Apple Inc.

Reginald Dean Hudson

Christopher Brian Fleizach

Eric Taylor Seymour

Gregory F Hughes

Joel M Lopes Da Silva

Aaron M Everitt

Michael M Pedersen, Ii

Samuel C White

Patti Pei-Chin Hoa

Conor Hughes

Michael A Troute

Richard W Fabrick, Ii

The present disclosure generally relates to exploring a geographic region that is displayed in computer user interfaces. In some embodiments, a method includes at an electronic device with a display and one or more input devices, displaying a map of a geographic region on the display and detecting a first user input to select a starting location on the map. After detecting the first user input, the method includes detecting a second user input to select a first direction of navigation from the starting location. In response to detecting the second user input, the method includes determining a path on the map that traverses in the first direction of navigation and connects the starting location to an ending location, and providing audio that includes traversal information about traversing along the path in the geographic region in the first direction of navigation and from the starting location to the ending location.

Systems and methods for exploring a geographic region

In an example method, an electronic device receives data regarding a graphical user interface to be presented on a display of the electronic device. The electronic device identifies one or more key regions of the graphical user interface based on the received data and one or more rules. The one or more rules pertain to at least one of a geometric shape, a geometric size, a location, or a hierarchical property. The graphical user interface is presented on the display of the electronic device, and the at least one of the key regions of the graphical user interface is indicated using the electronic device.

Locating and presenting key regions of a graphical user interface

An electronic device can provide an interactive map with non-visual output, thereby making the map accessible to visually impaired users. The map can be based on a starting location defined based on a current location of the electronic device or on a location entered by the user. Nearby paths, nearby points of interest, or directions from the starting location to an ending location can be identified via audio output. Users can touch a screen of the electronic device in order to virtually explore a neighborhood. A user can be alerted when he is moving along or straying from a path, approaching an intersection or point of interest, or changing terrains. Thus, the user can familiarize himself with city-level spatial relationships without needing to physically explore unfamiliar surroundings.

Touch-based exploration of maps for screen reader users

Some examples of assisted media representation can be implemented as a system and method that uses screen reader like functionality to speak information presented on a graphical user interface displayed by a media presentation system, including information that is not navigable by a remote control device. Information can be spoken in an order that follows a relative importance of the information based on a characteristic of the information or the location of the information within the graphical user interface. A history of previously spoken information is monitored to avoid speaking information more than once for a given graphical user interface. A different pitch can be used to speak information based on a characteristic of the information. Information that is not navigable by the remote control device can be spoken after time delay. Voice prompts can be provided for a remote-driven virtual keyboard displayed by the media presentation system. The voice prompts can be spoken with different voice pitches.

Assisted media presentation

Techniques for improved text-to-speech processing are disclosed. The improved text-to-speech processing can convert text from an electronic document into an audio output that includes speech associated with the text as well as audio contextual cues. One aspect provides audio contextual cues to the listener when outputting speech (spoken text) pertaining to a document. The audio contextual cues can be based on an analysis of a document prior to a text-to-speech conversion. Another aspect can produce an audio summary for a file. The audio summary for a document can thereafter be presented to a user so that the user can hear a summary of the document without having to process the document to produce its spoken text via text-to-speech conversion.

Intelligent text-to-speech conversion

A method is performed by an accessible electronic device with a display and a touch-sensitive surface. The method includes: displaying a plurality of user interface elements on the display, wherein a current focus is on a first user interface element; detecting a first finger gesture on the touch-sensitive surface, wherein the first finger gesture is independent of contacting a location on the touch-sensitive surface that corresponds to a second user interface element; and, in response to detecting the first finger gesture: changing the current focus from the first user interface element in the plurality of user interface elements to the second user interface element in the plurality of user interface elements; and outputting accessibility information associated with the second user interface element.

Devices, methods, and graphical user interfaces for accessibility using a touch-sensitive surface

An accessible electronic device with a display and a touch-sensitive surface: displays a first plurality of user-selectable objects; detects a finger contact on the touch-sensitive surface; detects movement of the finger contact across the touch sensitive surface to an activation region that corresponds to a first user-selectable object; while detecting the finger contact at the activation region, initiates output of audible accessibility information associated with the first user-selectable object; detects termination of the finger contact while the finger contact is at the activation region that corresponds to the first user-selectable object; and, in response: performs a predefined operation associated with the first user-selectable object if the device has output at least a predefined portion of the audible accessibility information associated with the first user-selectable object when the termination of the finger contact is detected; and forgoes performing the predefined operation otherwise.

Devices, methods, and graphical user interfaces for accessibility via a touch-sensitive surface

Methods and apparatuses to define an insertion indicator on a Braille device are described. Information about an insertion indicator at a location on a display device is received. An output associated with the insertion indicator is provided to a Braille device. The output to the Braille device reproduces the location of the insertion indicator on the display device. The output associated with the insertion indicator may be provided to at least two cells of the Braille device. The output to the Braille device may be provided to raise a first dot of a first Braille cell on the Braille device, wherein the first Braille cell corresponds to a second location that precedes the first location on the display device. A Braille caption panel may be displayed on a display device, the Braille caption panel includes a simulation of the output associated with the insertion indicator on the Braille device.

Defining an insertion indicator

Methods and apparatuses to provide improved Braille support are described herein. A connection to a Braille device is received, and a Braille caption panel that includes a Braille code is displayed to simulate an output to the Braille device. The Braille caption panel can include a text translated to the Braille code. The Braille caption panel can include a control element. An accessibility service can be automatically launched to provide the output to the Braille device.

Growing community of inventors

San Francisco, CA, United States of America

Reginald Dean Hudson