Interface Digital Twins: Rendering Physical Devices Accessible to People who are Blind

Abstract

In the recent decades, accessibility received increasing attention. As a result, nowadays, established principles (e.g., Universal Design) contribute to creating products that take into consideration the diverse needs and abilities of all individuals. Unfortunately, there is a gap between the digital and physical world: while websites and user interfaces are adopting accessibility principles, most devices do not support an equitable use. Specifically, individuals who are blind are not able to independently learn and operate several categories of physical products. In this paper, we propose a system for rendering the User Interface (UI) of physical devices and products accessible to individuals with disabilities, with specific regard to people who are blind. To this end, we introduce the concept of Interface Digital Twin (IDT), that is, a digital replica of the physical UI that leverages the accessibility features of mobile devices (e.g., vibration and text-to-speech) to render the interface accessible, help individuals understand its components and learn how to operate it, and support users in accomplishing their tasks on the actual device. The advantage of the proposed solution is that it can be integrated in current technology without requiring any modification. We detail the architecture of the system and we discuss its advantages and use cases.