Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation

Technologies Humanware Canada Inc.

United States Library of Congress

Other

David Paul Kelso

Gregg Charles Vanderheiden

J Bern Jordan

Joseph A Juratovac

Dominic R Labbé

Robert Edward Fistick

Michael Gilbert Katzmann

Jean Marie Moss

Frank Kurt Cylke

Gerard M Chevalier

Jeffrey R Held

Gilles Pepin

Alain Paré

Christopher M Law

Jeffrey Michael Witt

Michael Montfort Moodie

Alice Kathryn Baker

Donald Lee Pieper

Thomas D Haubert

Jeffrey Richard Held

Michael Scott Ulrich

Jon Gunderson

Gilles Pépin

An interface system that allows for tactile manipulation of a touch screen for people with disabilities and which provides appropriate tactile marking for the action they wish to carry out and that may afford a sensation that a button is being pressed to a user, is provided. The system includes a touch screen and a tactile button assembly that extends over at least a portion of the touch screen. The tactile button assembly includes tactile buttons with tactile indicia that can be felt by a user. The tactile buttons are arranged with respect to the touch screen so that when a tactile button is pressed by a user, a contact end of the tactile button contacts a button on the touch screen to perform a predetermined task associated with pressing such button on the touch screen.

Tactile interface system for manipulation of a touch screen

Tactile interface

A method is defined for providing an individual increased accessibility to a touch screen displaying first and second elements. The individual initially engages the touch screen with a contact point at a first location. The contact point is dragged across the touch screen into engagement with the first element and the first element is highlighted in response thereto. Thereafter, the individual may drag the contact point across the touch screen from the first element into engagement with the second element whereby the second element is highlighted on the touch screen and the highlight is removed from the first element. Audible announcements may accompany the contacting of the first or second elements with the contact point.

Method for providing an individual increased accessibility to a touch screen

An interface system and method are provided for facilitating cross-disability access to an electronic device. A first screen of a plurality of screens is displayed on the electronic device. Each screen includes at least one of a non-input element and an input element. The interface system includes a keyboard having a plurality of alpha-numeric keys and a plurality of keys or selectors that allow a user to navigate through the non-input elements and input elements of the plurality of screens.

Keyboard system and method for providing improved access to an electronic device

Method for increased accessibility to a human machine interface

A cartridge for use by print-disabled users to play digital audio content and a player having a receptacle for receiving the cartridge are provided. The cartridge includes a random-access digital storage device storing the digital audio content and having a connector providing access to the digital audio content; and a casing permanently housing the digital storage device and allowing access to the connector of the digital storage device. The casing has a form facilitating handling of the cartridge by the print-disabled users which includes bevelled edges, and has dimensions comparable to dimensions of a standard compact audio cassette. Preferably, the cartridge has a hole extending through the casing at its back end and a sloped surface on the bottom side of the casing at the back end. The receptacle has a form and shape facilitating insertion of the cartridge therein. It has a lower surface defining an elevated ramp along which the cartridge slides as it is inserted into the player.

Digital audio book cartridge and player with manipulation-facilitating features

Keyboard

Player

Cartridge

A reduced button set control panel provides control of electronic devices in parallel with standard controls of the device. This permits improved access to the functions of the electronic devices for users who may be disabled. Functions invocable by conventional controls are mapped to one or more lists which may be navigated through by means of up and down arrows or enabled by means of an access control button of the reduced button set control panel. Thus as few as three buttons may allow a wide variety of control of different pieces of equipment. The access button may be further invoked to activate a second modality to the conventional controls in which their functions are not invoked when these controls are pressed but instead descriptions of the operations of the controls is provided. These descriptions may be layered so that as successive invocations occur, additional information is provided to the user but not to users who do not require it.

Interface for electronic devices providing improved access for people with disabilities

Control panel for individual with disabilities

A long range optical pointing apparatus (10) is disclosed which can locate a spot (24) on a video screen (16) from a position several feet away from the screen. An optical pointer unit (11) focuses a portion of the raster lines traced over the video screen during one frame onto a photodetector (28), and provides an output pulse when a raster line is focused upon and detected by the photodetector. The detected raster line pulses are provided to a processing unit (13) which also receives the vertical and horizontal deflection signals from the video terminal (15). The processing circuitry (13) averages the positions of the group of raster line portions detected by the optical pointer unit to provide an averaged vertical and horizontal position for the area of the screen at which the pointer (11) is directed. The vertical and horizontal information provided by the processing circuitry can be used by a computer (19) to provide a cursor at the spot (24) on the video screen (16) to inform the user of the position on the screen at which he is pointing. The optical pointer unit (11) can be worn on the head of a user seated before the video terminal (15) so that communication with the computer (19) through the video screen can be accomplished with head pointing movements.

Long range optical pointing for video screens

Growing community of inventors

Madison, WI, United States of America

David Paul Kelso