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Home > Information & Communications Technologies > AT-Links > Industry Sector Office > Accessible News Archives > Accessible News #28

Assistive Technology Links (AT-Links)

Accessible News #28 — Fall 2006

Should you be using these old newsletters, please bear in mind that the web addresses were correct when the newsletter was created but that they may not be accurate now. We do not plan to change the back issues of the newsletters.

Contents: 

US Government Updates its Access Legislation

The US Government's Architectural and Transportation Barriers Compliance Board (Access Board) has established an advisory committee to assist it in revising and updating accessibility guidelines for telecommunications products and accessibility standards for electronic and information technology (EIT). The Access Board has invited international input in the process. Industry Canada's delegate on the advisory committee ADIO's own Mary Frances Laughton.

TEITAC's task is to look at the renewal of Section 508 of the US Rehabilitation Act and Section 255 of the US Telecommunications Act, both of which have an impact on the accessibility of goods, systems and services. Section 508 requires the US Federal government to procure accessible electronic and information technologies; it sets out the standards for accessibility. Section 255 requires manufacturers of telecommunication and customer premise equipment to ensure that their products are accessible and usable by persons with disabilities.

There is a Web page at the Access Board website to post announcements and information about the Committee. This Web page will include ONLY publicly available information about the Committee (including the membership list) and any information that is needed for anyone who intends to attend the meetings or find out about the work of the Committee.

When the Access Board published notice of its intent to set up the advisory committee in April, it identified the interests that would be significantly affected by this rulemaking:

Federal agencies;
The telecommunications and EIT industry, including manufacturers;
Organizations representing the access needs of individuals with disabilities;
Representatives from other countries and international standards setting organizations; and
Other organizations affected by these accessibility guidelines and standards.

The first meeting took place at the National Science Foundation offices in Arlington Virginia on September 27-29. All the member organizations were represented. The work of TEITAC will be carried out in sub-committees. These sub-committees are open to anyone, not just main committee members. The sub-committees and their conveners are formally reported on the TEITAC web-site.

They are:
  • General Interface Accessibility
  • * Web & Software
  • * Telecommunications
  • Audio/Video
  • Self Contained/Closed
  • Sub-part A
  • * Documentation & technical support

Industry Canada will participate in those with an *

For more information on TEITAC, visit the U.S. Access Board Web site .

(www.access-board.gov/sec508/update-index.htm)

The next meetings will be in early November. Feel free to contact Mary Frances Laughton by email : adio@crc.ca or call her at (613)990-4316 if you have any comments.

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See what's new on the ADIO Web site

After some creative development by our colleagues Dave Flanagan and Chuck Letourneau, the Assistive Devices Industry Office is pleased to introduce changes to the Canadian R&D Groups and Referral Centres list on the ADIO Web site: (http://www.at-links.gc.ca/as/) . The new list is called the Canadian Assistive Devices Industry — Information Sources.

Presently, there are 71 organizations listed which were derived from our old list. Some of the changes include:

  • 4 new sub-groups according to the type of organization
  • Full list alphabetical search with type of organization indicated
  • List organizations by the province of origin (Head Office)
  • Direct link to the organization's Web site

Many thanks to those of you who recently submitted changes and updates on information these lists provide. For those who wish to submit any changes to the information on their own organization, please forward them by email to ADIO : adio@crc.ca or by fax: 613-998-5923.

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Publications from Public Health Agency of Canada

What are assistive devices? How can they help? Where can you get them? Canadians of all ages, seniors and others with disabilities can overcome barriers by using aids that range from high technology to simple kitchen gadgets. People have improved their quality of life thanks to assistive tools that respond to their particular needs.

Publications entitled "Go For It!" and "Assistive Devices — Info Sheet for Seniors" provide seniors, veterans and people with disabilities with a wealth of information on available assistive devices to facilitate the activities of daily living.

Please visit the Web site of the Division of Aging — PHAC:

(www.phac-aspc.gc.ca/seniors-aines/index_pages/publications_e.htm#injury)

For further information regarding these or any other publications from the Division please contact PHAC by email at: SeniorsPubs@phac-aspc.gc.ca .

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When You Need Real-Time Captioning

The Canadian Association of Stenotype and Stenomask Technologies (CASST) is a national body of court reporters, CART (Computer Assisted Real-time Translation) providers, and broadcast captioners. Its growing membership is comprised of professionals from each of Canada's provinces. Five of these, British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Ontario, and Quebec, have provincial associations that address professional issues at a local level. CASST speaks for its members nationally.

To join this organization or for assistance in finding court reporters, CART providers or broadcast captioners, visit the CASST Web site at: (www.casst.net) .

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JTC1 Update

The JTC 1 Special Working Group on Accessibility (SWG-A) met in Brussels at the office of CENELEC from 18-22 September 2006. Canada was represented by Dr. Jim Carter of the University of Saskatchewan and Mary Frances Laughton of ADIO.

The bulk of the work to date of the SWG-A has been the development of a User Needs Listing and a Standards Inventory. The result of both these tasks are at a sufficient state to be considered public.

Some of the resolutions from the meeting follow:

SWG-A establishes the Ad Hoc 9 on User Needs Mapping and Gap Analysis to do the User Needs Mapping and Gap Analysis on sample standards. Ad Hoc Leaders: Dr. Jim Carter (Canada) and Dr.Hajime Yamada (Japan). The following sample standards and initial participants were identified:

Confirm ISO Guide 71 — Ms. Andi Snow-Weaver (US) Confirm ISO 9241-20 — Dr. Hajime Yamada (Japan) and Ms. Andi Snow-Weaver (US) JIS X 8341-5 — Mr. Shigetoyo Nomura (Japan) ISO 9241-171 — Dr. Jim Carter (Canada) and Dr. Gregg Vanderheiden (JTC1/SC35) WCAG 2.0, UAAG 1.0 and ATAG 2.0 — Ms. Judy Brewer (W3C/WAI) Section 508 — Mr. Alex Li (US) Individualized Adaptability and Accessibility for Learning, Education and Training — ISO/IEC 24751 Parts 1, 2 and 3 — Mr. Andy Heath (UK) FSG Keyboard I/O and FSG AT SPI specification — Ms. Janina Sajka (Free Standards Group) Section 255 — Dr. Gregg Vanderheiden (JTC 1/SC 35) ITU-T F.700 and E.135 — Ms. Josée Auber (France) EN 1332-4 — Dr. John Gill (UK)

A call for additional ad hoc participants will be issued.

SWG-A Brussels Resolution 10: Version 2.0 of the Accessibility Standards Inventory for Computer Hardware, Software, Communications, Public Access Terminals and Consumer Electronics Domains

The SWG-A accepts SWG-A N 211 as mature enough to release as Version 2.0 for the Accessibility Standards Inventory for the Computer Hardware, Software (including application software), Communications (that relate to user interface), Public access terminals including voting machines, and Consumer Electronics (includes multimedia standards) domains.

SWG-A Brussels Resolution 12: Version 1.0 of the User Needs Summary

The SWG-A accepts SWG-A N 212 as mature enough to release as Version 1.0 of the User Needs Summary.

SWG-A Brussels Resolution 15: Establishment of Ad Hoc 11 on Reference Materials for the User Needs Summary

The SWG-A establishes Ad Hoc 11 on Reference Materials for the User Needs Summary to develop and use a template/format to gather reference materials for the User Needs Summary. Ad Hoc Leader: Ms. Mary Frances Laughton (Canada). Participants: Mr. Toshihiro Suzuki (Japan) and Mr. Michael Takemura (US). A call for additional participants will be issued.

A full listing and access to all the JTC1 SWG-A documents can be found at : (www.jtc1access.org/)

The next meeting will take place in Oslo, Norway in April 2007.

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Scholarships for Students with Disabilities Expanded to More Ontario Universities

The Toronto Rehabilitation Institute announced in August that its $20,000 scholarship in Rehabilitation-Related Research for Graduate Students with Disabilities is now available at additional universities. Besides the University of Toronto, students at McMaster University, Ryerson University, the University of Waterloo, Wilfred Laurier University, and York University are now eligible to apply for these scholarships.

"This exciting scholarship is intended to act as a spur to involving people with disabilities in rehabilitation-related research," said Dr. Geoff Fernie, Vice President, Research, at Toronto Rehab.

"We look forward to working closely with scholars from the eligible universities to support their academic and research success and to open doors to careers in rehabilitation research."

With the support of TD Bank Financial Group, Toronto Rehab is able to provide scholarships of $20,000 and a supplement for educational expenses incurred as a result of the student's disability. Applicants must plan to be enrolled in a rehabilitation-related graduate program leading to a masters or doctoral degree at one of the eligible universities.

Fields of study must relate to rehabilitation but are not limited to any particular discipline. Eligible disciplines may include but are not limited to: Engineering, Social Work, Psychology, Medicine, Physical and Occupational Therapy, Kinesiology, Nursing, Recreation and Music Therapy, Nutrition, Pharmacology, Speech-Language Pathology, Biology, Biostatistics, Chemistry, Physics, Early Childhood Education, Architecture, Computer Science, Sociology, and Public Policy and Administration.

The next round of scholarships will be awarded for the 2007/08 academic year, with an application deadline date of May 1, 2007. Applications are encouraged from international students and final year undergraduate students. For more information on the Toronto Rehabilitation Institute Scholarship in Rehabilitation-Related Research for Graduate Students with Disabilities visit the Toronto Rehab Web site: (www.torontorehab.com) or email Lois Ward at : ward.lois@torontorehab.on.ca,
tel.: 416 597-3422, ext. 7600.

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Delegates Meeting at the UN Finalize New Treaty Protecting Rights of Persons with Disabilities

After five years of negotiations, countries meeting at United Nations Headquarters in New York have agreed on a new treaty to protect the rights of persons with disabilities.

"This is the first convention of this magnitude for this century," UN General Assembly President Jan Eliasson said after the agreement was reached on August 25. He told the negotiators that they were conveying to the world "the message that we want to have a life with dignity for all and that all human beings are all equal."

"This marks a great day for the UN and for persons with disabilities," said New Zealand's Ambassador Don MacKay, who chaired the talks through its final sessions. "It's a good convention and it will make a difference for millions of people."

The successful completion of the treaty, after a day of intense negotiations and compromises that capped years of effort, was met with applause by well over a hundred government delegations and hundreds of representatives of disability organizations who participated in the process of crafting the 40-article pact.

Proponents of the convention maintained that the treaty was necessary because persons with disabilities represented one of the most marginalized groups and that their rights had been routinely ignored or denied throughout much of the world.

While the convention does not create new rights, it specifically prohibits discrimination against persons with disabilities in all areas of life, including civil rights, access to justice and the right to education, health services and access to transportation.

The convention was largely approved by consensus, although there was a vote on a provision concerning "foreign occupation" that was included in the preamble. With five countries voting against, the provision was adopted.

The convention will be formally sent to the General Assembly for adoption at its next session, which begins in September. It will then be open for signing and ratification by all countries.

It is estimated that 10 per cent of the world's population, or about 650 million people, have one or more disabilities.

Contents.

Accessibility Consultants of Ontario Association Names its First President

Rick Sinclair, of Sinclair Nicholson and Associates has been appointed President of the new Accessibility Consultants of Ontario Association. The new Association is a network for "fee for service" consultants in Ontario. Its purpose is to provide members' clientele with cross disability expertise, and to ensure a high standard of access. The Association provides its members a forum for discussion regarding the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act and its related standards.

"We first started talking about establishing the Association in June, 2005 and it started getting going in the fall of that year", Mr. Sinclair told us. He also noted that the group is still looking for new members from among Ontario's growing pool of accessibility consultants.

For more information, you can reach Rick Sinclair by email at: info@snaconsulting.ca .

Contents.

News Bits

  • Woodbridge, Ontario's Brookdale Medical Specialties Ltd.: (www.brookdalemedical.com) has just released its new R2910E Euro Style Wall Pulley. This exercise aid provides easy access for wheelchairs and allows for a full range of exercises for even the most limited needs. Weights start at 2 lb. and increase up to 50 lbs. There are no snapping elastics or tubing, so the pulley is easy to use. For more information, visit Brookdale on the Web, call them at 905-856-5006 or toll-free at 800-655-1155 or email Brookdale at: brookdale.rehabfit@on.aibn.com .

  • Special Needs Computer Solutions Inc. of St. Catharines, Ontario SpecialNeedsComputers: (www.SpecialNeedsComputers.ca) has introduced the ERICA augmentative communication device to Canada. ERICA uses eye gaze technology to facilitate communication and is also being used by sports professionals for eye control. To find out more about this and other products marketed by Special Needs, contact Terry Scott: 50 Niagara St., St. Catharines, Ontario L2R 4K9, tel: 905-641-4922, fax: 905-641-3406, email Terry Scott at: Terry@SpecialNeedsComputers.ca .

  • Sinclair, Nicholson and Associates of Kanata, Ontario SNA Consulting site: (www.snaconsulting.ca) will join with Nxi Communications of Utah in providing TTY access to the federal government's "1-800-OCanada" and other call centres, using the NTS TTY network software. NTS is a secure, internally installed text system that is both ASCII and Baudot compatible, allowing deaf and hard of hearing TTY users to access the government phone system. TTY service can be distributed to all workstations on the server. For more information, contact Sinclair, Nicholson at: 377 Pickford Dr., Kanata, Ontario K2L 3P3, call them at TTY: 613-599-1246 or Voice: 613-599-1284 or email SNA at: info@snaconsulting.ca .

  • In August, Maskery and Associates announced that the company had been acquired by another Ottawa-based firm, Macadamian Macadamian Web site: (www.macadamian.com) Maskery will operate as a fully-owned subsidiary of Macadamian and Macadamian's President, Frederic Boulanger, assures Maskery customers that they will receive the same or better service, with the same people. All current projects and agreements will continue. The acquisition also means Maskery customers will have access to software engineering, software testing, and technical writing teams, in addition to all the services they previously received from Maskery.

  • Congratulations to Automobility Manufacturing Corp. who have been awarded the "Better Business Bureau" Torch Award 2006 for business excellence. Automobility, Canada's largest manufacturer of automotive hand control systems for people with disabilities, is a 16 year old company based in Regina, Saskatchewan and is dedicated to manufacturing and distributing products for people with disabilities on a world wide basis. Automobility products can be seen at the Automobility Web site: (www.automobility.ca) .

  • Dr. Penny Hartin, former Executive Director of Blindness International, was chosen this summer as the new CEO of the World Blind Union: (WBU: www.worldblindunion.org) . The WBU is the only organization entitled to speak on behalf of blind and partially sighted persons of the world, representing 180 million blind and visually impaired persons from about 600 different organisations in 158 countries. Also this summer, the WBU announced that its Permanent Office is moving to Toronto.

  • Madentec Limited: (www.madentec.com) has released Discover Envoy, a mouse and keyboard replacement software for Mac OSX. Discover Envoy software has been designed to provide switch access to mainstream applications which do not have scanning functionality built-in, such as Safari, Mail, iTunes and word processing. A "Discover Envoy hands-on lab for Mac OSX" will be held from 8:00 to 10:30 a.m. on Friday, October 20 at the Closing the Gap (CTG) conference in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Madentec will also host a hands-on lab called "Independent Switch Scanning Access to Your PC with DiscoverPro and IntelliSwitch" at CTG on October 19 from 2:00 to 4:30 p.m. For more information about Madentec's products, contact Madentec at 4664 99 St., Edmonton, Alberta T6E 5H5, tel: 780-450-8926 or toll-free: 877-623-3682, fax: 780-988-6182, or email Madentec at: sales@madentec.com .

  • Dr. James Watzke has been appointed to the position of Dean Applied Research at the British Columbia Institute of Technology. The appointment was made at the beginning of the summer.

  • The Call for Abstracts for the Festival of International Conferences on Caregiving, Disability, Aging and Technology (FICCDAT) remains open until December 11th. FICCDAT is an international event that will take place in Toronto from June 16-19, 2007. It will be comprised of five major conferences: Growing Older with a Disability; the 2nd International Conference on Technology and Aging; Advances in Neurorehabilitation; Caregivers: Essential Partners in Care; and the 30th Canadian Medical and Biological Engineering Conference. All applicants are required to submit a 250 word abstract on the topic of their paper/poster. Multiple abstracts are welcome. Applicants will be asked to indicate the appropriate conference for each abstract and whether they would prefer a platform presentation or poster format. Note that it may not be possible to accommodate all requests for platform presentations and applicants may be required to present using the poster format. For more information, visit the FICCDAT Web site at: (www.ficcdat.ca) .

  • The WEEVAC 6 stretcher, which is designed and manufactured by W. Murphy Entreprises of Deep River, Ontario, has been nominatd as one of the "50 Greatest Canadian Inventions" in a poll being conducted by the CBC television series, "The Greatest Canadian". Voting for favourite inventions closed on September 28. The 50 nominees will be showcased and the winner announced during a two-hour CBC TV broadcast on Wednesday, January 3, 2007. WEEVAC is the trademark of an innovative line of emergency evacuation stretcher systems amd the WEEVAC 6 is the only stretcher in the world designed to carry six bundled babies to safety in size-adjustable,heat retaining pockets. To find out more about the WEEVAC products, contact Wendy Murphy at W. Murphy Enterprises, P.O. Box 1306, Deep River Ontario K0J 1P0, tel.: 613-584-9473, fax: 613-584-2626, email Wendy at: info@weevac.com or visit the WEEVAC Web site: (www.weevac.com)

Contents.

Our Web Site

Our Web site can be found at http://www.at-links.gc.ca/as/. At this site are all our old newsletters as well as different listings and links to other sites of interest. Should you be using these old newsletters, please bear in mind that the web addresses were correct when the newsletter was created but that they may not be accurate now. We do not plan to change the back issues of the newsletters.

Contents.

Communications From ADIO

If you would prefer to receive our newsletter on disk or by e-mail, please contact us at the address below.

Contents.

Where To Find Us

For more information or to get on our mailing list, please contact:

Mary Frances Laughton or Deb Finn
Assistive Devices Industry Office
Industry Canada
P.O. Box 11490 Station H
Ottawa, Ontario
K2H 8S2

Tel: 613-990-4316 or 613-990-4297
fax: 613-998-5923
TTY: 613-998-3288
E-mail:adio@crc.ca

Contents.

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Date Modified: 2010-03-01

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