Wireless RERC - Apps

App Factory Releases 2014-2015 Call for Proposals

blippincott4 — Wed, 30 Apr 2014 04:00:00 +0000

Each year, the Wireless RERC’s App Factory invites experienced organizations or individual developers based in the U.S. to submit proposals for financial support to develop assistive and/or accessibility apps for mobile platforms (e.g., Android, Blackberry 10, iOS, Windows Phone).

Apps developed through this program include AccessNote by the American Foundation for the Blind, BrailleTouch by BrailleTech, LLC, and Sprint ID Accessibility Packs, Currency Identifier, and IDEAL Group Reader by Apps4Android.

Proposals for 2014-15 are due on June 30, 2014. Selection of proposals for funding will be on October 15. More information can be found in the PDF of the Call for Proposals below.

Related Files:

Attachment	Size
App Factory_RFP_2014.pdf	242.61 KB

Wireless RERC and AT&T Connecting People with Disabilities to their World Through Technology

mz22 — Tue, 31 May 2016 17:16:51 +0000

Smartphones

Read the full article on Global Accessibility News

AT&T’s Corporate Accessibility Technology Office and the Wireless Rehabilitation Engineering Research Center developed Wireless Independence Now (WIN) Workshops to teach people with disabilities how to use accessibility features installed on their phones and tablets.

Wireless RERC Summit Proceedings: Envisioning Inclusive FUTURES

mz22 — Fri, 20 May 2016 14:45:25 +0000

Futures

Publication Type:

Reports

The Envisioning Inclusive FUTURES Summit Proceedings have been published by the Rehabilitation Engineering Research Center for Wireless Technologies (Wireless RERC) on our website. The Summit focused on 1) key social, economic, political and technological forces at play in the migration from legacy, analog technologies to mobile, digital technologies, and 2) the consequential futures for people with disabilities. The Proceedings concluded that a variety of technological solutions exist whether discussing the present or the future, and more are under development, to facilitate the ability of people with disabilities to engage in life activities. Transformative ideas and common visionary themes addressed wireless technologies and systems that could stimulate inclusive solutions such as robotics, wearables, the Internet of Things, next-generation emergency communications and alerts, and assistive intelligence for auditory and visual navigation. Looking to an inclusive future, not only were research and policy agenda items identified, but also challenges and recommendations on how to reach a future of inclusiveness. Following are a few findings:

Usability is critical – technology needs to be “out of the box” ready. The design process should be enhanced so that devices be intuitively usable, or conversely, be easily personalizable.
Education, outreach and awareness efforts should be dynamic and integral to both ongoing and adaptive/changing environments. This is in reference to not only technology, but to the changing circumstances of people with disabilities.
Products and services should be universally designed and also take into account cultural sensitivity.

The visionary theme from the opening to the concluding dialog emphasized: A transformative future is an inclusive future. This became the key take-away for reinforcing the Wireless RERC’s commitment to ensure an accessible mobile wireless future for people with disabilities.

Related Files:

Attachment	Size
Wireless RERC SoT - Envisioning Inclusive Futures Summit Preceedings.pdf	1.81 MB

2016 App Factory Apps Announced

blippincott4 — Mon, 14 Mar 2016 19:52:43 +0000

Description:

Five new apps slated for development

AppLinks:

2016 App Factory Apps Announced

Wireless RERC Announces 2016 App Factory App Development Awards

blippincott4 — Mon, 14 Mar 2016 19:46:07 +0000

The Rehabilitation Engineering Center for Wireless Technologies (Wireless RERC) is pleased to announce funding of 5 new assistive technology apps for development and release in 2016 as part of its App Factory development project. These new apps will provide solutions to a range of challenges that users with physical, sensory and cognitive impairments face.

The Wireless RERC received 13 proposals for its 2016 App Factory funding competition. All were top quality proposals targeting important user needs. After careful consideration, 5 were selected for funding.

Blue Sky Designs Pow!r Mount app will provide accessible control for powered mounting and positioning systems. The app works in conjunction with BlueSky Design's forthcoming Pow!r Mount to provide individuals with significant physical disabilities access to and control over devices in their environment through their smart device, like a smartphone, tablet or AAC device. With the powered mount’s ability to move, rotate and tilt devices and trays, a person will be able to move essential items into accessible positions, and to easily and independently change activities. Positioning of mounted devices is controlled through an accessible method of choice, such as a switch, voice, wheelchair controls or direct touch, with a finger or conductive mouthstick. The Pow!r Mount app will be available for iOS and Android devices.

Komodo OpenLab’s Tecla Remote expands on the success of its Tecla Shield switch controller and related technologies, in order to facilitate access and control of appliances and external hardware by people who lack the fine motor manual abilities to interact with the standard console, remote or app-based controls provided with commercial media streaming devices. The Tecla Remote will be available for iOS and Android devices.

Sendero Group’s Easy Listening app is a low cost application that will facilitate direct smartphone/earpiece communication to provide local noise cancelling and speech amplification for people who are blind as well as for everyone who wishes a more easy listening experience. It will employ sophisticated noise filtering and amplification to differentiate itself from other sound amplifying apps already available in the marketplace. It will be available on the iOS operating systems.

Shepherd Center’s Healthy Timer app will allow users to use their mobile devices as a tool for providing consistent timers and reminders for key daily activities, such as weight shift prompts, bladder management cues, medication reminders, meal reminders, blood sugar monitoring, performance of home exercise programs, positioning reminders (ex.“keep your head up”) and monitoring and controlling moods and behaviors (behavior “check in”) to name just a few. The core timer functionality may also serve as a platform for future integration with bio-sensor technology to automatic alerting. Healthy Timer will be available on Android Play.

Smart Steps will be using App Factory funds to add functionality to its existing decision-making app for users with autism, developmental disabilities or other cognitive impairments. The existing SmartSteps app prompts users to create decision trees to solve problems such as taking the bus, asking strangers for help, and interacting with others. The new functionality will enhance the ability to save and share decision trees, the ability for Smart Steps admins to assign decision trees to individuals and groups, the ability to send text messages directly from the Smart Steps app, and add a read aloud button inside the app, to name a few. Smart Steps is currently available on Apple’s App Store and Google Play.

The Wireless RERC’s App Factory project has funded over 20 assistive app development projects over the past 5 years through an annual call for proposals. Read more at: http://wirelessrerc.org/content/app-factory-d1.

* * *

For more information, please contact Ben Lippincott at ben@imtc.gatech.edu or 404-894-7034.

Meet Wireless RERC Researchers at CSUN 2016

mz22 — Thu, 11 Feb 2016 18:49:27 +0000

Come meet us in San Diego!

Publication Type:

Presentations

Wireless RERC researchers will be featured at the 2016 International Technology & Persons with Disabilities Conference (CSUN) in San Diego, March 21-26, 2016. The papers/presentations include:

Wireless Independence Now (WIN) Workshop (Wednesday, March 23, 2016 - 10:00 AM PST)
Mixed Sentience Learning Communities: Design Considerations & Opportunities (Thursday, March 24, 2016 - 10:00 AM PST)
Wireless technology use by people with disabilities-2015: A national survey (Friday, March 25, 2016 - 10:00 AM PST)
FutureS of Disabilities: The migration to a digital world (Friday, March 25, 2016 - 10:00 AM PST)
Optimizing Accessibility of Wireless Emergency Alerts: 2015 Survey Findings (Friday, March 25, 2016 - 1:20 PM PST)

Emergency Preparedness and Your Mobile Device

mz22 — Thu, 10 Sep 2015 14:41:35 +0000

emergency preparedness

mobile devices

Tips for Emergency Use of Mobile Devices

August 2015 - There are several steps to prepare your mobile device in case of an emergency. One of the most basic is making sure there are a set of emergency contacts easily accessible on your device. This means ensuring that your contacts are saved to the device and to the SIM card. Various apps are also available for an array of functions such as first aid information, emergency shelter locations, and geographical emergency alerts. It is also always a good idea to have power backup strategies in case a situation where the power goes out. All of these tips and more can be found in the 2015 edition of Tips for Emergency Use of Mobile Devices, by Disability Policy Consultant, June Isaacson Kailes. The publication provides guidelines for optimal use of your mobile device before, during and after an emergency. It covers emergency contacts, alerts, texting, documents, apps, power back-up charging options, bookmarks, “No Service” backup plans, skill drills and more.

New App in Development to Help People with Disabilities Navigate Buildings

mz22 — Wed, 09 Sep 2015 19:54:21 +0000

Emergency Egress

Indoor Navigation

Access and Evacu8 ltd.'s New App Helps People with Disabilities Not Get Lost in Translation

Access and Evacu8, Ltd are working together to develop a picture based app to guide people with disabilities in, out, and around the interior of buildings. As a result of a two year consultation with people with disabilities, businesses and fire and rescue services, Access and Evacu8 decided to collaborate on developing this project. The app will also function as an aid for the emergency egress of both people with and those without disabilities. The development is being funded through the Kickstarter campaign Evacu8me & Directmii app development until October 8^th with a goal of 29,000 euros. Upon completion the app will give instructions in multiple languages and have a free and paid version that functions without any need of an internet connection, in case one is not available during an emergency.

RERC lanza la Encuesta sobre las Necesidades del Usuario respecto a las Tecnologías Inalámbricas-2015

mz22 — Thu, 13 Aug 2015 18:08:00 +0000

El Centro de Investigación sobre la Ingeniería de la Rehabilitación con Tecnologías Inalámbricas (Rehabilitation Engineering Research Center for Wireless Technologies, Wireless RERC) ha lanzado la Encuesta sobre las Necesidades del Usuario respecto a las Tecnologías Inalámbricas-2015 (Survey of User Needs for Wireless Technologies 2015, SUN-2015).

El fin de esta encuesta es descubrir cómo la gente con discapacidades usa tecnología inalámbrica para consumidores. Se enfoca principalmente en los teléfonos celulares, sin embargo, también incluye preguntas sobre otros tipos de dispositivos como las tabletas, por ejemplo el iPad de Apple y el Kindle Fire de Amazon, Surface de Microsoft, y otros dispositivos similares.

Los datos que se recopilen ayudarán a los diseñadores e ingenieros a elaborar nuevos dispositivos y servicios inalámbricos que satisfagan las necesidades de las personas con discapacidades. Desde el año 2001 más de 6000 personas han completado esta encuesta.

Invitamos a todas las personas con cualquier tipo de discapacidad o limitación física, cognitiva, o sensorial completar el questionario. Se puede completarlo en el Web: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/SUN-Esp_2015

Si prefiere completar el questionario en papel o por telefono, por favor comuníquese con John Morris:

404-367-1348; john_morris@shepherd.org

Sus respuestas son importantes para nosotros, incluso si usted no usa la tecnología inalámbrica. El questionario se puede completar con la ayuda de un asistente o una enfermera si no puede completarlo directamente usted mismo.

No venderemos ni utilizaremos su información personal de otra manera que no sea para realizar la investigación sobre el tema de esta encuesta. Sus datos personales permanecerán en estricta confidencialidad.

2015 Wireless Independence Now! Workshop Presentations Available Online

mz22 — Wed, 12 Aug 2015 14:40:26 +0000

Throughout the summer of 2015, the AT&T Corporate Accessibility Technology Office and the Rehabilitation Engineering Research Center for Wireless Technologies (Wireless RERC) conducted workshops for people with disabilities, caregivers, and professionals on how to use accessibility features found on smartphones and tablets. Workshops focused on accessibility features helpful for people who use hearing aids, people who use text and video services, people who have communication difficulties, people who have difficulty seeing, people with cognitive disabilities, or sensory disabilities, people with dexterity or mobile disabilities, caregivers and other professionals who assist people with disabilities. The presentations (links below) include the accessibility features found on smartphones, phablets and tablets that use Apple or Android operating systems (OS); accessibility resources for services, devices and mobile applications; and ways to improve the accessibility of devices and services.

General Disability Presentation

[http://www.wirelessrerc.gatech.edu/node/700]

Cognitive Impairment Presentation

http://www.wirelessrerc.gatech.edu/node/722

Dexterity Impairment Presentation

[http://www.wirelessrerc.gatech.edu/node/720]

Hearing Impairment Presentation

[http://www.wirelessrerc.gatech.edu/node/718 ]

Vision Impairment Presentation

[http://www.wirelessrerc.gatech.edu/node/721]