Access Information

Accessibility software can be added to certain mobile phones and communicators to make them more accessibile to people who are blind or visually impaired. The American Fondation for the Blind (AFB) has evaluated accessible cell phones.

Telephones, whether they be landline, VOIP, or mobile, can be made accessible to individuals with low and no vision. The following companies offer technology that includes magnification, screen reading, and other audible access functions.

Some employees with various limitations may require additional, detail-oriented training to help them learn to do their job tasks or to enhance their knowledge of their duties. Due to difficulties with memory associated a condition or from medications taken, an employee might benefit from training refreshers, whether given in part of in full, extended time with a trainer, or the use of alternate materials.

Accessible workstations are desks and tables that are adjustable and allow individuals who use mobility aids to access them. They may also allow an individual to alternate between sitting and standing positions or use various types of chairs to be more comfortable.

A person who performs certain job-related tasks for a person with a disability to help overcome limitations resulting from the disability. Examples include a page turner for a person who has no hands, or a travel attendant to act as a sighted guide to assist a blind employee on work-related travel. WPAS may include personal care-related assistance such as helping an employee to access the restroom, eat or drink at work, or travel for business purposes.

Alternative input devices are hardware or software solutions that allow users with a variety of impairments to access a computer in a different way. Alternative input devices allow the user to access a computer in whatever way works best for them such as using his/her feet, head, eye, mouth, breath, thumb, or a single finger. Some devices are activated by motion while others can be controlled with nerve or muscle signals, optical tracking, even brain activity and mind energy.

Alternative keyboards can be used by individuals with various impairments but are especially beneficial to individuals who experience pain and fatigue due to repetitive keyboard use. Because alternative keyboards come in many sizes and shapes, individuals with different body sizes and hand shapes, who are limited in fine motor manipulation, may benefit from using them. Alternative keyboards, sometimes called ergonomic keyboards or adjustable keyboards, may be fixed split keyboards, adjustable split, or contoured. Many increase typing comfort, and several can be positioned to accommodate individual preferences, including negative and positive tilt adjustments.

An alternative mouse is a variation of the "traditional" mouse. Alternative mice usually are designed to help accommodate individuals with various fine motor limitations, spasticity, or other gripping limitation. For example, an individual who cannot grip a traditional mouse due to arthritis, carpal tunnel, or a hand injury may be able to move a cursor effectively with a glidepoint, trackball, joystick, or other device.

These alternative mice options were designed to reduce the effects of tremors and spasticity.

Medical professionals with hearing loss may find it difficult to use a standard stethoscope. The following resources offer amplified stethoscope products for individuals who are hard of hearing, who cannot place ear tips in the ears due to ear deformity or hearing aid use, or for individuals who work in noisy environments and need amplification or noise attenuation.

Personal assistive listeners reduce problems associated with background noise in one-on-one listening situations. By sending the sound signal directly to the individual's ears (using a headset, ear bud, hearing aid, etc.), an ALD enables an individual to hear and understand important sounds. Personal assistive listeners provide amplification and sound clarity.

Assistive listening systems, also known as assistive listening devices (ALD), transmit sound directly to an individual who is wearing a sound receiver (hearing aid, headphone, neck loop etc.). ALDs reduce problems associated with background noise in one-on-one and group communication. By sending the sound signal directly to the individual's ears, an ALD enables the individual to hear and understand important sounds while also reducing frustration associated with hearing unwanted background noises.There are three major types of ALD technology: FM radio signal, infrared light, and induction loop systems. FM systems transmit sound via radio waves. FM broadcast frequencies (72-76 MHz) are designated for use by FM systems. Infrared systems use lightwaves to send electrical signals to receivers that convert the electrical signals back to electrical energy and then sound. Induction loops use electromagnetic transmission to send sound through a loop of wire surrounding a seating area. A personal amplified system is another ALD option for one-on-one conversations and home media purposes. The personal systems are very small and portable and involve the use of a small microphone and receiver.ALDs can be used to accommodate applicants or employees who are hard of hearing and who benefit from amplification. ALDs can be used for one-on-one communication with coworkers or clients, small group meetings and training situations, or large-area listening situations, such as conferences or social events.   Hearing loop systems generally need to be professionally installed. For a list of installers, see HearingLoop.org's vendor list or another list provided by the Hearing Loss Association of America (.pdf).

Captions for deaf and hard of hearing individuals across multiple media platforms including TV, internet and cinema.

Communication aids provide communication access to people who have speech, hearing, or cognitive impairments. By typing words and sentences or touching pictures and symbols, an individual who has no speech or limited ability to speak can communicate through text, synthesized speech, or a prerecorded voice. Communication devices can be used to communicate in situations involving personal communication, groups, or the telephone.

Filing cabinets that have rotating drawers for more organization potential.

Sound travels to a person's ears as vibrations, which are transmitted though the air and through the person's bones. For some people with hearing loss, the ability to receive sound transmission through the air may be limited or unattainable. Bone conduction technology explores the development of communication products that focus on the use of a person's bones to transmit sound.

A braille notetaker is a small, portable device that has a braille keyboard for entering information. The stored information may be accessed through a built-in speech synthesizer, a braille display, or both. PDAs provide advanced word processing, web browsing, and other functions.

Devices that print paper with tactile ink that creates braille bumps as read from a text document.

A sip and puff mouth controlled mouse alternative for quadriplegic individuals and others who have lost the mobility to operate a traditional computer mouse.

Individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing may benefit from the use of Communication Access Realtime Translation (CART) services during small and large group communication situations when verbatim conversation is essential to effective communication. CART is a process of converting speech into text through a third party (CART writer). A trained CART writer or stenographer uses a keyboard or stenographic machine to transcribe spoken speech into written text which is then transmitted onto a viewing device (e.g., computer monitor, video screen). Many captioning services offer remote CART and internet captioning where the CART writer is not physically present at the event but can listen-in through a telephone line.

CART enables people who are deaf, hard of hearing, or who have auditory processing difficulties, to participate in meetings and training events by viewing realtime text of the lecture/training/meeting. However, sometimes it is not practical or possible to have a CART writer available on-site. It may be possible to access CART services remotely.

A CCTV system (sometimes referred to as an electronic or video magnifier) uses a video camera to project a magnified image onto a video monitor, computer monitor, or TV screen. Portable devices are available. Depending on the product, there may be a variety of options for viewing the image on the screen. Examples include: adjusting Zoom up to 60 times the original size; reversing the color contrast; selecting whether to view the image in color or black & white, and/or accessing split-screen technology. For CCTV devices that offer split screen technology, one half of the computer monitor would display the magnified image (e.g., hand-written correspondence) from the CCTV and the other half of the monitor would display whatever program the individual is using on their computer (e.g., desktop, word-processing program, etc.).

The use of color contrast overlays may increase the legibility of a paper document, allowing the reader to more easily discern either printed images or words

Applications and devices for low-vision and color-blind individuals that can interpret and define colors of objects.

Color Vision Deficiency (CVD) is the inability to distinguish between some colors and shades. Most people with this condition can identify some colors. Few people are totally "color blind." Color filters, such as a special red contact lens worn on one eye or prescription glasses may be used to help some people with a color deficiency. In addition, talking products are available that will scan a color and announce a description of the color (originally designed for individuals who are blind).

Individuals with reading deficits may have difficulty reading manuals, outlines, or maps due to the complicated structure of the material and the size/type of font used in lettering. Color-coding this material can be helpful to people with learning disabilities. This accommodation improves efficiency, provides easy access to information, increases productivity, and makes information finding a simpler task. Ways to color-code include: highlighting, using a copy machine to copy information on to colored paper, using post-it notes and colored tabs.

A computer Braille display operates by raising and lowering different combinations of pins electronically to produce in Braille what appears on your computer screen. The display is refreshable meaning that the configuration of Braille changes continuously as the user moves around on the screen. The Braille display sits on the user's desk, often underneath the computer keyboard. Braille displays provide direct access to information on the computer screen and is quiet.

Electronic organizers are electronic devices, such as PDA's, that allow an individual to download important information such as names, phone numbers, email address and dates. They might have alarms/cues that will remind the individual of datelines, meetings, and so on.

An external screen magnifier can either hang/clamp to the outside of the computer monitor or is placed on a stand in front of the screen. The image on the computer may be viewed at 2 to 4 times magnification.

Devices that can monitor eye movements and instate them as movements on acomputer screen of a mouse or across a digital keyboard.

Folding steps attach to vehicles allowing the individual to step up into a vehicle.

Handheld computers and personal devices that don't have a specific function.

Computers can be controlled by alternative input devices that are guided by head movement.

Keyguards are molded plastic overlays with holes that isolate each key. Keyguards provide keying control and accuracy for individuals who use pointing sticks or other typing aids.

Telephones with larger than normal dialing buttons for individuals who have a lack of dexterity or low-vision to easily operate their phone.

For low-vision individuals, this solution offers larger displays for telephones to increase ease of reading.

Screens that display text from TTY devices with much larger dimensions than normal for easier reading.

Low step ladders designed to support higher weights than normal step ladders.

Pen tablet systems allow users to control computers with direct pen-on-screen input and are often used to display information directly on a LCD screen.

Line guides can be sheets of paper with bold, dark lines on them that are placed behind the sheet of paper that is being written on to provide guidance for writing is straight lines.  The guides’ lines come is different sizes for varied spacing.  Lines guides can also be plastic forms that are placed over the paper to help guide writing. There are guides for writing on regular sizes of paper, envelopes, and for signatures. Bold line paper can also be provided.  It is printed with bold, raised lines to help with word and sentence spacing

Products and services to improve literacy skills.

Vision Enhancement products are portable low vision aids that can be worn with glasses or head-mounted for persons with low vision.These devices may be used for a variety of distance and midrange visual activities such as seeing faces, TV, the blackboard in school, computer screens, packages on shelves, dialing the telephone, and signs while traveling etc. These products will not restore vision to normal.

Hand magnifiers are hand-held devices that can be placed over an object or text to enlarge or magnify what you see. A stand magnifier may sit on a base or have a clamp with an adjustable or flexible arm the magnifier can then be placed over the object you want to magnify.

An on-screen keyboard, sometimes called a keyboard emulator, is a software program that displays a virtual keyboard on a computer screen. Users with can then "type" data using an alternative input device. The two most recent versions of Windows come with an on-screen keyboard option, which has basic capabilities. Directions vary with the type of operating system (OS). For information on how to activate your on-screen keyboard, visit the OS homepage.

One handed keyboards assist individuals who must enter data into a computer but have no or limited use of one hand. Keyboards can be configured to be used by either the left or the right hand. Due to the placement of the keys, individuals that may benefit from using a one handed keyboard may need some time to learn how to type in a different way.

Products that amplify outgoing speech while using the telephone. Products may include telephones having adjustable outgoing voice amplification, or personal, portable voice amplifiers that work with a telephone.

Paging products and services can be used in place of traditional overhead paging, such as code paging in a hospital, and may be used to notify a person who is deaf or hard of hearing to routine or emergency announcements. These devices and services can offer paging in text format to pagers, smart phones, tablets, and desktop computers, as well as through remote interpreter services.

A personal on-site paging device transmits a signal from the base transmitter to a receiver (the pager) through vibration and/or a numerical code display. These are local paging systems that work within a specified area.

A portable handheld reader combines a digital camera, optical character recognition software, and text-to-speech technology. The reader takes a picture of printed text on paper---such as a memo, receipt, or restaurant menu. The text is then converted to speech. This means that the device uses a synthesized voice to speak the information. The reader includes a headphone jack for privacy.

Prism glasses, sometimes referred to as bed spectacles, are glasses with right angle prisms designed to help individuals look straight ahead while reading, writing, or working. Prism glass frames typically fit over regular glasses.

Assistants or companies that can help an individual with organization or developing organizational skills.

What are captions? Captions are defined by the National Captioning Institute as, "subtitles, translations of the spoken word to the written, which permit deaf and hard-of-hearing people to see what they cannot hear. There are two kinds of captioning--open and closed. Open captions always appear on the screen, while closed captions must be 'opened' to be seen. Closed captioning is the process whereby captions are converted to electronic codes and inserted in the regular television signal, specifically on Line 21, a portion of the picture normally not seen." As of July 1993, all televisions 13" or greater in size that are manufactured in the United States or imported for use in the United States must be equipped with built-in decoder circuitry to enable the viewing of closed captioned video and television programming.Why consider using captions as a work-site accommodation for someone who is deaf or hard of hearing? Employers often use videotapes as training tools for employees. When tapes are used that have not been captioned, the tapes are inaccessible to employees who are deaf or hard of hearing. Employers should make an effort to ensure that all employees can benefit from training tools. When purchasing training tapes, consider purchasing tapes that have either open or closed captions or contact captioning service providers that can add captions to training videos. Employers might also use captioning as a way to provide real-time communication access to meetings, special events and web casts. Communication Access Real-time Translation (CART) offers word for word translation of audio information and is provided by a professional who is skilled and trained in using stenographic equipment. Many captioning providers offer remote CART and Internet captioning where the stenographer is not physically present at the event.

Individuals with reading or memory deficits may have difficulty reading or remembering memos, directions, meeting notes, and other print information. Tape recording the information allows the person with the disability to listen to the information instead of reading the information. Tape recorders can be purchased at local electronics stores.

Rolling safety ladders are less steep than regular ladders, therefore, easier to climb; other features include handrails and locking casters.

Screen Magnification Software can be installed on a PC to magnify both the text and graphics on the computer screen. Features may include: Magnification from two up to 32 times normal size; reverse color contrast; cursor enhancement; auto tracking; option for screen reading capabilities; and automatic scanning of text documents.

Screen Reading Software can be installed on a computer to allow text to be converted into computer synthesized speech. With this software, the computer basically reads aloud the text that appears on the screen. The hardware that provides the actual "voice output" is a speech synthesizer. This can be an internal sound card or an external speech synthesizer device. The screen reading software “tells” the speech synthesizer what to say.

Individuals with physical, cognitive, sensory, and learning impairments may have difficulty accessing computers. Traditionally, a computer user accesses a computer with a standard point and click mouse and a QWERTY keyboard (named for the top left-hand side of the rows). The computer takes the information that is inputted and processes it. Individuals with physical, sensory, or developmental limitations may not be able to use these standard input devices effectively and may benefit from using speech recognition. Standard computer input devices are keyboards made for typists who use two hands and ten fingers; speech recognition software is made for computer users with a variety of limitations, including individuals with no hand or finger movement.

Devices and products built to assist individuals in walking up stairs and maintaining their balance.

Commercial bar code readers that can read out products scanned in a synthetic voice to assist low-vision users.

Automatic coin money sorting machine with a synthetic voice to read off results and other instructions to low-vision users.

Devices that scan an object and inform the user of the color of the object for vision-impaired individuls.

A Global Positioning System (GPS) is used as a navigation aid in cars, airplanes, and ships. GPS receivers are increasingly being integrated with cell phones, PDA's, vehicle tracking systems, etc. Hand-held GPS receivers may be used by mountain climbers, hikers, and employees working outdoors.

Devices that can scan dollar bills and relate their value to vision impaired individuals so they can keep their money in order.

Weight scales with computer voice readouts for vision-impaired individuals. Available as full-person weight scales or countertop food scales to offer accurate weight readings to people who have difficulty reading the numbers.

Thermometers with voice readouts of temperature.

Telescoping cameras allow individuals to transmit video images from high and low areas to eye level via a telescoping pole.

Training modifications can include: receiving materials in alternate formats, such as Braille, large print, audio, and text; receiving materials in advance of training using assistive technologies, such as CART, interpreter, and recording devices; having trainings broken into smaller increments; allowing additional time for training; receiving one-on-one tutoring; seating away from distractions; and  logging in remotely.

A voice amplifier might be used as an accommodation for an individual who has difficulty speaking loudly enough to be heard in noisy environments or who has a medical need to speak softly due to voice limitations. Amplifiers can be personal, portable, hand-held or body worn systems, or large area sound field or public address systems.