Abstract: Disclosed is a tablet with an improved Braille display. The Braille display employs a pin array that allows for the selective use of either six or eight pin cells. This is accomplished by turning off or on a pin pair adjacent to each cell. The spacing of the pins also allows capacitive sensors to be located adjacent to each Braille cell. These sensors are used to determine the location of the user's finger upon the display. The pin spacing further allows geometric shapes to be generated in additional to text.

Abstract: Disclosed is a braille display that is impact resistant and that employs a modular construction. The impact resistance is achieved, in part, by molded and resilient end caps. Each end cap includes a centrally positioned slit that functions in absorbing lateral impacts to the display. The impact resistance is further achieved by an over molded housing that is positioned about an associated USB connector. The modularity of the display is achieved by way of a subassembly that is releasably secured within the interior of a main housing. The subassembly, in turn, includes a series of cell compartments that are arranged in groups. Each group of cell compartments is controlled by an individual shift register. This allows a grouping cell compartments to be removed and replaced as needed without disturbing the remaining cell components.

Abstract: A screen reader application traverses each node in a document object model (DOM) for the text stylization. Properties for foreground color, background color, font type, font size and font stylization are algorithmically reduced to an identifier. Each node in the DOM with the same identifier has the same text stylization. Unique and infrequent text stylizations by a webpage author signal a point of interest. The screen reader application locates and navigates to that node in the DOM on behalf or in response to the end user. Points of interest are further identified by a number of additional factors. A first includes percentage of text of having the text stylization versus total text in the DOM. A second includes excluding candidate point of interest nodes having more than 250 characters. Others include imposing minimum font sizes and text contrast ratios to qualify as a point of interest.

Abstract: Accessibility for vision impaired users is improved with a novel screen reader system. A user interface control of a first application that switches a language applied to text displayed on the first application is identified to a second application. The second application stores an identifier for the user interface control and a value representative of the language selected by the user interface control to a data structure. The second application then listens for user control events occurring on the first application such as focus, click and selection events. When the second application detects the user interface control switching languages the second application changes the default screen reader language to the language of the visual text of the first application. Thus, the text-to-speech output of the visual text is read with the correct speech inflection and pronunciation of the selected language.

Abstract: A system and method of automatically adjusting an optimal color orientation displayed on a computing device, particularly for users experiencing light sensitivity when interacting with the computing device. The system and method automatically query whether an application includes native color inversion settings, such that operating system and/or application settings need not be continuously toggled between active and inactive states. Accordingly, the display of the computing device is automatically optimized, such that either the operating system's color inversion settings are selected (in the absence of an application's native color inversion settings), or the application's color inversion settings are selected with the operating system's settings being automatically deactivated.

Abstract: A high efficiency method of processing images to provide perceptual high-contrast output. Pixel intensities are calculated by a weighted combination of a fixed number of static bounding rectangle sizes. This is more performant than incrementally growing the bounding rectangle size and performing expensive analysis on resultant histograms. To mitigate image artifacts and noise, blurring and down-sampling are applied to the image prior to processing.

Abstract: Disclosed is a tablet with an improved Braille display. The Braille display employs a pin array that allows for the selective use of either six or eight pin cells. This is accomplished by turning off or on a pin pair adjacent to each cell. The spacing of the pins also allows capacitive sensors to be located adjacent to each Braille cell. These sensors are used to determine the location of the user's finger upon the display. The pin spacing further allows geometric shapes to be generated in additional to text.

Abstract: Disclosed is a portable magnifier camera with both storage and deployed configurations. In the storage configuration, the entire assembly can be carried via an associated handle. The camera is designed to rest on a desktop, or other planar surface, in the deployed configuration. When deployed, a housing and camera arm are positioned in a cantilevered arrangement over top of an object to be viewed. A camera housing, with an associated camera, is pivotally connected to the camera arm and is positioned over the object upon the camera being placed into a deployed configuration.

Abstract: Disclosed is a video processor for a magnifier camera. In particular, the disclosure relates to a video processor that eliminates the use of a frame buffer. This, in turn, reduces the latency otherwise present in the video signal. The disclosed video processor also allows selected portions of the display to be shaded. This highlights the non-shaded portions of the display while at the same time allowing the entire object to be perceived by the user.

Abstract: Disclosed is a magnification device with multiple orientations. This allows a blind or low vision user to select the best orientation for the task being performed. The device includes both opened and closed orientations. It is further configurable into document reading, near object inspection, far object inspection, and self-inspection modes. The camera of the device can be manipulated by the user depending upon which of these orientations is selected. Furthermore, the camera automatically adjusts itself into one of two pre-set configurations whenever the device is opened or closed.

Abstract: Disclosed is a braille display that is impact resistant and that employs a modular construction. The impact resistance is achieved, in part, by molded and resilient end caps. Each end cap includes a centrally positioned slit that functions in absorbing lateral impacts to the display. The impact resistance is further achieved by an over molded housing that is positioned about an associated USB connector. The modularity of the display is achieved by way of a subassembly that is releasably secured within the interior of a main housing. The subassembly, in turn, includes a series of cell compartments that are arranged in groups. Each group of cell compartments is controlled by an individual shift register. This allows a grouping cell compartments to be removed and replaced as needed without disturbing the remaining cell components.

Abstract: Disclosed is a portable magnifier camera with both storage and deployed configurations. In the storage configuration, the entire assembly can be carried via an associated handle. The camera is designed to rest on a desktop, or other planar surface, in the deployed configuration. When deployed, a housing and camera arm are positioned in a cantilevered arrangement over top of an object to be viewed. A camera housing, with an associated camera, is pivotally connected to the camera arm and is positioned over the object upon the camera being placed into a deployed configuration.

Abstract: A method of automatically partitioning a refreshable braille display based on presence of pertinent ancillary alphanumeric content. In an unpartitioned configuration, every braille cell of the refreshable braille display is used to output the primary alphanumeric content. When the refreshable braille display outputs a segment of the primary alphanumeric content having associated ancillary alphanumeric content, such as a footnote or a comment, the braille display is automatically partitioned into a first partition and a second partition. The braille cells of the first partition are allocated for outputting the primary alphanumeric content, while the braille cells of the second partition are allocated for outputting the ancillary alphanumeric content.

Abstract: The present disclosure relates to a vision assistive device for use by blind or low vision users. The device includes an imaging unit for viewing objects positioned beneath the device. The device further includes a forwardly facing screen for displaying an enlarged view of the imaged object to the user. The imaging unit is configured to take multiple views of the object, each with a different area of focus. This can be accomplished by digitally changing the imaging sensor's area of focus or by pivoting the sensor via a focus motor. In either event, the resulting images are combined into a single, integrated, focused, and composite image. Combining images with differing areas of focus helps eliminate any blurry regions in the composite image. The device further includes a rearwardly positioned fin that facilitates positioning the device in multiple different orientations. In a first orientation, the device is vertically positioned upon a desktop.

Abstract: Techniques for programmatically magnifying one or more visible content elements of at least one markup language document, so as to increase the display size of those visible content elements. A magnification facility may be configured to apply multiple different zoom techniques. The magnification facility may be configured to evaluate the markup language document(s) at a time that the document(s) are being processed for display to select which of the multiple different zoom techniques may be applied at a time to increase a display size of visible content elements relative to a default display size for those elements. The magnification facility may be incorporated within the markup language document(s) and executed by a viewing application that processes markup language documents. For example, the markup language document(s) may form a web page and the magnification facility may be implemented as scripting language code incorporated into the document(s) of the web page.

Abstract: A portable magnifier camera with an associated display housing, base and handle. The camera can be selectively positioned into a variety of configurations, including: a first closed configuration wherein the display and base are in facing relation; a second opened configuration wherein the display is angled with respect to the base; and a third hand-held configuration wherein a handle is pivoted outwardly to permit a user to hold the camera relative to a distant object. The angle of the camera adjusts automatically in each configuration to ensure that the camera's light of slight is perpendicular to the object plane. These configurations enable a user to effectively view objects of differing size and at varying distances.

Abstract: Mechanisms to allow a user to flexibly display visual content on multiple display devices connected to a computer. Each of the multiple displays may be configured to display a portion of visual content from a computer desktop or from an external content source. Each portion of visual content to be outputted may first be enhanced, such as via magnification, before being displayed on one of the multiple display devices. The user may be provided with a first control that enables the user to adjust a portion of visual content displayed on a first display device independently of a portion of visual content displayed on a second display device. A second control may also be provided that enables the user to adjust the portion of visual content displayed on the second display device independently of the portion of visual content displayed on the first display device.

Abstract: A screen magnification software feature that listens to internal messages within an operating system and automatically detects an input control coming into focus and sets a primary magnified viewport on that input control. As an end user interacts with the input control the software further listens for operating system messaging indicating a change in an output region responsive to the interaction with the input control. Upon detecting this output region change, a secondary magnified viewport is displays simultaneously with the primary magnified viewport on a graphic user interface, the focus staying within the primary magnified viewport. The end user has magnified views of both the control she is interacting with (e.g., a virtual calculator keypad of buttons) in the primary viewport and the output region (e.g., a text box showing the calculated result) in the secondary viewport.

Abstract: A method of dynamically establishing an auto-advance interval of a refreshable braille display. The method involves the step of establishing a default auto-advance value, during which a full line of braille characters remains displayed on the braille display prior to being replaced by the next line. The method further involves determining whether a current line of braille characters ends with a blank cell or a used cell and calculating the current auto-advance interval based on the number of used cells in the current line. The next line of braille characters is output after the current auto-advance interval has lapsed.

Abstract: Disclosed is a braille display that is impact resistant and that employs a modular construction. The impact resistance is achieved, in part, by molded and resilient end caps. Each end cap includes a centrally positioned slit that functions in absorbing lateral impacts to the display. The impact resistance is further achieved by an over molded housing that is positioned about an associated USB connector. The modularity of the display is achieved by way of a subassembly that is releasably secured within the interior of a main housing. The subassembly, in turn, includes a series of cell compartments that are arranged in groups. Each group of cell compartments is controlled by an individual shift register. This allows a grouping cell compartments to be removed and replaced as needed without disturbing the remaining cell components.