Speech Technology for Persons with Disabilities: Are We Breaking Down Barriers or Creating New Ones? From: Speech Technology - 05/03/2005 By: Terry Thompson University of Washington senior computer specialist Terry Thompson writes that speech technologies' mainstream penetration can make lives easier for persons with disabilities, but it can also complicate them because some disabilities may limit the technologies' usefulness. For example, a person with impaired speech may not necessarily be able to use devices or systems that operate by speech input, while a hearing-impaired user could have little use for devices or systems that supply speech output. A universal design approach is needed to address such limitations, and Thompson recalls that three out of nine speech applications developed by teams at SpeechTEK 2004 were successful in this regard by providing the user with multimodal functionality, enough time to respond to questions, and the means to pause and resume the application when necessary. Universal design also has legal precedent, as dictated in legislation such as Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act and Section 255 of the Telecommunications Act of 1996. Technologies that include software applications and Web-based intranet and Internet information and applications are covered by amendments to Section 508 requiring accessibility of electronic and information technology purchased, maintained, or employed by the federal government. Section 255, which encompasses voice mail and interactive voice response (IVR) systems, requires telecom equipment manufacturers to ensure the accessibility of their products to people with disabilities. Accessibility issues, especially those pertaining to IVR systems and services, are the focus of a forum organized by the Alliance for Telecommunications Industry Solutions. Thompson says the future of universal accessibility is sunny as the mainstreaming of speech technology gains momentum. Read the entire article at: http://www.speechtechmag.com/issues/industry/11877-1.html Links and related articles: Speech Technologies Impact the Accessibility Market http://www.speechtechmag.com/issues/9_9/cover/11848-1.html Speaking of the Internet - Speech Equals Access for All http://www.speechtechmag.com/issues/9_9/cover/11855-1.html Alliance for Telecommunications Industry Solutions http://www.atis.org/ SpeechTek http://www.speechtek.com/ Terry Thompson http://staff.washington.edu/tft/