Assistive Technology
Learn about assistive technology options, including iPad apps and braillers, for children who are blind or visually impaired, as well as funding and grant opportunities.
Assistive Technology
Self-Driving Car from Google
Google is creating a self-driving car that can go 25 mph and carry two people. It's currently in prototype testing but they hope to have it on the road this...
Assistive Technology, Orientation and Mobility
Verizon Creates Navigational Tools to Promote Independence for Blind Users
Being blind means giving up a lot of independence; this new technology from Verizon gives blind people real-time information about their environment, including colors, textures, nav cues, and more, using...
Assistive Technology, Math and Science
3D Printed Pictures of Space
Astronomers at the Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore are working on a project creating 3D images of photos taken by the Hubble Telescope for people who are visually impaired.
Assistive Technology
FingerReader from MIT (and other text-to-speech readers)
Devices like the FingerReader from MIT or OrCam allow people with visual impairments to point to text and hear it read back to them. Is this an advancement in accessibility...
Assistive Technology, Special Needs
ATIA 2014 Orlando: News from the assistive tech conference
Catherine Rose reports from the ATIA assistive technology conference in Orlando Florida. She write about the LightAide and learning about assistive tech for communication as well as when is the...
Assistive Technology, Special Needs
Funding Opportunities for the LightAide
Assistive technology devices can be so beneficial to your child... but they can also be very expensive! Catherine gives advice on how to raise money to cover these devices, like...
Assistive Technology
Disney Creates Touch Screens with Tactile Feedback
Disney is working on creating touch screens that can actually give users the virtual feel of items displayed on the screen by producing friction and vibrations that mimic the textures...
Assistive Technology, Orientation and Mobility, Visual Impairment
Getting Around Using Assistive Technology when You’re Blind
Getting around keeps getting easier for blind travelers thanks to new assisistive technology. Find out about a new O&M iPhone app and an UltraBike!
Assistive Technology
Wheelchair or Robotic Exoskeleton?
A Japanese company is working on a robotic exoskeleton that could, in theory, replace wheelchairs and allow for much more natural movement.
Assistive Technology, Braille and Literacy
Accessible Braille Smart Phones
Smart phones and tablets have many accessibility features but are still basically smooth surfaces. Two new technologies try to change this by making tablets with tactile output or phones with...
Assistive Technology, Visual Impairment
Adapted Innovation: Technology Resources for Kids Who are Blind
Julie Johnson is a Teacher of the Visually Impaired and an Assistive Technology Specialist. She writes about technology resources for all children with visual impairments and all other disabilities on...
Assistive Technology, Visual Impairment
Audio Description for Blind Viewers
Video description for blind children: What is it? Where can I find it? What are the benefits?
Assistive Technology
Carroll Tech Online Assistive Technology Courses
The Carroll Center offers training and educational support for children and adults who are blind in Massachusetts, but did you know that they also offer some very informative online training...
Assistive Technology, Eye Conditions and Syndromes
National Deaf-Blind Equipment Distribution Program
The idea behind the National Deafblind Equipment Distribution Program (NDBEDP) is that people with combined hearing and vision loss should have access to modern telecommunication tools (and the training necessary...
Assistive Technology
Here Comes the Future… and it’s in Three Dimensions!
Mary McDonach writes about how her daughter, Elizabeth, who has albinism and very low vision, was able to watch (and see!) a 3D film in the movie theater! They were...