Emergency Communications

Four Wireless RERC papers will be featured at the 2013 International Technology & Persons with Disabilities Conference (CSUN) in San Diego, February 25-March 2, 2013.  The papers include: App Factory: Assistive and Accessibility App, which will be a demo session; Wireless Technology Use and Disability based on the Survey of User Needs; Social Media, Public Emergencies & Disability, which is related to the Survey on Emergency Communications; and Survey Says!

November 19, 2012—The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) released a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) in November to implement specific provisions of the Twenty-First Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act of 2010 (CVAA). The FCC seeks comments regarding making emergency information, video description, and the equipment used to deliver the information more accessible to individuals who are blind or visually impaired.

August 29, 2012 –The National Federation of the Blind and AccuWeather® have joined forces to provide accessible weather alerts to the blind and print disabled.  Audible weather alerts will be disseminated via NFB-Newsline®, a free service that offers hundreds of newspapers and magazines in audible formats.  According to NFB, the service is the first of its kind, bringing independent access to emergency information to the blind.
 

Ed Price, co-director on the Wireless RERC’s App Factory project was recently featured on NPR’s Marketplace discussing with John Moe, host of Marketplace’s Tech Report, Verizon’s recent testing of a text-to-911 system in Durham, NC.   During the radio segment Ed details some of the issues the text-to-911 solution faces, like how the 911 center currently does not know the exact location of the caller.  However, he also states that while the solution is not yet complete, it could be used as an interim solution for the deaf or hard of hearing.

04.16.2012 – April marked the end of the year-long Mobile Emergency Alert System (M-EAS) Pilot Project sponsored by PBS, LG Electronics, and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. Dr.