CSUN Assistive Tech Conference Archives

CSUN 2024: Index Braille High-Speed Embossers

Allison interviews Mikael Vikman Sunna, CEO of Index Braille about their affordable braille printers. Index Braille offers a full line of braille printers ranging from small and portable to full-size and high-speed embossers for production use. The Basic-D V5 is a portable tractor-fed braille embosser weighing 16.7 lbs. It handles double-sided braille and prints at […]

CSUN 2024: ReBokeh iOS App for People with Vision Impairment

Allison interviews Emerson Maggi from ReBokeh about their iOS app that helps people with low vision use their iPhone more easily. Rebokeh is working on a similar app for Android phones. The ReBokeh app makes use of the camera on your existing iOS device and enables adjustments to contrast, brightness, colors, and inversion filters. It […]

View looking obliquely down from above of a corporate campus including concrete & glass buildings. Between the building lies a courtyard containing grass, trees, walkways, and a pond with a bridge crossing it. A man wearing sunglasses and using a pair of crutches to stand looks up at the virtual camera. Mountains are visible at the horizon in the distance with the sun setting behind them.

CSUN 2024: XR Navigation Audiom Inclusive Digital Map

Allison interviews Chris Toth, CTO and Co-Founder of XR Navigation. His company provides the Audiom digital map service that is accessible to people who are blind or visually impaired. Audiom pulls GeoJSON map data from standard digital maps and renders the information into 3D audio. This audio can be used to navigate to a desired […]

CSUN 2024: Sony OTC Hearing Aids

Allison interviews Lauren Reynolds from Sony about their new self-fitting, over-the-counter hearing aids. Since these hearing aids do not require an evaluation and fitting from an audiologist, they are much less expensive and are easier to purchase than traditional hearing aids. Sony’s hearing aids come in a couple form factors. The CRE-C10 self-fitting hearing aids […]

Front view of the handheld Annie device. It's the size of a handheld gaming controller and has a white plastic case with red and white buttons. Visible on the top row of Annie are twin braille cells on the left, speakers in the center, and a standard 6-cell braille display on the right. The middle portion of Annie is composed of a standard braille keyboard with large buttons. Below that is a digital braille slate that lets children input braille characters using a stylus. And finally, at the bottom of Annie are three large buttons for left right/right cursor movement and entry.

CSUN 2024: Annie Self-Learning Braille Literacy Device

Allison interviews Thinkerbell Labs CEO and Co-Founder, Sanskriti Dawle, about their braille literacy device that helps children learn how to read, write, and type in braille. The handheld device, called Annie, uses gamified and interactive content to help make learning braille fun. A friendly human voice guides students in their local language, thus making learning […]

Cato device is a small (1.5"x1.5") black rounded rectangle and about 1" thick. It has two small black rectangular protrusions top and bottom on the face and the word "cato" printed in gold lower-case print. A small rounded rectangular opening is located on one side of the device.

CSUN 2024: Cato Motion-Based Wearable Alternative to Eye Gaze Control

Allison interviews Auli Co-Founder, Spero Koulouras, about their alternative to eye gaze to control applications and devices. Auli’s Cato device empowers people with motor disabilities by providing familiar customizable control of electronic devices. Cato is a motion-based wearable device that controls Windows, macOS, and Chromebook computers by emulating mouse and keyboard input. It also operates […]

CSUN 2024: Touch Graphics Interactive Tactile Displays

Allison interviews Lindsay Yazzolino and Steve Landau from Touch Graphics about two of their products that provide universal access using tactile designs. The first is a custom tactile overlay for maps that provides orientation and wayfinding for people with visual impairment. Lindsay demonstrates the T3 Tablet that has various tactile overlays with raised features. The […]

CSUN 2024: Bellman & Symfon Smart Home Products for Deaf & Hard of Hearing

Allison interviews Peter Jungvid, founder and owner of Bellman & Symfon, about their range of smart home solutions designed for people who are deaf or hard of hearing. Peter begins with Bellman’s smart home wireless alerting devices. They sell transmitters to sense various household events such as a doorbell, telephone ring, baby crying, and smoke […]

Fake University website showing how Silktide identifies web content issues with location specific callouts on the webpage such as "Broken form" and "Is this a decorative image?"

CSUN 2024: Silktide Website Accessibility & Content Checker

Allison interviews Oliver Emberton, Founder and CEO of Silktide, about their free website accessibility and content checker. Silktide allows web managers to find and fix accessibility, content, and user experience problems automatically. Available as a free download on the Chrome Store, Silktide operates as a Chrome extension. It works on any Chromium-based browser such as […]

A man in a suit jacket wears the Ara device on his chest. The device is black in color, about the size and shape of a hamburger bun, and is strapped around his waist and shoulders.

CSUN 2024: Strap Tech Ara Wearable Mobility Device for the Blind

Allison interviews Javier De Leon from Strap Tech about Ara, their wearable smart device developed for the blind and visually impaired to move faster and safer in everyday life. Ara is worn on the chest facing outward and has straps around the waist and over the shoulders to keep it in place. About the size […]