Assistive Technology

September 2014 – IDEAL Group Apps4Android, the world’s largest developer of Android accessibility apps, released an update for the “IDEAL Currency Identifier” app this month. Created to enable non-visual identification of currency note amounts, the app’s new features allow users to identify currency more quickly and recognize the redesigned $100 note. Developed with support from the Wireless RERC’s App Factory and NIDRR, the app is free and available for download at the Google Play Store.

September 2014 – The American Foundation for the Blind (AFB) is currently accepting nominations for the 2015 Migel Medal, an honor for professional and humanitarian achievements associated with the provision of services to people with vision loss. Named in honor of the first chairperson of the AFB, M.C. Migel, the Migel Medal honors professionals and volunteers who have made strides to improve the lives of visually impaired and blind people. Migel Medal Award nominees will compete in the Professional Award and the Lay/Volunteer Award categories.

August 2014 – IDEAL Group Apps4Android, the world’s largest developer of Android accessibility apps, announced the release of the “Document Knowledge Miner” app. The app assists individuals with physical, developmental, cognitive, and other disabilities to gain access to information in documents.  The innovation in this app is that it can access document information even if it isn’t presented in an accessible format. Developed with support from the Wireless RERC’s App Factory and NIDRR, the app can be downloaded from the Google Play Store.

August 2014 - Media Access Australia, Australia’s only non-profit organization devoted to media accessibility for individuals with disabilities, released a report discussing the uses, benefits, and accessibility challenges of cloud computing for individuals with disabilities.

August 2014 – The Wireless RERC and Georgia Tech’s Center for Advanced Communications Policy (CACP) submitted comments to the FCC’s Notice of Proposed Rulemaking In the Matter of Review of the Emergency Alert System (EAS) [EB Docket No. 04-296]. As a result of the nationwide EAS test revealing issues with text crawls, the FCC requested public comments about the accessibility of EAS' visual and audio presentation of text.