Publications

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Exploring Mobile Device Accessibility: Challenges, Insights, and Recommendations for Evaluation Methodologies

While web accessibility evaluations have received extensive attention, evaluating mobile applications remains an open question. In our paper, we explore this issue through four studies: analyzing accessibility reports from European Member-states, interviewing accessibility experts, conducting manual evaluations, and performing usability tests with users having disabilities. Our findings reveal significant limitations in current evaluation methods, primarily due to the absence of authoritative guidelines and standards. We propose a set of recommendations aimed at improving the evaluation methodologies for assessing mobile applications’ accessibility.

LetĂ­cia Seixas Pereira, Maria Matos, Carlos Duarte

CHI 2024 ‑ ACM Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, May, 2024

The image demonstrates the Point and Teleport locomotion technique. There is a view of the user with the controller and the visuals conveyed in the Head Mounted Display. The visuals show the controller pointing to the pretended area the user wants to be teleported to and a visual representation of the objective on the back.

Investigating Virtual Reality Locomotion Techniques with Blind People

Many Virtual Reality (VR) locomotion techniques have been proposed, but those explored for and with blind people are often custom-made or require specialized equipment. We implemented three popular techniques — Arm Swinging, Linear Movement, and Point & Teleport — with minor adaptations for accessibility. We conducted a study with 14 blind participants consisting of navigation tasks with these techniques and a semi-structured interview. We found no differences in overall performance, but contrasting preferences. We discuss how augmenting the techniques enabled blind people to navigate in VR, the greater control of movement of Arm Swinging, the simplicity and familiarity of Linear Movement, and the potential for efficiency and for scanning the environment of Point & Teleport.

Renato Alexandre Ribeiro, InĂȘs Gonçalves, Manuel Piçarra, LetĂ­cia Seixas Pereira, Carlos Duarte, AndrĂ© Rodrigues, JoĂŁo Guerreiro

CHI 2024 ‑ ACM Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, May, 2024

An overview of the Living Framework for Cooperative Games. Play Structures, with its subcategories: Progression Structure, Goal Structure, Group Formation; Player Context, with its subcategories: Representation Type, Representation Selection, Representation Progress, Representation Relations, Game World, and Player Viewpoint; Forms of Cooperation, with its subcategories: Arrangement, Synchronicity, Communication By Design, and Means of Communication; And Cooperative Design Patterns, with its subcategories: Play Structures and Player Context (part of the first two categories), Dependencies, Action Relations, Asymmetries, Affecting Others and Resource Sharing.

A Living Framework for Understanding Cooperative Games

In this work, we introduce the Living Framework for Cooperative Games (LFCG), a framework derived from a multi-step systematic analysis of 129 cooperative games with contributions of eleven researchers. We describe how LFCG can be used as a tool for analyses and ideation, and as a shared language for describing a game’s design. LFCG is published as a web application to facilitate use and appropriation. It supports the creation, dissemination and aggregation of game reports and specifications; and enables stakeholders to extend and publish custom versions. Lastly, we discuss using a research-driven approach for formalising game structures and the advantages of community contributions for consolidation and reach.

Pedro Pais, David Gonçalves, Daniel Reis, João Godinho, João Morais, Manuel Piçarra, Pedro Trindade, Dmitry Alexandrovsky, Kathrin Gerling, João Guerreiro, André Rodrigues

CHI 2024 ‑ ACM Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, May, 2024

Co-designing Customizable Clinical Dashboards with Multidisciplinary Teams: Bridging the Gap in Chronic Disease Care

Providing care to individuals with chronic diseases benefits from a multidisciplinary approach and longitudinal symptom, event, and disease monitoring, in and out of clinical facilities. This paper explores the challenges and opportunities of multidisciplinary clinical dashboards to support clinicians caring for people with chronic diseases. We report on a focus group and co-design workshops with a multidisciplinary team of clinicians and HCI researchers. We offer insights into how technological outcomes and visualizations can enhance clinical practice and the intricacies of information-sharing dynamics. We discuss the potential of dashboards to trigger actions in clinical settings and emphasize the benefits of customizable dashboards.

Diogo Branco, Margarida MĂłteiro, Raquel Bouça, Rita Miranda, Tiago Reis, ,Élia Decoroso, Rita Cardoso, Joana Ramalho, Filipa Rato, Joana Malheiro, Diana Miranda, VerĂłnica Caniça, Filipa Pona-Ferreira, Daniela Guerreiro, Mariana LeitĂŁo, Alexandra SaĂșde Braz, Joaquim Ferreira, Tiago Guerreiro

CHI 2024 ‑ ACM Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, May, 2024

The image shows two panels - each of them consists of a screenshot taken from the game, demonstranting one of the mechanics. In both of them, there is a blue penguin on a red floater centered on a white snowy track, facing forward. The trail behind the floater indicates it is moving forward. The left panel shows the timed gate - a gate appears blocking the entire track, with a cobbled floor in that area and a traffic light. The right panel shows the activation of the forced handbrake - red particles appear behind the floater.

The Trick is to Stay Behind?: Defining and Exploring the Design Space of Player Balancing Mechanics

Disparate skill levels or expertise may result in unbalanced multiplayer experiences, where players feel frustrated, unchallenged, or left out. Some games employ player balancing mechanisms, such as matchmaking to group players according to their rank or, in racing games, players who lag behind receiving powerful boosts to catch up. We add to the understanding of player balancing in multiplayer gaming. First with a theoretical model that captures seven high-level design categories. Second, with a study where participant pairs experienced and gave their perspectives on seven different balancing mechanics in a racing game. Our results outline the importance of preserving a sense of merit and agency, while avoiding an obtrusive effect on the gameplay.

David Gonçalves, Daniel Barros, Pedro Pais, João Guerreiro, Tiago Guerreiro, André Rodrigues

CHI 2024 ‑ ACM Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, May, 2024

A montage of two screenshots, one from the desktop version and the other from the mobile version. In the desktop version, you can see the player character in a room with 2D top-down visuals and the controls imprinted on the room's floor. In the mobile version, you can see the unlocks tab of the shop, with multiple unlocks appearing and a visualization of the shop on the bottom part of the screen.

Promoting Family Play through Asymmetric Game Design

For families, where abilities, motivations, and availability vary widely, opportunities for intergenerational play are limited. Designing games that cater to these differences remains an open challenge. In this paper, we first identify barriers related with time and expertise. Next, we propose asymmetric game design and asynchronous play to reconcile children’s and adults’ requirements; and interdependent gameplay mechanics to foster real-world interactions. Following this approach, we designed a testbed game and conducted a mixed-methods remote study with six pairs of adult-child family members. Our results showcase how asymmetric, asynchronous experiences can be leveraged to create novel gaming experiences that meet the requirements of family play. We discuss how interdependent progress can be designed to promote real-world interactions, creating pervasive conversational topics that permeate the family routine.

Pedro Pais, David Gonçalves, Kathrin Gerling, Teresa Romão, Tiago Guerreiro, André Rodrigues

CSCW 2024 ‑ ACM Conference on Computer-Supported Cooperative Work and Social Computing, October, 2024

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Digital health and patient adherence: A qualitative study with older adults

We analysed the role of non-clinical factors (i.e. computer confidence and computer self-efficacy) in the interaction experience (IX) and the feasibility of a digital neuropsychological platform called NeuroVRehab.PT in a group of older adults with varying levels of computer confidence. This study shed light on the barriers raised by non-clinical factors in adopting and using digital healthcare services by older adults. Furthermore, we did a critical analysis of the platform’s features that promote user adoption, and presented suggestions for overcoming limitations.

Filipa Ferreira-Brito, Sérgio Alves, Tiago Guerreiro, Osvaldo Santos, Cåtia Caneiras, Luís Carriço, Ana Verdelho

DIGITAL HEALTH 2024 ‑ DH 2024

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Towards Real-Time Measurements of Internet Health: Optimizing Large-Scale Web Accessibility Evaluations

We investigate the impacts of optimising the page selection processes of large-scale web accessibility evaluations. We conducted an automated analysis of 987 websites using the `Home+’ sample method as our baseline; then compare the agreement rates of web accessibility evaluations on further sub-sampled datasets. Our findings demonstrate that strong agreement could be reached with a sub-sample of just 30% of the pages, significantly reducing the effort and resources required to conduct large-scale web accessibility evaluations.

LuĂ­s Carvalho, Tiago Guerreiro, Shaun Lawson, Kyle Montague

ASSETS 2023 ‑ ACM Conference on Computers and Accessibility

A diagram built around an horizontal line that represents the spectrum of definitions for social gaming identified in the work. The definitions are: Social as non-solitary, Social in the game's intent, Social in the interactions, Social in the outcomes, and Social inherent to gaming.

Social gaming: A systematic review

This work contributes with a systematized view of social aspects that permeate gaming experiences, while outlining directions and implications for future work. It presents a systematic review, covering 263 publications, with a particular focus on previous definitions and approaches, determinants that shape the experience, methodologies, and measurable outcomes.

David Gonçalves, Pedro Pais, Kathrin Gerling, Tiago Guerreiro, André Rodrigues

CHB 2023 ‑ Computers in Human Behavior, July, 2023

A diagram showing the range of an accessibility metric scores for products in six categories. In the advertising category the scores range from 0,652 for DoubleClick to 0,755 for Facebook Advertiser. In the Content Management Systems category the scores range from 0,566 for Joomla to 0,855 for Jimdo. In the JavaScript Frameworks category the scores range from 0,583 for MooTools to 0,809 for Mustache JS. In the JavaScript Libraries category the scores range from 0,328 for Isotope to 0,769 for Polyfill. In the Programming Languages category the scores range from 0,547 for NodeJS to 0,816 for Python. Finally, in the UI frameworks category the scores range from 0,641 for ZURB Foundation to 0,699 for animate.css.

A large-scale web accessibility analysis considering technology adoption

This paper reports the results of the automated accessibility evaluation of nearly three million web pages. The analysis of the evaluations allowed us to characterize the status of web accessibility. On average, we identified 30 errors per web page, and only a very small number of pages had no accessibility barriers identified. The more frequent problems found were inadequate text contrast and lack of accessible names. Additionally, we identified the technologies present in the websites evaluated, which allowed us to relate web technologies with the accessibility level, as measured by A3, an accessibility metric. Our findings show that most categories of web technologies impact the accessibility of web pages, but that even for those categories that show a negative impact, it is possible to select technologies that improve or do not impair the accessibility of the web content.

Beatriz Martins, Carlos Duarte

UAIS 2023 ‑ Universal Access in the Information Society

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Identification of Fatigue and Sleepiness in Immune and Neurodegenerative Disorders from Measures of Real-World Gait Variability

The current study investigated the use of gait variability in the “real world” to identify patient fatigue and daytime sleepiness. Inertial measurement units were worn on the lower backs of 159 participants (117 with six different immune and neurodegenerative disorders and 42 healthy controls) for up to 20 days, whom completed regular PROs.

Chloe Hinchliffe, Rana Zia Ur Rehman, Diogo Branco, Dan Jackson, Teemu Ahmaniemi, Tiago Guerreiro, et al

IEEE EMBC 2023 ‑ IEEE Engineering in Medicine and Biology Society

Purple gradient background with Braille inscriptions. On the left, two children using the helm, followed by a drawing of the robot, then a photo of children using TACTOPI during the activity. On the right, a child with a speech balloon 'It seems to be a star', a blue 3D printed turtle with a speech balloon 'I'm the turtle'. On the bottom right, the turtle challenge card.

TACTOPI: Exploring Play with an Inclusive Multisensory Environment for Children with Mixed-Visual Abilities

We present TACTOPI, an inclusive and playful multisensory environment that leverages tangible interaction and a robot as the main character. We investigate how TACTOPI supports play in 10 dyads of children with mixed visual abilities. We also contribute with a playful multisensory environment, an analysis of the efect of its components on social, cognitive, and inclusive play, and design considerations for inclusive multisensory environments that prioritize play.

Ana Pires, LĂșcia Abreu, Filipa Rocha, Hugo SimĂŁo, JoĂŁo Guerreiro, Tiago Guerreiro, Hugo Nicolau

IDC 2023 ‑ ACM Interaction Design and Children, June, 2023

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screenshot taken from the video game 'The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask'. The image shows the playable character, Link, swinging his sword besides a big pot in a swamp-like scenario. The player’s webcam is seen in the corner of the image, but their face is pixelated (anonymized).

“My Zelda Cane”: Strategies Used by Blind Players to Play Visual-Centric Digital Games

In this work, we analyze over 70 hours of YouTube videos, where blind content-creators play visual-centric games. We point out the various strategies employed by players to overcome barriers that permeate mainstream games. We reflect on ways to enable and improve blind players’ experience with these games, shedding light on the positive and negative consequences of apparently benign design choices. Our observations underline how game elements are appropriated for accessibility, the incidental consequences of audio design, and the trade-offs between accessibility, agency, and engagement.

David Gonçalves, Manuel Piçarra, Pedro Pais, João Guerreiro, André Rodrigues

CHI 2023 ‑ ACM Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, April, 2023

Best Paper Award

Colorful cartoon representation of the role's workspace and its elements. On the top, two separated blue backgrounds represent the remote environment connected by Wi-Fi. On the left, the map explorer's workspace with the LEGO-based map, an Ozobot Evo, a yellow crate, and a PC. On the right, the block commander's workspace with the PC is connected to the magic box with the four types of coding blocks inside. On the bottom, a yellow rectangle background represents the co-located environment with the map explorer's workspace on the left, with the LEGO-based map, an Ozobot Evo, and a yellow crate. In the middle, is the PC they both share. On the right, connected to the PC, the magic box with the four types of coding blocks inside.

Coding Together: On Co-located and Remote Collaboration between Children with Mixed-Visual Abilities

We investigated the tradeoffs between remote and co-located collaboration through a tangible coding kit. We asked ten pairs of mixed-visual ability children to collaborate in an interdependent and asymmetric coding game. We contribute insights on six dimensions - effectiveness, computational thinking, accessibility, communication, cooperation, and engagement - and reflect on differences, challenges, and advantages between collaborative settings related to communication, workspace awareness, and computational thinking training. Lastly, we discuss design opportunities of tangibles, audio, roles, and tasks to create inclusive learning activities in remote and co-located settings.

Filipa Rocha, Filipa Correia, Isabel Neto, Ana Pires, JoĂŁo Guerreiro, Tiago Guerreiro, Hugo Nicolau

CHI 2023 ‑ ACM Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, April, 2023

A 3d model of a face with the smart glasses, showing the axis of the accelerometer on the side.

Smart Glasses for Gait Analysis of Parkinson’s Disease Patients

In this preliminary study, we examine the possibility of using smart glasses equipped with Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU) sensors for providing objective information on the motor state of PD patients. Data was collected from seven patients with PD with varying levels of symptom severity, who performed a total of 35 trails of the Timed-Up-and-Go (TUG) test while wearing the glasses. Findings suggest that smart glasses have the potential for unobtrusive and continuous screening of PD patients’ gait, enhancing the medical assessment and treatment.

Ivana Kiprijanovska, Filip Panchevski, Simon Stankoski, Martin Gjoreski, James Archer, John Broulidakis, Ifigeneia Mavridou, Bradley Hayes, Tiago Guerreiro, Charles Nduka, and Hristijan Gjoreski

MIPRO 2023 ‑ 46th MIPRO ICT and Electronics Convention

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Basic concept of sensors for movement disorders specialists

Recent technological advances have led to the development of sensors that can potentially connect patients and their care team beyond the traditional, and brief, clinical visit, improving accessibility and continuity of care. In this chapter, we examine the basic concepts related to sensor use in movement disorders and discuss the opportunities and challenges they represent for clinical practice and research.

Raquel Bouça-Machado, Linda Azevedo Kaupilla, Tiago Guerreiro, Joaquim J. Ferreira

Chapter 2023 ‑ International Review of Movement Disorders

Three of the different accessibility features available during the user study of the Virtual Environment. The first navigational task demonstrates that the avatar has to reach an objective, a cube. On the fourth task, players have to overcome the fence that is blocking their path, with two torches identifying the objective's directions and the length of the door to the next room. And on the sixth task, they can request directions to the objective, which can be done visually by following an orange line.

Evaluating Accessible Navigation for Blind People in Virtual Environments

We explore a set of techniques that augment or are even embedded in the game design to facilitate navigation and spatial awareness of virtual environments. We conducted a user study where seven blind participants faced a number of navigational tasks in a virtual environment with these techniques and shared their perspectives on the experience. We contribute with an exploration of a catalog of techniques used to facilitate the navigation of virtual spaces and a reflection of their impact on players’ experience, highlighting avenues for future work in the field.

Manuel Piçarra, André Rodrigues, João Guerreiro

CHI EA 2023 ‑ Extended Abstracts of the ACM Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, April, 2023

Montage of 5 screenshots, in a 3 by 2 grid, that illustrate our 2D virtual environment. The image on the upper left corner depicts a group of 4 avatars having a conversation, followed by an image that shows an interaction between 2 avatars, where the user's avatar is receiving audio notifcations with the name of the passerby. The third image from the top depicts the environment of the 'Teleport' and 'Auto-Walk' scenarios, where the user has access to 4 buttons disposed vertically on the top left, which indicates that there are 4 groups in the environment - Group 1, Group 2, Group 3 and Group 4. Here, the user is accessing group 1, which is shown in a popup screen next to the buttons, having 'Group 1' as a title, followed by the names of the 5 participants of that group, a button to hear a conversation preview, and another button to be automatically transported to that group. In the lower-left corner, there is an image with the total view of the room. It is a large rectangular space, with a small adjacent rectangle on the upper left corner of the room. The room is bordered by walls and trees, and it is composed by 2 groups of 3 avatars, 2 groups of 5 avatars, 2 individual avatars, and the main avatar - controlled by the user. The last image illustrates the user's avatar being guided by another avatar toward a group of 3 participants.

Inclusive Social Virtual Environments: Exploring the Acceptability of Different Navigation and Awareness Techniques

Social virtual environments are becoming more prevalent, replicating and sometimes replacing real-world interactions. Nowadays, such environments are not accessible and end up excluding blind people, due to their strong visual components. In this study, we designed and explored multiple navigation and feedback techniques assessing social acceptability, ease of use, and efficiency. We developed a virtual environment composed of six scenarios to analyze different navigation methods (Free Exploration, Teleport, Auto-Walk, and Co-Pilot) and awareness cues in group conversations (Audio Cues While In-Group Footsteps and In-Group Teleport), and conducted a user study with 8 blind and 8 sighted participants. Our results indicate that participants tend to privilege autonomy and room awareness over efficiency and navigation ease and disapprove of intrusive actions that may jeopardize privacy.

InĂȘs Gonçalves, AndrĂ© Rodrigues, Tiago Guerreiro, JoĂŁo Guerreiro

CHI EA 2023 ‑ Extended Abstracts of the ACM Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, April, 2023

Google Chrome Browser with the google.com page open. On the top bar of the browser, the extension popup is open. From the top to the bottom: A title saying gitUI editing tool, and next to it an icon for more information; two tabs (Edit and Requests); a dropdown saying current adaptation; a button with the text move; a button with the text reorder; a button with the text resize; a button with the text spacer (and a dropdown to select the margin); a button with the text Hide; two inputs (one for text, other for URL) followed by a button with the text shortcut; an input with a value of 23 followed by a button with the text Font-size; a colour input (black) followed by a button with the text Change Color; a button with the text Inspect element; two buttons (one back arrow on the left, and a settings icon on the right); and a save icon.

GitUI: A Community-Based Platform to Democratize User Interfaces

Following the success of open software repositories, we present a novel community-based customization system where users can: 1) customize UIs for the self and others – using a customization toolkit; 2) use and further adapt public customization templates – found in an online repository; or 3) request customization assistance. We explored this concept in the context of Web technologies by developing GitUI. GitUI was iteratively developed and evaluated over two deployment phases. In a two-phase study (n=9), experts and non-experts 1) used, for two weeks, the customization toolkit; and 2) explored the repository.

SĂ©rgio Alves, Ricardo Costa, Kyle Montague, Tiago Guerreiro

CHI EA 2023 ‑ Extended Abstracts of the ACM Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, April, 2023

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Democratizing Data-Driven Healthcare

This position paper focuses on the democratization of data-driven healthcare and addresses three key topics: data availability and clinical utility, agency and negotiation, and data minimization. We refer to our prior work on two projects, DataPark and Cue Band, as examples of efforts to democratize healthcare data. We propose new ideas for exploring these topics and promoting the democratization of healthcare data.

Diogo Branco, Tiago Guerreiro, Kyle Montague, Luís Carvalho, Lorelle Dismore, Richard Walker, Dan Jackson, Raquel Bouça and Joaquim Ferreira

IDDHI 2023 ‑ CHI’23 workshop on Intelligent Data-Driven Health Interfaces

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Challenges of digital healthcare service adoption by [us] the next generation of Older Adults

In this position paper, we reflect about the challenges of adoption of technology for older adults, and share our experiences with universities for older adults.

Filipa Ferreira-Brito

CHI Workshop 2023 ‑ Bridging HCI and Implementation Science for Innovation Adoption and Public Health Impact Workshop at CHI, April, 2023

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Intake of added sugar, fruits, vegetables, and legumes of Portuguese preschool children: Baseline data from SmartFeeding4Kids randomized controlled trial participants

This paper aims to describe the children’s dietary pattern at baseline of the SmartFeeding4Kids (SF4K) program, focusing on the intake of added sugars, fruits, vegetables, and legumes. We conclude that Fruit was the group with the highest daily intake among children, followed by added sugar foods. All children did not meet calcium, vitamin B12 and vitamin D intake recommendations. Our findings further justify the need for dietary interventions in this field, to improve young children’s diets.

Sofia Charneca, Ana Isabel Gomes, Diogo Branco, Tiago Guerreiro, LuĂ­sa Barros, Joana Sousa

Frontiers in Nutrition 2023 ‑ 

The image presents the 9 categories of the design space: Awareness, Audio Field, Spatialization, time signsal, sound type, representation, cardinality, concurrency, and trigger. It is followed by one figure and one table that are presented in the paper and that try to better showcase the meaning of such categories

The Design Space of the Auditory Representation of Objects and Their Behaviours in Virtual Reality for Blind People

In this paper, the authors propose a design space to explore how to augment objects and their behaviours with an audio representation in order to make virtual environments more accessible to blind people. The authors then explored this design space in the context of two VR Boxing applications in user studies with 16 blind participants, finding several engaging approaches for the audio representation of virtual objects (e.g., the opponent’s hands when attacking or defending).

João Guerreiro, Yujin Kim, Rodrigo Nogueira, SeungA Chung, André Rodrigues, Uran Oh

IEEE VR 2023 ‑ IEEE Conference on Virtual Reality and 3D User Interfaces, March, 2023

Study workflow. 3000 people with parkinson's disease are recruited. 300 will participate in an RCT with two arms, where one starts with a smartphone and other with cue.band (3 weeks), and after a period of wahsout (2 weeks) they do the other condition. They are debriefed in the end with questionnaires and an interview. 2700 participants participate in an open study providing anonymous usage data and optional feedback through the app.

A protocol for the evaluation of a wearable device for monitoring of symptoms, and cueing for the management of drooling, in people with Parkinson’s disease

This research will deploy CueBand, a discrete and comfortable wrist-worn device designed to work with a smartphone application to support the real-world evaluation of haptic cueing for the management of drooling. We will recruit 3,000 PwP to wear the device day and night for the intervention period to gain a greater understanding of the effectiveness and acceptability of the technology within real-world use. Additionally, 300 PwP who self-identity as having an issue with drooling will be recruited into an intervention study to evaluate the effectiveness of the wrist-worn CueBand to deliver haptic cueing (3-weeks) compared with smartphone cueing methods (3-weeks). PwP will use our smartphone application to self-assess their drooling frequency, severity, and duration using visual analogue scales and through the completion of daily diaries. Semi-structured interviews to gain feedback about utility of CueBand will be conducted following participants completion of the intervention.

Lorelle Dismore,Kyle Montague ,Luis Carvalho,Tiago Guerreiro,Dan Jackson,Yu Guan,Richard Walker

Plos One 2023 ‑ 

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Large-scale study of web accessibility metrics

Evaluating the accessibility of web resources is usually done by checking the conformance of the resource against a standard or set of guidelines (e.g., the WCAG 2.1). The result of the evaluation will indicate what guidelines are respected (or not) by the resource. While it might hint at the accessibility level of web resources, often it will be complicated to compare the level of accessibility of different resources or of different versions of the same resource from evaluation reports. Web accessibility metrics synthesize the accessibility level of a web resource into a quantifiable value. The fact that there is a wide number of accessibility metrics, makes it challenging to choose which ones to use. In this paper, we explore the relationship between web accessibility metrics. For that purpose, we investigated eleven web accessibility metrics. The metrics were computed from automated accessibility evaluations obtained using QualWeb. A set of around three million web pages were evaluated. By computing the metrics over this sample of nearly three million web pages, it was possible to identify groups of metrics that offer similar results. Our analysis shows that there are metrics that behave similarly, which, when deciding what metrics to use, assists in picking the metric that is less resource intensive or for which it might be easier to collect the inputs.

Beatriz Martins, Carlos Duarte

UAIS 2022 ‑ Universal Access in the Information Society

A person meditating with a VR headset

VR4Health: Workshop on Virtual Reality for Health and Wellbeing

This workshop aims to promote the exchange of experiences, knowledge, and know-how on strategies to develop effective and accessible VR tools for diagnosis, intervention, rehabilitation, and monitoring of health and wellbeing.

Filipa Brito, Hristijan Gjoreski, Oscar Mayora, Mitja LuĆĄtrek, Emilija Kizhevska, JoĂŁo Guerreiro, Kathrin Gerling, Sergi BermĂșdez i Badia, Tiago Guerreiro

VR4Health 2022 ‑ Workshop on Virtual Reality for Health and Wellbeing at MUM 2022

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Using VR and Sensors for Anxiety with Children and Adolescents

We conducted a narrative review focusing on both VR exposure for children and adolescents and sensors’ use for VR exposure. Virtual reality exposure therapy (VRET) seems to have similar results to other forms of exposure. Additionally, sensors managed to obtain an objective picture, which allows the therapist to get some objective measures during therapy. Although cybersickness seems to not be a major side effect in children, other limitations such as fear of the equipment and lack of adaptability were identified.

JoĂŁo Ferreira, Filipa Brito, JoĂŁo Guerreiro, Tiago Guerreiro

VR4Health 2022 ‑ Workshop on Virtual Reality for Health and Wellbeing at MUM 2022

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Using Virtual Reality to elicit Empathy: a narrative review

We conducted a narrative review of studies focused on using VR to elicit empathy. Considering the synthesized literature, we identified three contexts where VR systems have been used as a tool to study empathic behavior, namely: 1) to promote pro-environmental behavior; 2) to promote prosocialbehavior toward specific social groups (e.g., refugees); and 3) to medical training to promote empathy and more in-depth knowledge of clinical condition

Emilija Kizhevska, Filipa Brito, Tiago Guerreiro, Mitja LuĆĄtrek

VR4Health 2022 ‑ Workshop on Virtual Reality for Health and Wellbeing at MUM 2022

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Assessing fatigue and sleep in chronic diseases using physiological signals from wearables: A pilot study

This work investigates the feasibility of capturing continuous physiological signals from an electrocardiography-based wearable device for remote monitoring of fatigue and sleep and quantifies the relationship of objective digital measures to self-reported fatigue and sleep disturbances. Furthermore, it underscores the promise and sensitivity of novel digital measures from multimodal sensor time-series to differentiate chronic patients from healthy individuals and monitor their HRQoL. Therefore, it provides clinicians with realistic insights of continuous at home patient monitoring and its practical value in quantitative assessment of fatigue and sleep, an area of unmet need.

Emmi Antikainen, Haneen Njoum, Jennifer Kudelka, Diogo Branco, Rana Zia Ur Rehman, Victoria Macrae, Kristen Davies, Hanna Hildesheim, Kirsten Emmert, Ralf Reilmann, C. Janneke van der Woude, Walter Maetzler, Wan-Fai Ng, Patricio O’Donnell, Geert Van Gassen, FrĂ©dĂ©ric Baribaud, Ioannis Pandis, Nikolay V. Manyakov, Mark van Gils, Teemu Ahmaniemi and Meenakshi Chatterjee on behalf of the IDEA-FAST project consortium

Frontiers 2022 ‑ Frontiers in Physiology

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Machine-learning models for MDS-UPDRS III Prediction: A comparative study of features, models, and data sources

In our work, we try to estimate the MDS-UPDRS part III score from accelerometer data. We collected data from 74 patients using the Axitvity AX3 device both on the wrist and lower back. We did experiments with different models, features, and windows size. We achieved a 4.26 Mean Absolute Error on the on left out 10% data using both devices with a 2.5-second sliding window and a random forest model for prediction. We contribute with a comparison of the performed experiments and provide, according to our experiments, the optimal models for MDS-UPDRS part III estimation using only accelerometer data.

Vitor Lobo, Diogo Branco, Tiago Guerreiro, Raquel Bouça-Machado, Joaquim Ferreira, and the CNS Physiotherapy Study Group

PHSS 2022 ‑ Pervasive Health and Smart Sensing at Information Society 2022

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Authoring Accessible Media Content on Social Networks

We sought to understand how people are perceiving this type of online content in their networks and how support tools are being used. To do so, we conducted a user study, with 258 social network users through an online questionnaire, followed by interviews with 20 of them – 7 blind users and 13 sighted users. Results show how the different approaches being employed by major platforms may not be sufficient to address this issue properly. Our findings reveal that users are not always aware of the possibility and the benefits of adopting accessible practices. From the general perspectives of end-users experiencing accessible practices, concerning barriers encountered, and motivational factors, we also discuss further approaches to create more user engagement and awareness.

Letícia Seixas Pereira, José Coelho, André Rodrigues, João Guerreiro, Tiago Guerreiro, Carlos Duarte

ASSETS 2022 ‑ ACM Conference on Computers and Accessibility

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Current Practices in Teaching Computational Thinking to Children: Accessibility is an Afterthought

We present findings from a qualitative interview study with 6 IT instructors depicting their practices, experiences, and their views towards an inclusive future classroom.

Marta Carvalho, Filipa Rocha, JoĂŁo Guerreiro, Hugo Nicolau, Tiago Guerreiro, Ana Pires

ACM IDC Workshops 2022 ‑ Co-designing with Mixed-ability Groups of Children to Promote Inclusive Education, 2022

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Co-Designing with Mixed-Ability Groups of Children to Promote Inclusive Education

In this half-day workshop, we will explore how to co-design technology in inclusive classrooms where children have diverse sensory, motor, cognitive or behavioral abilities. We will discuss barriers and opportunities in co-designing for inclusion, exploring techniques and tools to support learning in a collaborative environment. We encourage researchers, educators, parents, and other stakeholders to participate and provide their expertise and know-how in improving these environments, with an aim to support both inclusion and collaboration; and children’s exploration of their own interests and approaches to learning. We seek to better understand research experiences in these environments, co-design techniques that were successfully used, and what they can teach the broader field of interaction design for children.

Ana Pires, Isabel Neto, Emeline Brulé, Laura Malinverni, Oussama Metatla, Juan Pablo Hourcade

IDC 2022 ‑ ACM Interaction Design and Children (IDC) Conference

Chart comparing the individual f-scores for the general and personalised NN models. While most bars are comparable, at around 0.85, for participants P10, P11, and P18, the general model bar is at around 0.75 with the personalised bar achieving similar values as the in the other participants

Personalised Gait Recognition for People with Neurological Conditions

We compare general machine learning (CNN and NN) methods with a fine-tuned personalised version of each one of them. This approach enables a model to be trained with a not-so-large general model, and then personalised with individual data in a fine-tuning step. We showed that the latter improved the overall accuracy by 3.5% for the NN, and 5.3% for the CNN, and that those that were outliers (i.e., with the worst accuracy) in the results of the general version of the models were on par with the recognition accuracy expected from the larger group.

Leon Ingelse, Diogo Branco, Hristijan Gjoreski, Tiago Guerreiro, Raquel Bouça-Machado, Joaquim J. Ferreira, and The CNS Physiotherapy Study Group

Sensors 2022 ‑ Special Issue Application of Wearable Technology for Neurological Conditions, 2022

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The WildKey Keyboard opened with the private mode highlighted (image of a lock on the top left corner of the keyboard) and the number of pending tasks on the top right of the keyboard. The keyboard is shown in a messaging app with the following exchange: No raw text is collected. Password and number fields are ignored. It also has a private mode. Lastly a second image of a smartphone shows a question with a 6 point scale propmted through WildKey.

Investigating the Tradeoffs of Everyday Text-Entry Collection Methods

Typing on mobile devices is a common and complex task. The act of typing itself thereby encodes rich information, such as the typing method, the context it is performed in, and individual traits of the person typing. Researchers are increasingly using a selection or combination of experience sampling and passive sensing methods in real-world settings to examine typing behaviours. However, there is limited understanding of the effects these methods have on measures of input speed, typing behaviours, compliance, perceived trust and privacy. In this paper, we investigate the tradeoffs of everyday data collection methods. We contribute empirical results from a four-week field study (N=26). Here, participants contributed by transcribing, composing, passively having sentences analyzed and reflecting on their contributions. We present a tradeoff analysis of these data collection methods, discuss their impact on text-entry applications, and contribute a flexible research platform for in the wild text-entry studies

André Rodrigues, Hugo Nicolau, André Santos, Diogo Branco, Jay Rainey, David Verweij, Jan Smeddinck, Kyle Montague, Tiago Guerreiro

CHI 2022 ‑ ACM Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, May, 2022

Best Paper Award

Activity in a care home where a group of older adults is working on a table and watching the other group through a video call

Value Sensitive HRI

Value Sensitive HRI is a method based on design principles that consider the interleaved, dynamic, and sometimes conflicting stakeholders’ values in human-robot interaction. We discuss how this approach will help design technology that better meets the values of all the stakeholders that surround a human-robot interaction and can even transfer agency from robots to people. We aim to share early insights regarding possible social impacts, identify under-explored real-world approaches and perspectives, and discuss future implementation challenges and guidelines for the shift to Value Sensitive HRI.

Hugo SimĂŁo, Alexandre Bernardino, Jodi Forlizzi, Tiago Guerreiro

HRI Workshops 2022 ‑ Longitudinal Social Impacts of HRI over Long-Term Deployments @ HRI 2022, March, 2022

SmartFeeding4Kids, an online self-guided parenting intervention to promote positive feeding practices and healthy diet in young children: study protocol for a randomized controlled trial

This work aims to describe the development and study protocol of the SmartFeeding4Kids (SF4K) program, an online self-guided 7-session intervention for parents of young (2–6 years old) children. The program is informed by social cognitive, self-regulation, and habit formation theoretical models and uses self-regulatory techniques as self-monitoring, goal setting, and feedback to promote behavior change. We propose to examine the intervention efficacy on children’s intake of fruit, vegetables, and added sugars, and parental feeding practices with a two-arm randomized controlled with four times repeated measures design (baseline, immediately, 3 and 6 months after intervention). Parental perceived barriers about food and feeding, food parenting self-efficacy, and motivation to change will be analyzed as secondary outcomes. The study of the predictors of parents’ dropout rates and the trajectories of parents’ and children’s outcomes are also objectives of this work.

Ana Isabel Gomes, Ana Isabel Pereira, Tiago Guerreiro, Diogo Branco, Magda Sofia Roberto, Ana Pires, Joana Sousa, Tom Baranowski, LuĂ­sa Barros

Trials 2021 ‑ Clinical Trials

The poster related with the publication containing: motivation, iterative design process, program timeline, and images illustrating the platform.

SmartFeeding4Kids: a Digital Platform for Nutritional Behaviour Change of Parents of Young Children

There has been an increase of behavior change applications, particularly in the areas of nutrition and fitness. Whereas most applications are focused on self-reporting by adults, there is limited work on designing digital programs for parents to improve their children’s food habits. In this paper, we present SmartFeeding4Kids, a digital platform co-designed within a team of psychologists, nutritionists, designers, and computer scientists, for nutritional behaviour change of children aged 2 to 6 years old. We present the main elements of our application, and main iterations of their design. Namely, we focus on mechanisms for user engagement (avatar, badges, notifications, and personalized feedback), 24-h food recall adapted to parent reporting, and overall digital workflow of the program.

Diogo Branco, Sergio Alves, Hugo SimĂŁo, Ana C. Pires, Ana Gomes, Ana Pereira, LuĂ­sa Barros, Tiago Guerreiro

ICGI 2021 ‑ International Conference on Graphics and Interaction, November, 2021

Computer with headphones and a tray on top and a set of tangible blocks on the side

Learning Maths with a Tangible User Interface: Lessons Learned through Participatory Design with Children with Visual Impairments and Their Educators

Through a set of participatory design sessions with children with visual impairments and their educators, we understood current practices in maths teaching, and designed a novel system to support learning for this particular educational context. Sixteen children were engaged in 19 PD sessions to develop tangibles and auditory stimuli to represent numbers, and to explore activities to use through a tangible user interface.

Ana Cristina Pires, Ewelina Bakala, Fernando Gonzalez-Perilli, Gustavo Sansone, Bruno Fleischer, Sebastian Marichal, Tiago Guerreiro

IJCCI 2021 ‑ International Journal of Child-Computer Interaction

Preview of the three games developed in this project.

Using Games to Practice Screen Reader Gestures

We explore the use of games to inconspicuously train gestures. We designed and developed a set of accessible games, enabling users to practice smartphone gestures. We evaluated the games with 8 blind users and conducted remote interviews. Our results show how purposeful accessible games could be important in the process of training and discovering smartphone gestures, as they offer a playful method of learning. This, in turn, increases autonomy and inclusion, as this process becomes easier and more engaging.

Gonçalo Lobo, David Gonçalves, Pedro Pais, Tiago Guerreiro, André Rodrigues

ASSETS 2021 ‑ ACM Conference on Computers and Accessibility

The myView editing web application showing a picture of a supermarket corridor and an editing form

myView: End-user Authoring of Virtual Environments for Therapy

We present a smartphone tool that allows non-specialists to create navigable virtual environments by taking and linking sequences of panoramic photo spheres, analogly to Google Street View. Editing the environments is then possible in a web platform, myView, where text, images, videos, sounds, and pick-up objects can be added. myView allows users to navigate their environments as well as sharing those environments with others. In a preliminary study with two psychologists, where myView was used as an elicitation probe, the approach was found to be useful for creating meaningful activities for reminiscence and cognitive training. The platform showed to be promising in the democratization of the crafting of virtual environments.

Sérgio Alves, Pedro Caldeira, Filipa Brito, Luís Carriço, Tiago Guerreiro

ASSETS 2021 ‑ ACM Conference on Computers and Accessibility

The top of the image represents the programming area where the user has a box with tangible blocks, the PC, a webcam and builds the sequence of instructions. The child says the word start so that the instructions are executed. The bottom of the image represents the execution area where another user has the Dash robot with audio feedback, a checkered map with tactile references in all lines, and a box with various obstacles.

Fostering Collaboration with Asymmetric Roles in Accessible Programming Environments for Children with Mixed-visual-abilities

We propose the design of a programming environment that leverages asymmetric roles to foster collaborative computational thinking activities for children with visual impairments, in particular mixed-visual-ability classes. The multimodal system comprises the use of tangible blocks and auditory feedback, while children have to collaborate to program a robot. We conducted a remote online study, collecting valuable feedback on the limitations and opportunities for future work, aiming to potentiate education and social inclusion.

Filipa Rocha, Guilherme GuimarĂŁes, David Gonçalves, Ana Cristina Pires, LĂșcia Abreu, Tiago Guerreiro

ASSETS 2021 ‑ ACM Conference on Computers and Accessibility

a scenario where a blind user is navigating her smartphonr while receiving audio instructions on how to perform a task

Promoting Self-Efficacy Through an Effective Human-Powered Nonvisual Smartphone Task Assistant

We contribute with a human-powered nonvisual task assistant for smartphones to provide pervasive assistance. We argue, in addition to success, one must carefully consider promoting and evaluating factors such as self-efficacy and the belief in one’s abilities to control and learn to use technology. In this paper, we show effective assistant positively affects self-efficacy when performing new tasks with smartphones, affects perceptions of accessibility and enables systemic task-based learning.

André Rodrigues, André Santos, Kyle Montague, Tiago Guerreiro

CSCW 2021 ‑ ACM Conference on Computer-Supported Cooperative Work and Social Computing, October, 2021

A chat application with the keyboard open and the written sentences displayed: Collects anywhere the user writes, Password and number fields are ignored, calculates more than 20 metrics

WildKey: A Privacy-Aware Keyboard Toolkit for Data Collection In-The-Wild

We present WildKey, an Android keyboard toolkit that allows for the usable deployment of in-the-wild user studies. WildKey is able to analyze text-entry behaviors through implicit and explicit text-entry data collection while ensuring user privacy. We detail each of the WildKey’s components and features, all of the metrics collected, and discuss the steps taken to ensure user privacy and promote compliance.

André Rodrigues, André Santos, Kyle Montague, Hugo Nicolau, Tiago Guerreiro

WildByDesign 2021 ‑ UbiComp/ISWC Workshop on Designing Ubiquitous Health Monitoring Technologies for Challenging Environments

Real-world environment: a walk in the countryside with a lot of mud and a cloudy sky

Wild by Design: Workshop on Designing Ubiquitous Health Monitoring Technologies for Challenging Environments

In this workshop, we will focus on the challenges of real world health monitoring deployments to produce forward-looking insights that can shape the way researchers and practitioners think about health monitoring, in platforms and systems that account for the complex environments where they are bound to be used.

Diogo Branco, Patrick Carrington, Silvia Del Din, Afsaneh Doryab, Hristijan Gjoreski, Tiago Guerreiro, Roisin McNaney, Kyle Montague, Alisha Pradhan, André Rodrigues, Julio Vega

Wild by Design 2021 ‑ Workshop on Designing Ubiquitous HealthMonitoring Technologies for Challenging Environments at Ubicomp 2021

Forest plot of the estimated effect identified favouring video games interventions compared to control group.

Are Video Games Effective to Promote Cognition and Everyday Functional Capacity in Mild Cognitive Impairment/Dementia Patients? A Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials

We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis study. PubMed, Web of Science, Epistemonikos, CENTRAL, and EBSCO electronic databases were searched for RCT (2000-2021) that analyzed the impact of VGs on cognitive and functional capacity outcomes in MCI/dementia patients. Nine studies were included (n = 409 participants), and Risk of Bias (RoB2) and quality of evidence (GRADE) were assessed. Data regarding attention, memory/learning, visual working memory, executive functions, general cognition, functional capacity, quality of life were identified, and pooled analyses were conducted. An effect favoring VGs interventions was observed on Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) score (MD = 1.64, 95%CI 0.60 to 2.69).

Ferreira-Brito, Filipa; Ribeiro, Filipa; Aguiar de Sousa, Diana; Costa, João; Caneiras, Cåtia; Carriço, Luís; Verdelho, Ana

JAD 2021 ‑ Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease, 2021

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Exploring how a digitized program can support parents to improve their children’s nutritional habits

Poor eating habits are one of today’s significant menaces to public health. Child obesity is increasing, is a concerning reality, and needs to be appropriately addressed. However, most behavior change programs do not consider the needs of parents and their children, their profiles, and environments in the design of this type of intervention. We present the results of a workshop with dietists and clinical psychologists, professionals that deal with different parents and their children’s dietary problems, to understand parents’ profiles, attitudes, and perceptions. The main contributions of this study are a set of personas, daily scenarios, and design considerations regarding behavior change programs that can be used to guide the creation of new digital programs. This formative contribution is of interest to researchers and practitioners designing digitized behavior change programs targeted at parents to improve their children’s habits.

Diogo Branco, Ana C. Pires, Hugo SimĂŁo, Ana Gomes, Ana Pereira, Joana Sousa, LuĂ­sa Barros, Tiago Guerreiro

INTERACT 2021 ‑ International Conference on Human-Computer Interaction, September, 2021

A Pine Time smartwatch

Participatory Action Research and Open Source Hardware Appropriation for Large Scale In-The-Wild Studies

We present the Cue Band study, which revolves around the creation of a wristband cueing device for people with Parkinson’s that experience drooling. We present an approach for research in-the-wild, which draws on participatory action research theory, that places the end-user at the centre of the process, aiming to first and for most to create a workable product for the end-user, before engaging in a formal study. In the last section, we explore the appropriation of existing open-source hardware for in-the-wild research, by describing problems and solutions associated with developing Ubicomp technologies for large-scale studies.

LuĂ­s Carvalho, Dan Jackson, Tiago Guerreiro, Yu Guan, Kyle Montague

WildByDesign 2021 ‑ UbiComp/ISWC Workshop on Designing Ubiquitous Health Monitoring Technologies for Challenging Environments

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Suggesting text alternatives for images in social media

We present SONAAR, a project that aims to improve the accessibility of user-generated content on social networks. Our approach is to support the authoring and consumption of accessible social media content. Our prototypes currently focus on Twitter and Facebook and are available as an Android application and as a Chrome extension.

Letícia Seixas Pereira, João Guerreiro, André Rodrigues, André Santos, João Vicente, José Coelho, Tiago Guerreiro, Carlos Duarte

SIGACCESS 2021 ‑ Newsletter June Edition

Three pictures demonstrating families' interaction with the system. Left: Two children are around the setup. The visually impaired child confirms with his sighted sibling to where the robot is facing. Middle: Child crawls on the map searching for the robot. Right: Parent and child facing the setup. Parent is asking questions to engage child in play.

Accembly at Home: Accessible Spatial Programming for Children with Visual Impairments and their Families

We present ACCembly, an accessible block-based environment that enables children with visual impairments to perform spatial programming activities. ACCembly allows children to assemble tangible blocks to program a multimodal robot. We evaluated this approach with seven families that used the system autonomously at home. We contribute with an environment that enables children with visual impairments to engage in spatial programming activities, an analysis of parent-child interactions, and reflections on inclusive programming environments within a shared family experience.

Filipa Rocha, Ana Pires, Isabel Neto, Hugo Nicolau, Tiago Guerreiro

IDC 2021 ‑ ACM Interaction Design and Children, June, 2021

Twitter alt text dialog showing a flower and its description being introduced

Nipping Inaccessibility in the Bud: Opportunities and Challenges of Accessible Media Content Authoring

Our work focuses on promoting awareness to accessible social media authoring practices and in assisting the authoring process. We have prototyped a Google Chrome extension and an Android application that can identify when a Twitter or a Facebook user is authoring content with images and suggests a text alternative for the image. In this paper, we highlight some of the challenges faced to offer this support in different technological platforms (web and mobile), but also ones that are raised by the domain characteristics (e.g. detecting the same image, supporting different languages) and that can be addressed through AI based technologies.

Carlos Duarte, Letícia Seixas Pereira, André Santos, João Vicente, André Rodrigues, João Guerreiro, José Coelho and Tiago Guerreiro

WebSci 2021 ‑ 13th ACM Web Science Conference

Shows an overview of the system. A large LEGO base plate and on top a set of components that make up the system: the Ozobot robot, the different caps (start, end, and path), LEGO caps with top codes and tactile arrows, and a dialog between a child and the system - What is the instruction? Move Forward. How many times? Two.

LEGOWorld: Repurposing Commodity Tools and Technologies to Create an Accessible and Customizable Programming Environment

We explore how commodity objects and technologies can be repurposed to provide a multimodal programming environment that is accessible to children with visual impairments, flexible, and scalable to a variety of programming challenges. Our approach resorts to four main components: 1) a LEGO base plate where LEGO blocks can be assembled to create maps, which is flexible and robust for tactile recognition; 2) a tangible programming area where LEGOs, with 3D printed caps enriched with tactile icons, can be assembled to create a program; 3) alternatively, the program can be created through a voice conversation with the system; and 4) a low-cost OzoBot Bit

Gonçalo Cardoso, Ana Pires, LĂșcia Abreu, Filipa Rocha, Tiago Guerreiro

CHI EA 2021 ‑ Extended Abstracts of the ACM Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, May, 2021

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Articulations toward a crip HCI

We present stories of research articulation, of researchers as articulated, and as researchers articulating, gesturing toward a crip HCI. Disability is a plural, fluid, transitory, embodied cultural experience. While crip theoretics of HCI are best shaped by disabled scholars, a crip practice affords and demands a broader uptake. The particulars and nuances of a crip HCI are still forming among the disabled HCI researchers in collaboration today. However, this practice of articulation within disabled community, disabled space, and disabled consciousness is an essential and ongoing process toward a more equitable, more just, more humane HCI practice.

Rua M. Williams, Kathryn Ringland, Amelia Gibson, Mahender Mandala, Arne Maibaum, Tiago Guerreiro

ACM Interactions 2021 ‑ May-June

a screenshot of the rescue:under pressure game showing a submarine in a dark sea

Exploring Asymmetric Roles in Mixed-Ability Gaming

We explore ability-based asymmetric roles as a design approach to create engaging and challenging mixed-ability play. Our team designed and developed two collaborative testbed games exploring asymmetric interdependent roles. In a remote study with 13 mixed-visual-ability pairs we assessed how roles affected perceptions of engagement, competence, and autonomy, using a mixed-methods approach. The games provided an engaging and challenging experience, in which differences in visual ability were not limiting. Our results underline how experiences unequal by design can give rise to an equitable joint experience.

David Gonçalves, André Rodrigues, Mike Richardson, Alexandra de Sousa, Michael Proulx, Tiago Guerreiro

CHI 2021 ‑ ACM Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, May, 2021

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Barriers and Opportunities to Accessible Social Media Content Authoring

We performed an online survey of 258 social network users and a follow-up interview conducted with 20 of them - 7 of them self-reporting blind and 13 sighted users without a disability. Results show how the different approaches being employed by major platforms are still not sufficient to properly address social media accessibility. Our findings reveal that mainstream users are not aware of the possibility and the benefits of adopting accessible practices. From the general perspectives of end-users experiencing accessible practices, concerning barriers encountered, and motivational factors, we also discuss further approaches to create more user engagement and awareness.

Leticia Seixas Pereira, José Coelho, André Rodrigues, João Guerreiro, Tiago Guerreiro, Carlos Duarte

arxiv 2021 ‑ arXiv:2104.10968 [cs.HC], April 2021

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Designing Pervasive Assistive Technologies with Representative Users

This talk builds on more than 14 years of deep engagements and in-the-wild deployments of mobile technologies within a community of blind people. It makes the case for pervasive assistive technology researchers to be experts in their areas of study: people, and then, technology to serve and empower people.

Tiago Guerreiro

MPAT 2021 ‑ Workshop on Mobile and Pervasive Assistive Technologies (at IEEE Percom), March, 2021

Opening Keynote Address

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Kinematic and clinical outcomes to evaluate the efficacy of a multidisciplinary intervention on functional mobility in Parkinson’s disease

We aimed to identify which kinematic and clinical outcomes better predict functional mobility changes when PD patients are submitted to a specialized multidisciplinary program.

Raquel Bouça-Machado, Diogo Branco, Gustavo Fonseca, Raquel Fernandes, Daisy Abreu, Tiago Guerreiro, Joaquim J Ferreira, Daniela Guerreiro, VerĂłnica Caniça, Francisco Queimado, Pedro Nunes, Alexandra SaĂșde, Laura Antunes, Joana Alves, Beatriz Santos, InĂȘs Lousada, Maria A Patriarca, PatrĂ­cia Costa, Raquel Nunes, Susana Dias

Frontiers in Neurology 2021 ‑ Frontiers in Neurology

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Dissecting Digital Card Games to Yield Digital Biomarkers for the Assessment of Mild Cognitive Impairment: Methodological Approach and Exploratory Study

This paper aims to explore how the player actions of Klondike Solitaire relate to cognitive functions and to what extent the digital biomarkers derived from these player actions are indicative of MCI. First, 11 experts in the domain of cognitive impairments were asked to correlate 21 player actions to 11 cognitive functions. Expert agreement was verified through intraclass correlation, based on a 2-way, fully crossed design with type consistency. On the basis of these player actions, 23 potential digital biomarkers of performance for Klondike Solitaire were defined. Next, 23 healthy participants and 23 participants living with MCI were asked to play 3 rounds of Klondike Solitaire, which took 17 minutes on average to complete. A generalized linear mixed model analysis was conducted to explore the differences in digital biomarkers between the healthy participants and those living with MCI, while controlling for age, tablet experience, and Klondike Solitaire experience. All intraclass correlations for player actions and cognitive functions scored higher than 0.75, indicating good to excellent reliability. Furthermore, all player actions had, according to the experts, at least one cognitive function that was on average moderately to strongly correlated to a cognitive function. Of the 23 potential digital biomarkers, 12 (52%) were revealed by the generalized linear mixed model analysis to have sizeable effects and significance levels. The analysis indicates sensitivity of the derived digital biomarkers to MCI. Commercial off-the-shelf games such as digital card games show potential as a complementary tool for screening and monitoring cognition.

Karsten Gielis, Marie-Elena Vanden Abeele, Robin De Croon, Paul Dierick, Filipa Ferreira-Brito, Lies Van Assche, Katrien Verbert, Jos Tournoy, Vero Vanden Abeele

JMIR 2021 ‑ serious games

screenshot of the application with the supermarket VR view and the options Game Modes, Challenges, Shopping list

Photo-realistic interactive virtual environments for neurorehabilitation in mild cognitive impairment (NeuroVRehab.PT): a participatory design and proof-of-concept study

We investigated the feasibility and rehabilitation potential of a new design approach to create highly realistic interactive virtual environments for MCI patients’ neurorehabilitation. Through a participatory design protocol, a neurorehabilitation digital platform was developed using images captured from a Portuguese supermarket (NeuroVRehab.PT). NeuroVRehab.PT main features (e.g., medium-size supermarket, use of shopping lists) were established accordingly to a shopping behavior questionnaire filled in by 110 older adults. Seven health professionals used the platform and assessed its rehabilitation potential, clinical applicability and user-experience.

Filipa Ferreira-Brito, Sérgio Alves, Osvaldo Santos, Tiago Guerreiro, Cåtia Caneiras, Luís Carriço, Ana Verdelho

JCM 2020 ‑ Journal of Clinical Medicine

system architecture showing a low-level description of events and dom-tree textual representation of a view, and the higher-level description of those events (Opened Messenger, Scrolled for 5 seconds,..)

Usable Logging as a Security Response to Physical Attacks on Mobile Devices

Users are susceptible to privacy breaches when people close to them gain physical access to their phones. We present logging as a security response to this threat, one that is able to accommodate for the particularities of social relationships. To this end, and explore the feasibility of the logging approach, we present a prototype developed for Android that continuously gathers user interactions and translates them into human-readable units.

José Franco, Ana C. Pires, Luís Carriço Tiago Guerreiro

ACSAC 2020 ‑ Annual Computer Security Applications Conference

a playful environment designed from the ground up to be rich in both its story (a nautical game) and its mechanics (e.g., a physical robot-boat controlled with a 3D printed wheel), tailored to promote computational thinking

TACTOPI: a Playful Approach to Promote Computational Thinking for Visually Impaired Children

We present TACTOPI, a playful environment designed from the ground up to be rich in both its story (a nautical game) and its mechanics (e.g., a physical robot-boat controlled with a 3D printed wheel), tailored to promote computational thinking at different levels (4 to 8 years old). This poster intends to provoke discussion and motivate accessibility researchers that are interested in computational thinking to make playfulness a priority.

LĂșcia Abreu, Ana C. Pires, Tiago Guerreiro

ASSETS 2020 ‑ ACM Conference on Computers and Accessibility

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It shows four colorful bar charts.

Playing With Others: Depicting Multiplayer Gaming Experiences of People With Visual Impairments

We share multiplayer gaming experiences of people with visual impairments collected from interviews with 10 adults and 10 minors, and 140 responses to an online survey. We include the perspectives of 17 sighted people who play with someone who has a visual impairment, collected in a second online survey. Our focus is on group play, particularly on the problems and opportunities that arise from mixed-visual-ability scenarios. These show that people with visual impairments are playing diverse games, but face limitations in playing with others who have different visual abilities.

David Gonçalves, André Rodrigues, Tiago Guerreiro

ASSETS 2020 ‑ ACM Conference on Computers and Accessibility

Best Paper Nominee

Two children with visual impairments, one attaching a forward and play pieces, and the other feeling the robot and the target object, that walked through a foam path.

Exploring Accessible Programming with Educators and Visually Impaired Children

We report on a focus group with IT and special needs educators, where they discussed a variety of programming environments for children, identifying their merits, barriers and opportunities. We then conducted a workshop with 7 visually impaired children where they experimented with a bespoke tangible robot-programming environment. Video recordings of such activity were analyzed with educators to discuss children’s experiences and emergent behaviours. We contribute with a set of qualities that programming environments should have to be inclusive to children with different visual abilities, insights for the design of situated classroom activities, and evidence that inclusive tangible robot-based programming is worth pursuing.

Ana Cristina Pires, Filipa Rocha, AntĂłnio Barros, Hugo SimĂŁo, Hugo Nicolau, Tiago Guerreiro

IDC 2020 ‑ ACM Interaction Design and Children

Gait kinematic parameters in Parkinson’s disease: a systematic review

We summarize and critically appraise the characteristics of technology-based gait analysis in PD and provide mean and standard deviation values for spatiotemporal gait parameters. These results provide useful information for performing objective technology-based gait assessment in PD, as well as mean values to better interpret the results.

Raquel Bouça-Machado, Constança Jalles, Daniela Guerreiro, Filipa Pona-Ferreira, Diogo Branco, Tiago Guerreiro, Ricardo Matias, Joaquim J. Ferreira

JPD 2020 ‑ Journal of Parkinson’s Disease

A user with a row of RFID Card in front of him, while holding one close to the RFID reader..

Open Challenges of Blind People using Smartphones

Through a multiple methods approach we identify and validate challenges locally with a diverse set of user expertise and devices, and at scale through the analyses of the largest Android and iOS dedicate forums for blind people. We contribute with a prioritized corpus of smartphone challenges for blind people, and a discussion on a set of directions for future research that tackle the open and often overlooked challenges.

André Rodrigues, Hugo Nicolau, Kyle Montague, João Guerreiro and Tiago Guerreiro

IJHCI 2020 ‑ International Journal of Human Computer Interaction

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On the left, a group of older adults listens to the message recorded by the other group (located in a different room) and transmitted by DASH. On the right, four of the custom snap-on blocks, used by participants to command the robot.

Carrier-pigeon Robot: Promoting Interactions Among Older Adults in a Care Home

With this research topic, we explore a robot as a communication vehicle for older adults in care homes. We extend older people’s actions and increase their communication through a robot traveling across the institution. This robot is programmable by older people using 3D printed, tangible blocks with default actions to build sequences. This way, people are in charge of the approach and interaction to perform with other people inside the institution. Besides the improvement in communication for the general people institutionalized, the technique showed to be promising for people with mobility impairments to extend their action range.

Hugo Simão, Ana Cristina Pires, David Gonçalves, Tiago Guerreiro

HRI 2020 ‑ Companion of the 2020 ACM/IEEE International Conference on Human-Robot Interaction (HRI ‘20 Companion)

Best paper award

On the left three logos for human-powered solutions developed through the course of the phd. On the right 8 logos from the conferences where work was published. ASSETS, CHI, INTERACT, MobileHCI, and a Book chapter, with three ASSETS editions. Totaling 5 publications + 8 related with the phd.

Human-Powered Smartphone Assistance for Blind People

We investigated if and how in-context human-powered solutions can be leveraged to improve current smartphone accessibility and ease of use. The thesis of this dissertation is: Human-powered smartphone assistance by non-experts is effective and impacts perceptions of self-efficacy.

André Rodrigues

PhD Thesis 2020 ‑ Advisors: Tiago Guerreiro, Kyle Montague

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Radar chart with the 7 axis of the design space and their ordinal values: Interruption (interruptable, conditional, continuous), Confidence (dynamic, static), Output (implicit, explicit), Selection (single, multiple), Cardinality (one, two, three), Concurrency (sequentual, concurrent), and Notification (always, threshold).

The Design Space of Nonvisual Word Completion

Word completion interfaces are ubiquitously available in mobile virtual keyboards; however, there is no prior research on how to design these interfaces for screen reader users. In addressing this, we propose a design space for nonvisual representation of word completions. The design space covers seven categories aiming to identify challenges and opportunities for interaction design in an unexplored research topic.

Hugo Nicolau, André Rodrigues, André Santos, Tiago Guerreiro, Kyle Montague, João Guerreiro

ASSETS 2019 ‑ In The 21st International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS ‘19). ACM, New York, NY, USA, 249-261.

Best Paper Nominee

iCETA: headphones, computer, mirror in the camera, tangible blocks and working area on top of the keyboard.

A Tangible Math Game for Visually Impaired Children

iCETA, an inclusive interactive system for math learning, designed through a set of participatory sessions with visually impaired children and their educators. iCETA supports math learning through the combination of tangible interaction with haptic and auditory feedback.

Ana Cristina Pires, Sebastian Marichal, Fernando Gonzalez-Perilli, Ewelina Bakala, Bruno Fleischer, Gustavo Sansone, Tiago Guerreiro

ASSETS 2019 ‑ 21th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility. Pittsburgh, PA, USA. October, 2019

Table with code frequencies in the tutorials instructions. Significant differences between sighted and blind people instructions. Sigthed people with 20% of incorrect text, and high number of references to location. Blind people with high number of gesture explanations and navigation cues.

Understanding the Authoring and Playthrough of Nonvisual Smartphone Tutorials

We sought to understand how sighted and blind people instruct other blind users to accomplish tasks on a mobile device. We also studied how those instructions enabled blind people to be successful. Results showed that a single pass of instructions was limited. A set of ways in which support can be provided is discussed.

André Rodrigues, André Santos, Kyle Montague, Hugo Nicolau, Tiago Guerreiro

INTERACT 2019 ‑ 17th IFIP TC13 International Conference on Human-Computer Interaction, Paphos, Cyprus, September, 2019

Leaderboard with the three most frequently used game-elements (i.e., score system, narrative context, and time pressure) in digital neuropsychological interventions.

Game-based interventions for neuropsychological assessment, training and rehabilitation: which game-elements to use? A systematic review

Game-based interventions (GBI) have been used to promote health-related outcomes, including cognitive functions. Criteria for game-elements (GE) selection are insufficiently characterized in terms of their adequacy to patients’ clinical conditions or targeted cognitive outcomes. This study aimed to identify GE applied in GBI for cognitive assessment, training or rehabilitation. A systematic review of literature was conducted. Papers involving video games were included if: (1) presenting empirical and original data; (2) using video games for cognitive intervention; and (3) considering attention, working memory or inhibitory control as outcomes of interest. Ninety-one papers were included. A significant difference between the number of GE reported in the assessed papers and those composing video games was found (p < .001). The two most frequently used GE were: score system (79.2% of the interventions using video games; for assessment, 43.8%; for training, 93.5%; and for rehabilitation, 83.3%) and narrative context (79.2% of interventions; for assessment, 93.8%; for training, 73.9% and for rehabilitation, 66.7%). Usability assessment was significantly associated with six of the seven GE analyzed (p-values between p ≀ 0.001 and p. = 027). The use of GE that act as extrinsic motivation promotors (e.g., numeric feedback system) may jeopardize patients’ long-term adherence to interventions, mainly if associated with progressive difficulty-increase of gaming experience. Lack of precise description of GE and absence of a theoretical framework supporting GE selection are important limitations of the available clinical literature.

Ferreira-Brito, Filipa; Fialho, MĂłnica; Virgolino, Ana; Neves, InĂȘs; Miranda, Ana Cristina; Sousa-Santos, Nuno; Caneiras, CĂĄtia; Carriço, LuĂ­s; Verdelho, Ana; Santos, Osvaldo

JBI 2019 ‑ Journal of Biomedical Informatics, 2019

Photo taken during mathematics training with CETA system using tangibles. In this photo we observe an entire first grade classroom with 22 young children, playing with the blocks using our system CETA. Each child has a headphone, a tablet located on the table and the blocks to solve the additive composition tasks.

Building blocks of mathematical learning: digital and tangible manipulatives lead to different strategies in number composition

It is indispensable that objects may be grasped, lifted and explored or would it be enough to interact with virtual manipulatives? And specifically, how the objects’ affordances (i.e., the possibility to grasp physical objects or drag virtual ones) will shape and constrain children’s composing strategies.

Ana Cristina Pires, Fernando González Perilli, Ewelina BakaƂa, Bruno Fleisher, Gustavo Sansone and Sebastián Marichal

Frontiers in Education 2019 ‑ Educational Psychology, 2019

10 application screens all with very different interfaces. Interfaces with grids, lists, keyboard, no interactive items, logins, tutorials and tables.

Mobile Web

Accessing the Web with mobile devices, either through a browser or a native application, has become more than a perk; it is a need. Such relevance has increased the need to provide accessible mobile webpages. In this work, we focus our attention on the challenges of mobile devices for accessibility, and how those have been addressed in the development and evaluation of mobile interfaces and contents.

Tiago Guerreiro, Luís Carriço, André Rodrigues

Web Accessibility 2019 ‑ Chapter 38 in S. Harper & Y. Yesilada (eds.), Web Accessibility: A Foundation for Research (2nd ed.). London, England, Springer-Verlag.

Storyboard demonstrating a shower attack.

Vulnerability & Blame: Making Sense of Unauthorized Access to Smartphones

Unauthorized physical access to personal devices by people known to the owner of the device is a common concern, and a common occurrence. But how do people experience incidents of unauthorized access? Using an online survey, we collected 102 accounts of unauthorized access. Participants wrote stories about past situations in which either they accessed the smartphone of someone they know, or someone they know accessed theirs.

Diogo Marques, Tiago Guerreiro, Luís Carriço, Ivan Beschastnikh, Konstantin Beznosov

CHI 2019 ‑ ACM Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, Glasgow, Scotland, May, 2019

Caregiving to a person with Alzheimer can be a very demanding task, both from physical and psychological perspectives. Technological responses to support caregiving and improve the quality of life of people with Alzheimer and their caregivers are lacking.

MATY: Designing An Assistive Robot for People with Alzheimer’s

Using a research through design approach, we devised a robot focused on empowering people with Alzheimer and fostering their autonomy, from the initial sketch to a working prototype. MATY is a robot that encourages communication with relatives and promotes routines by eliciting the person to take action, using a multisensorial approach (e.g., projecting biographical images, playing suggestive sounds, or emitting soothing aromas). The paper reports the iterative, incremental design process performed together with stakeholders. We share first lessons learned in this process with HCI researchers and practitioners designing solutions, particularly robots, to assist people with dementia and their caregivers.

Hugo SimĂŁo, Tiago Guerreiro

CHI 2019 ‑ In The CHI EA ‘19 Extended Abstracts of the 2019 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems

datapark

Designing Free-Living Reports for Parkinson’s Disease

The democratization of sensing wearable technologies opened several possibilities in the continuous monitoring of people in their homes. We developed a platform where usable reports are presented to clinicians, particuarly in the context of Parkinson’s disease monitoring. The presented information originates from accelerometer sensors.

Diogo Branco, Raquel Bouça, Joaquim Ferreira, Tiago Guerreiro

CHI 2019 ‑ Extended Abstracts of the 2019 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, Glasgow, UK

An example of a clinicial assessment, sit to stand exercise

DataPark : A Data-Driven Platform for Parkinson’s Disease Monitoring

We developed a platform where usable reports are presented to clinicians, particuarly in the context of Parkinson’s disease monitoring. The presented information originates from accelerometer sensors and subjective data collected over an Interactive Voice Response system.

Diogo Branco, César Mendes, Ricardo Pereira, André Rodrigues, Raquel Bouça, Kyle Montague, Joaquim Ferreira, Tiago Guerreiro

WISH Symposium 2019 ‑ Workgrounp on Interactive Systems in Healthcare, co-located with CHI’19, Glasgow, UK, May, 2019

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Main cognitive stimulation activities of Scrapbook. From left to right: a. Reminiscence therapy; b. Flashcard; c. Street View navigation; d. Quiz; e. Touch; f. Puzzle (in fullscreen).

Designing Personalized Therapy Tools For People with Dementia

We iteratively designed a web platform focused on personalized cognitive stimulation. The platform was deployed in clinical contexts for several months and iterated, being enriched with functionalities like group reminiscence, caregiver app, or biographical activities.

Sérgio Alves, Andreia Cordeiro, Filipa Brito, Luís Carriço, Tiago Guerreiro

W4A 2019 ‑ 16th International Web for All Conference, San Francisco, USA, May, 2019

Best Technical Paper Nominee

The robot Baxter with his arms extended and a blind person feeling its hands

What My Eyes Can’t See, A Robot Can Show Me: Exploring the Collaboration Between Blind People and Robots

We presented a qualitative analysis of the expectations, fears and needs pointed by a sample of blind participants. In study 2, we implement and discuss the effect of two types of robotic assistance during the assembling task. Results from our two studies support the usefulness of developing and introducing this form of collaborative assistive technology in the lives of people with visual impairments. Positive outcomes for users (such as an increased level of autonomy in everyday life tasks) are outlined and discussed.

Mayara Bonani, Raquel Oliveira, Filipa Correia, André Rodrigues, Tiago Guerreiro, Ana Paiva

ASSETS 2018 ‑ ASSETS 2018 - 20th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility, Galway, Ireland, October, 2018

1.How to create a group in WhatApp. After we open WhatsApp. 2.We do the gesture until Chat. 3.Then again, left-right until New Chat. We enter. 4.Then left-right until groups. Then we go until the headline New Group. We enter. 5.Now we do the up down gesture to go to the last element of the page. Then without lifting the finger we double tap and stay on Next. 6.We are now in the edit box to write the subject to identify the group. We write the name and the subject and we click on the keyboard key to Submit. Now again, left-right until the Create button.

AidMe: Interactive Non-Visual Smartphone Tutorials

AidMe, is a system-wide authoring and playthrough tool of non-visual interactive tutorials. Tutorials are created via user demonstration and narration. In a user study with 11 blind participants we identified issues with instruction delivery and user guidance providing insights into the development of accessible interactive non-visual tutorials.

André Rodrigues, Leonardo Camacho, Hugo Nicolau, Kyle Montague, Tiago Guerreiro

MOBILECHI 2018 ‑ 20th International Conference on Human-Computer Interaction with Mobile Devices and Services, Barcelona, Spain, September, 2018

braille

Hybrid-Brailler : Combining Physical and Gestural Interaction for Mobile Braille Input and Editing

We present a smartphone case with physical buttons that allow users to write Braille in the back and gesture with the thumbs on the touchscreen. This enabled the study of novel editing approachs, very limited in commodity smartphones and accessibility services.

Daniel Trindade, André Rodrigues, Tiago Guerreiro, Hugo Nicolau

CHI 2018 ‑ ACM Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, Montreal, Canada, May, 2018

We propose a paradigm shift where interactions and contributions by knowledgeable users can assist others beyond what mobile applications and operating systems provide Interaction data collection methods are fragmented and are gathered by each app and operating system individually, with the purpose of self-improvement with limited control and awareness by the user.

Data Donors: Sharing Knowledge for Mobile Accessibility

Inspired by charitable donations, Data Donors, is a conceptual framework proposing the enablement of users with the capacity to help others to do so by donating their mobile interaction data and knowledge.

André Rodrigues, Kyle Montague, Tiago Guerreiro

CHI 2018 ‑ Late Breaking Work - Extended Abstracts of the ACM Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, Montreal, Canada, May, 2018

Patient performing a jigsaw puzzle.

Enabling Biographical Cognitive Stimulation for People with Dementia

In this paper we Introduce the initial development process of Scrapbook. After an initial study to understand current clinical practices, we developed a platform focused on enabling psychologists to perform reminiscence therapy with people with dementia. A two-week study was performed in a clinical environment.

Sérgio Alves, Andreia Cordeiro, Filipa Brito, Luís Carriço, Tiago Guerreiro

CHI 2018 ‑ Extended Abstracts of the 2018 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, Montreal QC, Canada

Two figures (the Checker Shadow Illusion and an equivalent illusion) demonstrate the phenomenon of simultaneous contrast: objects with the same intensity of light can be perceived as beeing different colors, due to context. Squares A and B have the same hue of color, although they do not seem so; they are perceived as different in color. When changing the contrast it is then possible to see that they have the same color!

Livro Psicobiologia. Capitulo 16: ÂżCĂłmo percibimos el mundo?

To perceive it is necessary to understand the role that our experiences play and how they are articulated with the biological mechanisms of information processing with which we come to the world. Perceiving is a complex process that is built from repeated exposure of our sensors to the response of the physical world with which we interact since we were born. In this chapter we will highlight this complex process based on the general functioning of our sensory processing, to then focus on the example of vision. It will deepen specific aspects of vision such as movement perception, of color or depth, to finally address the general problem that involves the necessary integration of the information that it is processed in different areas of the brain for the conformation of a single perception.

Alejandro Maiche, Ana Cristina Pires, Fernando Gonzalez, Lorena Chanes & Alejandro Vazquez

EMP 2018 ‑ Editorial MĂ©dica Panamericana

static overlays

Improving smartphone accessibility with personalizable static overlays

We present an approach that superimposes a virtual overlay to all other interfaces ensuring interface consistency by re-structuring how content is accessed in every screen. The screen is splitted in two, dedicating half to a configurable set of static options regardless of context; while the other enables the standard content navigation gestures with the ability to re-order content and apply filters.

André Rodrigues, André Santos, Kyle Montague, Tiago Guerreiro

ASSETS 2017 ‑ 19th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility. Baltimore, Maryland, USA, October, 2017

-A) Volunteer web app. It shows two answered questions, one with a specific element of the interface highlighted. B) Hint Me! with the always available button on the top of the screen, and a notification showing the user he received an answer.

In-context Q&A to Support Blind People Using Smartphones

Hint Me! is a human-powered service that allows blind users to get in-app smartphone assistance. We conducted an exploratory user study with six blind participants to elicit their perceptions on the usefulness, and acceptance of human-powered networks for smartphone support.

André Rodrigues, Kyle Montague, Hugo Nicolau, João Guerreiro and Tiago Guerreiro

ASSETS 2017 ‑ 19th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility. Baltimore, Maryland, USA, October, 2017.

generic image of a publication

Screening Mild Cognitive Impairment in Older Adults via Meaningful Play

With our rapid aging society, more and more people are suffering from dementia. This increase puts a great strain on the healthcare sector, as well in cost as manpower. This calls for research of reliable and regular assessments that can screen for Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI), the precursor to dementia. We see that this call is answered with more and more cognitive screening games being developed. However, most of these games are based on existing tests, often lacking in adherence and enticing gameplay. This paper discusses the possibilities of meaningful play, and more specifically, Klondike Solitaire, as a cognitive screening test. We report on the results of an analysis of player actions in Solitaire with 3 health professionals that are experts in the domain of MCI. Results suggest that Klondike Solitaire can be used for such an assessment, and that this would be a valuable additional tool for longitudinal assessment.

Karsten Gielis, Filipa Brito, Jos Tournoy, Vero Vanden Abeele

CHI PLAY 2017 ‑ CHI PLAY

generic image of a publication

Can Card Games Be Used to Assess Mild Cognitive Impairment?: A Study of Klondike Solitaire and Cognitive Functions

This paper investigates whether Klondike Solitaire can be used as an assessment tool for mild cognitive impairment (MCI). It does so by providing a structured analysis and mapping player actions to cognitive functions. For Klondike Solitaire, 22 player actions were defined and mapped to 10 cognitive functions by 3 health professionals in the field of MCI. The results indicate that Attention, Executive Function, Object Recognition, Abstraction and Memory can be assessed through gameplay of Solitaire. Healthcare professionals confirmed that this can potentially be valuable, as it can screen for cognitive impairments longitudinally, in a non-intrusive way, without practice effects.

Karsten Gielis, Filipa Brito, Jos Tournoy, Vero Vanden Abeele

CHI PLAY’ 2017 ‑ Extended Abstracts: Extended Abstracts Publication of the Annual Symposium on Computer-Human Interaction in Play, October 2017

A hacker with a black hoody, with a facebook page on the background

Characterizing Social Insider Attacks on Facebook

we ran two MTurk studies about social insider attacks on Facebook. In the first (n = 1,308), using the list experiment method, we estimated that 24% of participants had perpetrated social insider attacks and that 21% had been victims (and knew about it). In the second study (n = 45), participants wrote stories detailing personal experiences with such attacks. Using thematic analysis, we typified attacks around five motivations (fun, curiosity, jealousy, animosity, and utility), and explored dimensions associated with each type. Our combined findings indicate that social insider attacks are common, often have serious emotional consequences, and have no simple mitigation

Wali Usmani, Diogo Marques, Ivan Beschastnikh, Konstantin Beznosov, Tiago Guerreiro, Luís Carriço

CHI 2017 ‑ In the ACM Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, Denver, Colorado, USA, May

Average Six WPM After 12 Weeks. Figure  shows participants’ input speed over 12 weeks. Overall, the average input speed in the real world improved from week 1 (M = 3.2 SD = 0.8 WPM) to week 12 (M = 5.9 SD = 0.2 WPM). As in the laboratory, with all participants improving typing speed over time. Still, learning rates were lower in real-world data with an improvement of 0.2 WPM per week. Everyday Typing is Faster than Laboratory. In Figure, we notice that everyday typing speed is consistently higher than laboratory results. The difference in performance between real-world and laboratory is 1.6 WPM and 1.4 WPM in week 1 and week 8, respectively.

Investigating Laboratory and Everyday Typing Performance of Blind Users

For 12 weeks, we collected field data, coupled with eight weekly laboratory sessions. This article provides a thorough analysis of everyday typing data and its relationship with controlled laboratory assessments.

Hugo Nicolau, Kyle Montague, Tiago Guerreiro, André Rodrigues Vicki L. Hanson

TACCESS 2017 ‑ ACM Transactions on Accessible Computing (TACCESS) - Special Issue (Part 2) of Papers from ASSETS 2015

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Four keyboard sizes side-by-side. With the Large being about the same size as the other three, with keys of 15mm. With Medium being bigger than the size of the remaining two, with keys of 10 mm. Small with keys of 5mm. Tiny with keys of size 2.5mm.

Effect of target size on non-visual text-entry

We investigate how nonvisual input performance, on touchscreens, varies with four QWERTY keyboard sizes (ranging from 15mm to 2.5mm). This paper presents an analysis of typing performance and touch behaviors discussing its implications.

André Rodrigues, Hugo Nicolau, Kyle Montague, Luís Carriço, Tiago Guerreiro

MobileHCI 2016 ‑ ‘16 Proceedings of the 18th International Conference on Human-Computer Interaction with Mobile Devices and Services, Pages 47-52, Florence, Italy — September 06 - 09, 2016

Honorable mention

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two charts showing the predicted clear likelihood of snooping according to age and depth of adoption

Snooping on Mobile Phones: Prevalence and Trends

Through an anonymity-preserving survey experiment, we quantify the pervasiveness of snooping attacks, defined as looking through someone else’s phone without their permission. We estimated the 1-year prevalence to be 31% in an online participant pool. Weighted to the U.S. population, the data indicates that 1 in 5 adults snooped on at least one other person’s phone, just in the year before the survey was conducted.

Diogo Marques, Ildar Muslukhov, Tiago Guerreiro, Konstantin Beznosov, Luís Carriço

SOUPS 2016 ‑ In the Twelfth Symposium on Usable Privacy and Security, USA, June, 2016

Distinguished paper award

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A blind user exploring the table top with one finger on each hand. The tabletop has a frame above holding a Kinect sensor that is detecting the user's fingers.

Blind People Interacting with Large Touch Surfaces: Strategies for One-handed and Two-handed Exploration

We report on a user study with 14 blind participants performing common touchscreen interactions using one and two-hand exploration. We investigate the exploration strategies applied by blind users when interacting with a tabletop. We identified six basic strategies that were commonly adopted and should be considered in future designs. We finish with implications for the design of accessible large touch interfaces.

Tiago Guerreiro, Kyle Montague, João Guerreiro, Rafael Nunes, Hugo Nicolau, Daniel Gonçalves

ITS 2015 ‑ ACM International Conference on Interactive Tabletops and Surfaces, Madeira, Portugal, November, 2015

Best Paper Award

A keyboard scheme with dots representing each of the collected touch points. Each key as dots from a different color. There is a concentration of dots on the most used keys (e.g. a, s and space).

Typing Performance of Blind Users: An Analysis of Touch Behaviors, Learning Effect, and In-Situ Usage

For eight weeks, we collected in-situ usage data and conducted weekly laboratory assessment sessions. This paper presents a thorough analysis of typing performance that goes beyond traditional aggregated measures of text-entry and reports on character-level errors and touch measures. Our findings show that users improve over time, even though it is at a slow rate (0.3 WPM per week).

Hugo Nicolau, Kyle Montague, André Rodrigues, Tiago Guerreiro, Vicki Hanson

ASSETS 2015 ‑ 17th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility. Lisboa, Portugal, October, 2015

A blind person interacting with a smartphone using headphones.

Getting Smartphones to Talkback: Understanding the Smartphone Adoption Process of Blind Users

We conducted a twelve week in-the-wild longitudinal study with five novice blind users to understand the adoption process of smartphones. We characterized their concerns, barriers, support mechanisms and evolution throughout the eight week period.

André Rodrigues, Kyle Montague, Hugo Nicolau, Tiago Guerreiro

ASSETS 2015 ‑ 17th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility. Lisboa, Portugal, October, 2015

HoliBraille, a smartphone case with six multi-point vibrotactile output. (a) Representation of ‘f’ using the Braille code: dots 1, 2, and 4. (b) The system outputs character ‘f’ through direct and localized feedback on the user’s fingers. (c) The system consists of six vibrotactile motors attached to springs and a 3D-printed case. The springs mold to users’ hands and dampen vibrations through the device, preventing propagation between fingers and allowing better stimuli discrimination.

HoliBraille: multipoint vibrotactile feedback on mobile devices

HoliBraille is a system capable of localized vibrotactile feedback that can be combined with the input capabilities of mobile devices. We used a custom-made case and off-the-shelf vibrotactile actuators combined with dampening materials. The solution can be attached to mainstream touchscreen devices enabling direct feedback on users’ fingers. In this paper, we contribute the following: 1) some application scenarios that can benefit from HoliBraille; 2) the design and technical description of the proposed device; and 3) an evaluation of HoliBraille on a foundational task for future Braille-related applications, i.e. character discrimination.# short description of the publication

Hugo Nicolau, Kyle Montague, Tiago Guerreiro, André Rodrigues and Vicki L Hanson

W4A 2015 ‑ In Proceedings of the 12th Web for All Conference (W4A ‘15). ACM, New York, NY, USA, Article 30, 4 pages.

The QWERTY keyboard an the characters spatial position in the 3d audio space. Characters are given an audio spatial position accordingly to their location on the keyboard. They are grouped according to the vertical columns of the keyboard (e.g. Q and A; then W, S and Z), resulting in 10 different spatial locations separated by 20Âș. For example A is heard on the far left (180Âș) while N is heard more on the right side (60Âș) allowing for simultaneous speech signals.

TabLets get physical: non-visual text entry on tablet devices

Our system combines spatial and simultaneous audio feedback with multitouch selection techniques to mimic traditional two-hand keyboard interaction. SpatialTouch enables blind users to rest their idle hand on a key (e.g. F or J), while simultaneously exploring the keyboard with their active hand and receiving auditory feedback about the character location.

João Guerreiro, André Rodrigues, Kyle Montague, Tiago Guerreiro, Hugo Nicolau, Daniel Gonçalves

CHI 2015 ‑ ACM Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, Seoul, South Korea, April, 2015

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B# is a novel correction system for multitouch Braille input. (a) The user types the letter F holding the device with the screen facing forward using braille typing. (b) Character-level correction; the closest characters in terms of Braille distance for 2 unidentified chords. Example given with the O character, with closest characters, O,S,R,T (c) Word-level correction; top suggestions return by B# considering the letters that are at a Braille distance of one from the entered chord.

B#: chord-based correction for multitouch braille input

B#, a novel correction system for multitouch Braille input that uses chords as the atomic unit of information rather than characters. Experimental results on data collected from 11 blind people revealed that B# is effective in correcting errors at character-level, thus providing opportunities for instant corrections of unrecognized chords; and at word-level, where it outperforms a popular spellchecker by providing correct suggestions for 72% of incorrect words (against 38%).

Hugo Nicolau, Kyle Montague, Tiago Guerreiro, JoĂŁo Guerreiro and Vicki L. Hanson

CHI 2014 ‑ In Proceedings of the SIGCHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI ‘14). ACM, New York, NY, USA, 1705-1708.

Best paper award

The UbiBraille prototype consists of six rings augmented with vibrotactile capabilities. The rings are worn on the index, middle, and ring fingers of both hands.

UbiBraille: designing and evaluating a vibrotactile Braille-reading device

UbiBraille consists of six vibrotactile actuators that are used to code a Braille cell and communicate single characters. The device is able to simultaneously actuate the users’ index, middle, and ring fingers of both hands, providing fast and mnemonic output. We conducted two user studies on UbiBraille to assess both character and word reading performance. Character recognition rates ranged from 54% to 100% and were highly character- and user-dependent.

Hugo Nicolau, João Guerreiro, Tiago Guerreiro and Luis Carríço

ASSETS 2013 ‑ In Proceedings of the 15th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS ‘13). ACM, New York, NY, USA, , Article 23 , 8 pages.

Two digital puzzles side by side; one is a visual version of the Android logo, the other is a audio puzzle with several pieces already in the right order and some in the incorrect ones

Audio-Based Puzzle Gaming for Blind People

We present audio puzzle games, an interactive way of playing with music by rebuilding a song, just like the original image jigsaw puzzle, broken into pieces which are by turn randomly shuffled. The audio mode design followed a participatory approach starting from a version similar to the visual one, but around music instead of images. We report on an evaluation with 13 blind people using the proposed game application with three different songs randomly distributed.

Jaime Carvalho, Luís Duarte, Tiago Guerreiro, Luís Carriço

MOBACC 2012 ‑ Mobile Accessibility Workshop at MobileHCI 2012

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a user inputting text by split-tapping on a MultiTap layout virtual keyboard

Blind People and Mobile Touch-based Text-Entry: Acknowledging the Need for Different Flavors

We present a study with 13 blind people consisting of a touch screen text-entry task with four different methods. Results show that different abilities (spatial ability, tactile perception, 
) have significant impact on performance and that this impact is related with the different methods’ demands. These variations acknowledge the need of accounting for individual characteristics and giving space for difference, towards inclusive design.

João Oliveira, Tiago Guerreiro, Hugo Nicolau, Daniel Gonçalves, Joaquim Jorge

ASSETS 2011 ‑ In The 13th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS ‘11). ACM, New York, NY, USA, 179-186.

Best Student Paper Award

BrailleType main screen on the left (visual representation of the six target zones was added for illustration). Middle screen shows the letter ‘r’ marked and ready to be accepted. The image on the right shows a user writing the letter ‘r’ with BrailleType.

BrailleType: Unleashing Braille over Touch Screen Mobile Phones

We present BrailleType, a single-touch text-entry system for touch screen devices. BrailleType allows the blind user to enter text as if he was writing Braille using the traditional 6-dot matrix code. We performed a user study with fifteen blind subjects, to assess this method’s performance against Apple’s VoiceOver approach. BrailleType although slower, was significantly easier and less error prone

João Oliveira, Tiago Guerreiro, Hugo Nicolau, Joaquim Jorge, and Daniel Gonçalves

INTERACT 2011 ‑ INTERACT 2011: Human-Computer Interaction – INTERACT 2011 pp 100-107