Wireless RERC - Industry and Consumer Newsletter

August 2014 Technology and Disability Policy Highlights

tiffany — Tue, 14 Oct 2014 14:58:39 +0000

This August, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) announced requirements and compliance deadlines that impact communications and technology accesses for people with hearing loss. The first was the order requiring closed captioning of internet video clips [MB Docket No. 11-154] which establishes an effective date of September 4, 2014. They also adopted rules that complement previous commitments made by wireless carriers to support text-to-911 by May 2014. Now, in addition to the four largest wireless carriers in the U.S. (AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile, and Verizon), certain IP-based text applications and the remaining wireless carriers are expected to support text-to-911 by the end of the year. The FCC also released a Third Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking [PS Docket No.s 11-153 and 10-255] seeking comment related to technical issues regarding enhanced location provision, text-to-911 roaming support, and potential text service capabilities.

Lastly, the FCC’s Governmental Affairs Bureau (CGB) is accepting comments on the Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau Seeks Comment on Its Tentative Findings About the Accessibility of Communications Technologies for the 2014 Biennial Report Under the Twenty-First Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act (CVAA). The FCC requests that comments address their reported findings regarding CVAA compliance with accessibility requirements for telecommunications and advanced communications services and equipment, the effect of related recordkeeping and enforcement obligations, and existing accessibility barriers that may still exist with respect to new communications technologies. The deadline for public comment is September 11, 2014.

Microsoft Word version of August 2014 Technology and Disability Policy Highlights

Re:Wireless Industry and Consumer Newletter

to4 — Wed, 06 Nov 2013 19:49:54 +0000

Vol 4, Issue 4 - September, 2013
Promoting accessibility and usability of wireless technology for consumers of all ages and abilities

The Re:Wireless Industry and Consumer Newsletter is usually distributed on a quarterly basis, but sometimes waiting three months in between issues is just too long. Such is the case now where I'm able to share two new SUNspots and a Research Brief for your reading pleasure. I couldn't just sit on these golden nuggets for another month or two. Share and share alike, I say.

We created "SUNspot" to share some of the latest findings from ongoing data collection for our Survey of User Needs (SUN), our cornerstone survey on use and usability of wireless technology by people with disabilities. The data reported in all of the SUNspots are preliminary results. The two new SUNspots I shared below focus on:

Adults with Disabilities and Wireless Service Plans
Adults with Disabilities and Sources of Wireless Accessibility Information

Our newest Research Brief details User Needs for Assistive Listening Systems in Public Venues for Hearing Aid Users. The publication presents survey research data on the experiences of people who are hard of hearing when using assistive listening systems at public meetings and events.

And in other survey news, our 2013 Hearing Aid Compatibility survey is still open to anyone that uses a hearing aid or cochlear implant. Please take the survey, or forward it to someone you know who uses hearing aids or has cochlear implants. Participants will automatically be entered into a drawing for one of four $50 Amazon gift cards we will give away as incentives for participation. Follow the link in the story below to take the survey!

As always, enjoy this issue of Re:Wireless. If you'd like this newsletter in an alternative accessible format, please contact me.

Sincerely,
Ben Lippincott
Manager, Industry Relations
Wireless RERC
404-894-7034
ben@imtc.gatech.edu

SUNspot 2013 (Number 05) - Adults with Disabilities and Wireless Service Plans

This SUNspot addresses the questions related to choices of wireless service and preferences for particular service features. Two specific questions are addressed:

How do adults with disabilities choose a wireless service provider?
Do adults who are blind, deaf or have difficulty speaking, prefer specialized wireless service plans like voice-only, data-only, or text-only service?

Read the full 2013 SUNspot (Number 05)!

Research Brief: User Needs for Assistive Listening Systems in Public Venues for Hearing Aid Users

This research brief presents survey data collected by the Rehabilitation Engineering Research Center for Wireless Technologies (Wireless RERC) to learn how people who are hard of hearing use their mobile phones, and also to learn about their experiences using assistive listening systems while attending public meetings and events.

The questionnaire was structured around 3 areas of inquiry:

Cellphone use and satisfaction with sound quality
Availability, use and satisfaction with assistive listening systems (ALS) in public events venues
Interest in an app-based assistive listening system

The questionnaire was designed for a market needs study to assess the availability and potential value to consumers of a new mobile app-based assistive listening system for use in public venues. The questionnaire is brief and the sample size relatively small (180 respondents). However, because of the importance of the subject matter - accessible public events for people who use assistive listening technology - the data collected are presented as a Research Brief. This initial project may serve as the pilot for a more comprehensive study currently under consideration by the Wireless RERC.

Read the full report!

Participate! Take the 2013 Hearing Aid Compatibility Survey

In 2005, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) began implementing new rules to make cell phones "compatible" with hearing aids and cochlear implants. Cell phones that are compatible with hearing aids " produce minimal electromagnetic interference, which causes static when the phone is near the ear with the hearing aid.

The Wireless Rehabilitation Engineering Research Center (Wireless RERC) is interested in how the FCC's regulations impact the usability of cell phones for people who use hearing aids and cochlear implants. We invite people who use hearing aids or cochlear implants to participate in the survey regarding their use of cell phones.

Start the 2013 Hearing Aid Compatibility Survey!

As incentive for taking our 2013 HAC survey you will have a chance to win one of four $50 Amazon gift cards!

If you wish to take the survey over the phone, please emailJohn Morris or call him at 404-367-1348.

Thank you for reading this interim issue of Re:Wireless!

If you'd like more information about what's included here, have questions about our other projects, or need this newsletter in an alternate accessible format, please contact me.

Consider following the Wireless RERC on Twitter and Facebook. "Follow" buttons above our logo on this newsletter make it easy to subscribe to our networks. Feel free to repost or retweet any information you read here, or on the other Wireless RERC websites found in the "Quick Links" bar to the left, on your own social networks.

If you'd like to forward this newsletter to other colleagues or interested parties, please feel free. Or better yet, ask them if they'd like me to add them to the distribution list.

As always, let me know how we're doing!

Sincerely,
Ben Lippincott
Manager, Industry Relations
Wireless RERC
404-894-7034
ben@imtc.gatech.edu

This is a publication of the Rehabilitation Engineering Research Center for Wireless Technologies supported by the National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research of the U.S. Department of Education, grant # H133E110002. The opinions contained in this publication are those of the grantee and do not necessarily reflect those of the U.S. Department of Education.

ReWireless Industry and Consumer Newsletter Vol 4 Issue 4 - September 2013.doc

Learning from Older Adults

blippincott4 — Sun, 13 Jan 2013 23:32:37 +0000

During Fall semester 2012, students at the School of Industrial Design at Georgia Tech spent 15 weeks at the Wesley Woods retirement community learning from older adults. The “studio” class, headed by Assistant Professor Dr. Claudia B. Rebola, focused on the full cycle of designing products from problem definition to design iteration and prototype deliverables. This advanced design course is one of the offerings under Building Research Capacity training project of the Wireless RERC, where students are provided an in-depth understanding how to design products considering universal design principles. As such, central to the class was the task of designing universal interactive products for older adults.

The studio used varied instructional methods including presentations, lectures and in-class discussions, in-class feedback, readings, presentations and project reviews. But the success of the class was the ability for students to spend extended periods of time with their intended users. Students visited the Wesley Woods Towers retirement community once a week to spend time with the residents. Wesley Woods Towers, established in 1987 and component of Emory Healthcare, is a retirement home community in Atlanta specializing in providing the facilities and care needed to allow older adults to fully enjoy the benefits of senior living.

Students followed a contextual design process which includes observations of older adults dynamics at the community, personal interviews and conversations, and engaged in older adults activities such as playing cards, listening to music, to mention a few. Throughout the semester, students applied the knowledge from older adults into designing artifacts to support daily activities of residents. Students sketched ideas, analyzed research results through affinity diagrams, and developed mockups of concepts and prototypes.

While designing interactive products, students applied the seven principles of Universal design and employed the assessment tool to evaluate their designs: equitable use, flexibility in use, simple and intuitive use, perceptible information, tolerance for error, low physical effort, and size and space for approach and use. In order to support the teaching, Jon Sanford showcased students’ examples of good and bad universally designed products. In addition, some of his students helped the studio class giving feedback to better design universal products. Students also got feedback on their design from Brian Jones, Project Director of the Wireless RERC Building Student Capacity project and Director of the Aware Home Research Initiative, and from experts on design for aging from the “Design and Technologies for Healthy Aging” (DATHA) Coalition Initiative, including Scott Morrison from BrightStar Care®.

At the end of the semester, students designed 7 universal design solutions that worked integrated as a system following a common brand identity. Students considered older adults’ basic needs (i.e. nutrition, wellness, socialization, security, cognition, to mention a few) and how these can inspire new design concepts. Solutions under the brand name “S*AGE: Simplifying Aging” included a new system to monitor water intake to encourage older adults to be hydrated; a community-based event planner system to encourage older adults to participate in social events; a home system to design resident spaces to make them feel at home; an ambient technology device to bring the sense of nature to the resident units; to mention a few. Solutions were showcased at the Wesley Woods Towers gaining awareness from residents and staff of the community. It was truly a successful experience as student learned to design products for the user, around the user and with the user. Solutions couldn’t have been better designed without the iterative testing and feedback from the residents in the community. Certainly, residents couldn’t have felt as happy by having young energetic students at their Wesley Woods retirement community home.

Acknowledgments:

We thank Wesley Woods retirement community personnel and resident for allowing access to their facilities. We also thank the Rehabilitation Engineering Research Center on Wireless Technologies for support of the class. This project was produced under the auspices of the Rehabilitation Engineering Research Center for Wireless Technologies (Wireless RERC), which is funded by the National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research (NIDRR), United States Department of Education, under grant number H133E110002. The opinions contained in this paper are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect those of the U.S. Department of Education or NIDRR.

ID3011F12Story.docx