News – The Taskar Center for Accessible Technology

OpenSidewalks

OpenSidewalks seeks to make pedestrian ways, like sidewalks, first class members of an open, routable transportation network from which we can ask a variety of important questions. This means collecting a connected network of path types with detailed attributes like…

AccessMap

Accessmap.io provides customized accessible sidewalk and footpath routing directions based on your personal mobility profile. This can benefit anyone, but is particularly designed to address the informational needs of people with mobility limitations.

Universal Collaborative Play

Play is for everyone! The Universal Playgroup creates opportunities for team play and access to open-source inclusive design for all. The Universal Playgroup started as a re-imagining of a work and play space that is intended for all abilities. An…

iDesign Lab

iDesign Lab engages a community of practice in open source technology design, build, and use. We engage communities of practice in collaborative design aiming to increase access to everyday technologies through community ideation and development of ability-focused novel interfaces, the…

Gesture Learning

Apple products use the same gesture vocabulary for input. Certainly, unifying gestures across devices helps their adoption. However, in the context of a population with hugely variable abilities, achieving broad or general impact requires the adaptation or customization of input…

The TACcess DIY Switch Accessibility Kit

The TACcess Kit is designed as an easy-to-use starter kit for a wide range of accessibility projects focusing on the home as a sandbox for interactive switch-accessible play. Kit recipients can use the TACcess Kit to turn many battery-operated toys…

Next Gen Augmentative Communication

Augmentative communication devices are traditionally speech generating devices through which the actor uses input devices to construct speech. These devices are typically devoid of any context related to a user’s position, geographical location, scene understanding, etc. With the recent additions…

Tactile MapTile

Tactile MapTile employs a unique tactile based representation of various features in a map to enhance the spatial understanding for people with broad visual capacities. Each feature is re//presented by a different texture and pattern tactile design. Users can generate…

The smart and connected wheelchair. The image3D model of a power wheelchair with iconography of a wireless wave surrounding it. On the right arm support is an icon of GPS location, on the left arm support are icons of wireless emissions from an on-board tablet and icon of messaging sending out from the chair.

Autonomous Wheelchair

The Autonomous Wheelchair project focuses on the addition of environmental sensors and real-time, on-board machine intelligence to enhance powered mobility options that are already on the market. We are designing a smart and connected power wheelchair add-on kit that would…

Digital drawing displaying a dark figure of a man who uses a wheelchair and wearing an XR headset. The background has mountains in a sunset of surreal lavender and orange coloring.

FleXR

FleXR aims to allow anyone with their own custom input systems to access Extended Reality(XR) applications without requiring physical movement of head-mounted displays or hand controllers that are standard today. FleXR’s prototype demonstrates the feasibility of standardizing input systems for…