UBIQUITOUS WEB ACCESS FOR PEOPLE WITH VISION IMPAIRMENTS

This SBIR Phase II Project will build on our Phase I results to develop and deploy Omni – an enabling assistive technology for ubiquitous web access. Omni will facilitate usable synchronization of personalized accessibility settings and browsing context (opened web pages and reading positions) across devices. Omni will allow people with vision impairments to access the Web from anywhere, seamlessly switch from one device to another, and continue browsing the same web pages from the same spot without having to readjust their personalized accessibility settings. Thus Omni promises to usher in unprecedented ease, flexibility and mobility to the consumption of web content by the community of people with vision impairments. Omni ecosystem, which includes client-side applications, web interface, and a synchronization service, will make it easy to organize, manage, and consume web content. Omni will provide simplified access to relevant web content via an interface similar to that of an audio player – users will be able to add web pages from any web site to the playlist and then listen to them and/or view them at any convenient time and on any device. More importantly, the playlist will also serve as the medium for capturing and restoring the browsing context.