The Assistive Technology Industry Association (ATIA) held its annual conference January 18 through 21, 2017, in Orlando, Florida, at the Caribe Royal Hotel and Convention Center. For those who watch developments in assistive technology, the annual ATIA conference usually provides an early look at what's to come in the new year. In the past, the event often showcased products and trends that were then more fully explored at later gatherings like the California State University at Northridge conference (CSUN). The 2017 installment of ATIA was less about showing new products or previewing what's next, and more about updating existing tools based on progress in the mainstream technology world.
Accessible Conference Planning and Navigation
Two excellent free products were offered by the ATIA conference committee which increased the overall accessibility of the conference for people with vision loss: the conference app and strategically placed iBeacons.
Everyone who registered for the conference automatically received his or her own user name and password for the accessible ATIA iOS app. The app's Home tab showed various categories on the screen including Session List, Speaker List, and Exhibitor List.
The Session List option had a search box, the ability to locate sessions within a particular strand, and type of session. Activaiting a session strand loaded a list of those sessions. Activating the name of a specific session loaded a new page with a description of the session, presenter information, and the option to bookmark the session.
Since there were scores of booths in the exhibit hall, this app also was designed to let users pick specific exhibit categories. The resulting lengthy list could be sorted in several ways, including by company or by product. Activating the name of a company loaded a new page with information about its specific products and offered an option to bookmark the exhibitor.
A conference accessibility partner, ClickAndGo Wayfinding, installed over 50 iBeacons throughout the conference venue. The iBeacon is a Bluetooth device that transmits a signal to an app that speaks your current location. After downloading the ClickAndGo Wayfinding app, when attendees launched the app and walked near an iBeacon, VoiceOver announced their location. Routes could be planned by telling the app starting and ending locations. The app also allowed attendees to take virtual tours. It would be great for more venues to install this type of technology to help increase independence for people with vision loss.
ATIA Exhibit Hall Highlights
In the paragraphs that follow, we offer our opinions on the products we feel would be of most interest to people with visual impairments.
Enhanced Vision released a pair of new products for low-vision users: MoJo is a handheld, electronic monocular that can also be docked to create a full-sized desktop magnifier. The 6-ounce MoJo features a 13-megapixel camera with auto-focus and up to 16x digital zoom, and a tethered telephoto lens which adds optical zoom. The unit provides multiple color modes, a 30-degree viewing field, and a rechargeable battery, providing up to 2.5 hours of continuous use. When paired with the optional desktop docking station, the MoJo acts as a traditional electronic video magnifier camera. The desktop unit includes a 24-inch LCD display, and an x-y table. The MoJo monocular sells for $1,595, plus $1,200 for the docking stand.
The Transformer HD with Wi-Fi, also from Enhanced Vision, is a desktop unit that folds to become portable. The unit features a 24-inch Sony LCD display, and a 3-in-1 HD camera, along with Wi-Fi, HDMI, and USB 3.0 connectivity. It works in full- or split-screen mode when connected to a computer. Enhanced versions of the unit also include an OCR camera for full-page scanning. The Transformer HD weighs a diminutive 3.45 pounds, and can magnify up to 30x. Enhanced Vision says the included battery provides up to 2 hours of continuous use. Transformer HD costs $2,595, with an additional $400 for OCR support.
In the VFO booth, Freedom Scientific, Optelec, and AI Squared were united under their new corporate parent. Each brand showed off existing products, and talked up the benefits of the combination. The company announced ZoomText 11, a redesigned update to its PC magnification software developed by AI Squared. ZoomText 11 features a consolidated interface that now folds App Reader, Doc Reader, and Speak It into a single tool. ZoomText keyboard shortcuts have been completely revamped, and the toolbar has been redesigned to streamline the application's controls, and provide access to options that formerly required the use of menus. ZoomText now features geometric font smoothing, and using inverted text and background colors now preserves the normal appearance of photos and other images. VFO says the help system has also been rewritten to ease the transition to the overhauled application.
In 2016, braille seemed to be revitalized. Products like the BrailleNote Touch became available, while the Orbit Reader and NeoBraille, among others, were eagerly anticipated, but didn't ship. At ATIA, HumanWare announced that the BrailleNote Touch software will get an upgrade to version 3.0 in February, adding the ability to update individual applications within KeySoft. Orbit Reader and NeoBraille were on display, but aren't yet available. Orbit's US distributor, American Printing House for the Blind, says the device will ship this spring. Irie-AT, which showed off Neo Access' NeoBraille, has not yet provided a ship date.
Scanning Pens showed off a pen scanner called the C-Pen Reader. A bit bigger than a USB thumb drive, the C-Pen scans as you drag it across a line of text. Results appear on a small display, and/or can be spoken, using the device's built-in voice. ScanPens says the product, which has been available for some time, was developed for people with dyslexia and other reading disabilities, but has attracted attention among low-vision users. C-Pen Reader includes 1 GB of storage for scans, and supports a number of languages, depending on the configuration you choose.
Aira | Visual Interpreter for the Blind was one of the more exciting products in the exhibit hall. In addition to the hardware, it requires a monthly subscription which as of this writing (February 2017) is quite expensive. The developer indicated that the company is working to get more sponsors to bring the subscription price down.
The user of Aira wears bone-conduction headphones and smart glasses with a small camera mounted on the glasses. The Aira app must be on the user's smart phone. When in need of assistance, the user contacts a trained agent who uses the camera to see exactly where the person is and provides assistance. The user can be anywhere, whether walking outside, in a store, at home or anywhere else. The agent can help read a menu, find a particular store, navigate a crowded area, tell the color of a shirt, read information on a can, and much more.
It is like having someone walking right next to you. The agent can describe your surroundings which can greatly increase independence when traveling in an unfamiliar area. This product has great potential, but it does not take the place of a cane or guide dog.
Cydalion, by Float, is an assistive navigation app that can help people with visual impairments detect objects. You hold up the phone and the app informs the user, through audio and haptic feedback, if there is an obstacle in their way. Cydalion not only alerts the user to an object, but through sounds lets the user know whether the object is high or low.
The user wears bone-conduction headphones and has the Cydalion app installed on a Tango device. Tango is a new platform from Google. It enables apps made for the platform to track a device's position and orientation in a 3D environment. The device should be positioned so it can detect objects from head to toe. The feedback the user receives is customizable, and the biggest expense is the Tango device.
ATIA Conference Extras
In addition to the many pre-conference activities, educational sessions, and hands-on and demonstration prospects in the exhibit hall, there are also great opportunities at ATIA for networking and meeting others in the vision loss field for new collaborations.
In that vein, the American Foundation for the Blind held its second annual AccessWorld "Tech Talk" event at ATIA on January 19. Attendance to our event was open to all conference attendees. At our event, attendees had easy access to and could speak with AFB staff and AccessWorld contributors. We had the opportunity to answer technology questions for product manufacturers, teachers of the visually impaired, O & M professionals, and people with vision loss. We also announced the upcoming new homepage coming soon to AccessWorld.
That's right, AccessWorld will soon have a new look and feel on its homepage. There will be a new layout, new ways to present additional technology content, and new advertising opportunities for technology companies and product manufacturers. Stay tuned to AccessWorld for details!
ATIA 2017 was full of great experiences for us, and if you have the chance to attend ATIA next year, we encourage you to do so. This is one of the premiere conferences related to assistive technology and you will definitely come away with information and connections that will help you and your organization better support and serve your students, patients, consumers, or clients.
