V2 is a technical committee of the National Committee for
Information Technology Standards (www.ncits.org). It is charged with
developing national standards for Information Technology Access Interfaces.
The first project of the technical committee will be to
develop standards for an Alternative Interface Access Protocol (AIAP).
This protocol would complement and build on industry activity in home
networking, wireless networking, and metadata registries for discovery and
interoperation of devices. The aim is
to make it easier to fulfill the alternate interface connection needs of
people with disabilities that are called for in recent government regulations,
such as Section 255 of the Telecommunications Act and Section 508 of the
Rehabilitation Act. The Alternative Interface Access Protocol and
related standards will enable IT products to be more accommodating of the
needs and preferences of the consumer by allowing for alternative user
interfaces. While addressing the special needs of people with
disabilities, the option to change interfaces will have a broader market
application.
Current
practice in providing IT accommodation support for people with disabilities
involves tailoring or configuring assistive technology to meet each
individual's needs, abilities, and preferences, and integrating the result
with existing devices in the usersâ different environments.
Frequently, assistive technologies need to be developed or adapted to work
with each device in the userâs environment. The resulting systems are often
unique within the environment in which they are installed. Consequently,
those using these systems experience difficulties getting technical help, are
frequently ignored or experience inordinate delays when all other systems are
upgraded, and are not as mobile as others in accepting new job assignments and
promotions, or operating in different environments. There is a need for
a standard that simplifies or eliminates the customization required when
assistive technologies are connected to devices, and to provide industry with
a common means of interacting with a wide variety of assistive technologies.
The protocol
will provide for access to both standalone and networked systems and devices.
With suitable intermediaries, AIAP will permit interaction with workstations,
with embedded devices (environmental controls, intelligent appliances, and
consumer electronics), or with applications via home networking and/or the
Internet. The protocol optionally will convey information about user interface
functionality, preferences, and capabilities to another system with which the
user intends to interact. Alternative
interfaces can then be accommodated or constructed, in real-time if necessary,
to provide fundamental access to computing services and information regardless
of any limitation of the user.
There are 4
ways that AIAP is currently envisioned to provide a means for users to change
the user interface:
If adopted
by assistive technology manufacturers and incorporated into their products,
the AIAP can facilitate and simplify industryâs effort to provide
compatibility with a variety of assistive technologies.
It will simplify and expand consumersâ access to the widening range
of technologies they encounter daily. These in turn can contribute to meeting
the Access Boardâs ã508ä accessibility standards for electronic and
information technology.
See our
website at: http://www.ncits.org/tc_home/v2.htm
Or contact:
Bill
LaPlant
Chairman
NCITS/V2
Phone:
301-457-4887
mailto:Bill.LaPlant@Census.GOV