BARCELONA, Spain, March 3, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- MOBILE WORLD
CONGRESS -- IBM (NYSE: IBM) researchers have created a
new tool for iOS and Android™ mobile applications expected to
potentially benefit as many as one billion people with disabilities
worldwide, including those who are vision and hearing impaired, as
well as the elderly. The new Mobile Accessibility Checker is
an automated test to help strengthen the accessibility features of
mobile applications.
"Mobile technology has sparked a new era of opportunity for
people of all ages and abilities, yet many mobile apps have design
flaws that prevent people with disabilities and the elderly from
using them effectively," said Frances
West, IBM Chief Accessibility Officer. "Our researchers saw
an opportunity to address this by inventing technology that
identifies and corrects usability issues early in the software
development process. This makes mobile apps easier to use for
people with disabilities, helps developers save on costs and
satisfy compliance requirements, and drives greater inclusivity in
our communities through mobile technology."
Mobile Accessibility Checker helps developers identify and
correct usability issues early in development to deliver an
optimized mobile user experience. The tool automatically alerts
developers to accessibility breaches, such as color contrasting and
keyboard navigation and focus, and recommends corrections to help
developers adhere to industry standards and government regulations.
Current accessibility tools can only check for one breach element
at a time and do not account for individuals with poor vision, so
the contrast is not adjusted. In addition, control spacing, button
size and font size are not accounted for in current tools.
As a part of the Mobile Accessibility Checker rollout, IBM is
collaborating with SSB BART Group, an accessibility software and
services organization, to create a new mobile accessibility
management platform utilizing Mobile Accessibility Checker. The SSB
BART Accessibility Management Platform for Mobile integrates IBM's
Mobile Accessibility Checker to produce an automated testing engine
for native mobile applications and mobile web content, designed to
increase the user experience on both iOS and Android devices.
IBM Mobile Accessibility Checker is also available as a service
or software component from IBM.
More than 60 percent of the world's population uses a mobile
device every day, whether it's for shopping, catching up on news,
checking email, listening to music, or simply texting and making
calls. Mobile application usage grew 76 percent in 2014 according
to Yahoo! Flurry Analytics and as of July
2014, 1.3 million mobile apps were available through Android
and 1.2 million through Apple's App
Store.
About IBM Research
Now entering its 70th year, IBM Research continues to
define the future of information technology with more than 3,000
researchers in 12 labs located across six continents. Scientists
from IBM Research have produced six Nobel Laureates, 10 U.S.
National Medals of Technology; five U.S. National Medals of
Science, six Turing Awards, 19 inductees in the National Academy of
Sciences and 14 inductees into the U.S. National Inventors Hall of
Fame – the most of any company.
Contact:
James Sciales
IBM Media Relations
sciales@us.ibm.com
914-945-1402
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SOURCE IBM