Accessibility efforts receive funding boost
he Trace
Research and Development Center recently received a $5 million Rehabilitation
Engineering Research Center grant from the National Institute of Disability
and Rehabilitation Research to study accessibility and usability of
standard information and interface technologies by people with disabilities.
Directed by Professor Gregg
Vanderheiden, Trace is one of 22 Rehabilitation Engineering Research
Centers in the United States. While each RERC has a unique focus, all
conduct research leading to technology advances that benefit people
with disabilities. The center’s grant will help researchers develop
innovative technological solutions for universal access to current and
emerging information technologies to seamlessly integrate multiple technologies
used by individuals with disabilities in their homes, community and
workplaces.
The Trace Center is an internationally recognized
leader in the field of technology and disability access. In recent years,
the center’s research and development efforts have focused on
designing standard information technologies and telecommunications so
that they are more accessible for people with disabilities. Its key
achievements have included developing accessibility features that are
now built into Windows, Macintosh OS and other standard systems, and
developing interface techniques for making public systems such as fare
machines, ATMs, job kiosks (left) and electronic voting accessible for
people with disabilities.
