M-Enabling Summit
M-Enabling Forum: "The best assistive technologies cannot be useful if our digital environment is not accessible"
21/06/2018
Self-determined living needs accessibility. This does not only apply to step-free entrance for wheelchair users, but also for the digital environment. For example, when blind people surf the internet with a screen reader, they need web sites that are accessible. But reality often looks different. Reason enough for the M-Enabling Forum to focus on this topic at this year's REHACARE.
Ledwig
Self-guided museum visits for visually impaired people
18/01/2018
Visually impaired and blind people can now enjoy stunning visits to the City Museum Trier thanks to audio tracks, tactile reproductions, and replicas. Together with students who participated in the "Cross Media" seminar as part of their studies at the University of Trier, Design Professor Christopher Ledwig developed a one-of-a-kind multimedia service in Germany: the so-called "blind kit" trolley.
Anderes Sehen e.V., www.anderes-sehen.de
"Long cane for children is a 'facilitator'– the chance to independently accomplish something"
17/08/2017
The long cane offers the possibility to be independent and effectively mobile as a person with visual impairment. Children in particular could get used to him in a playful way. The association "Anderes sehen e.V." has co-developed the children's long cane. REHACARE.com spoke to Ellen Schweizer, the founder of the association, about the fact that inclusion is not a burden, but can bring joy.
panthermedia.net/mikdam
Blind soccer fans are on the ball for 90 minutes thanks to match reporting
17/08/2017
For nearly 20 years, the "Fanclub Sehhunde; Fußball-Fanclub für Blinde und Sehbehinderte e.V." promotes match reporting for the blind to ensure that its members fully experience a stadium visit. REHACARE.com spoke with deputy chairperson Nina Schweppe about the match reporting for the blind and the obstacles that still need to be overcome before full inclusion in stadiums becomes a reality.
panthermedia.net/belchonock
Books for the blind: "IT corporations lead the way. They consider accessibility a selling point"
16/02/2017
A wizarding student who triumphs over evil. A girl who meets the love of her life. Literature has many facets and captivates us with wonderful stories day in and day out. Yet not everyone has access to these texts because accessible books for blind or visually impaired people are few and far between.
MPI-INF/MMeyer
Will software automatically describe movie plots in the near future?
18/07/2016
In order to understand the plot of a movie an audio version is very helpful for visually impaired people. Authors watch the whole movies and describe what happens in each scene. But wouldn’t it be possible for a computer software to do this kind of work? Researchers work on developing a program which automatically generates movie descriptions and reads them out.
beta-web/Günther
If you buy them, some smartphones are already accessible
14/04/2016
A quick check on your smartphone to see when the next bus leaves or letting your friend know via WhatsApp that you are running late: those are mundane situations for many people. Yet how accessible are smartphones actually for visually impaired and blind people? REHACARE.com spoke with Simon Janatzek. He is visually impaired and tells us which apps are helpful in everyday life.