whatever is developed for those with disabilities will also come in useful to the rest of us, one way or another. Tactile touchscreens can help improve screen feedback. Landmark identification can help with navigation, for instance.

Related Post