New Apple patent hints at iOS features for disabled users

Disabled people may soon be able to use Apple mobile devices running on iOS, according to a patent application filed by Apple Inc. before the United States Patent and Trademark Office. The application filed by a team led by Christopher Fleizach described an "accessory protocol For touch screen device accessibility." "Users who are not physically present at a touch screen or other touch input device can interact with the device. Users that are unable to provide touch input and/or are unable to view the screen of a touch screen or other touch input device can interact with the device. Users with any type of disability can interact with a touch screen or other touch input device, provided that the users have an accessory that they can control," the application said. This means various accessories can alternatively or additionally be used, the patent application said. It said sample accessories include joysticks, steering wheels, push buttons, remote controls, foot pedals, alternative keyboards, head pointing devices, a refreshable Braille displays, haptic mice, switch devices for users with limited motor capability (such as a straw into which a user blows into a straw or a button that a user presses, combined with scanner software that scans through command options and maps a specific input from the user to one of the commands). Also, the patent specified that the accessory can link to the device physically or wirelessly. "The accessories would be linked to the touch-screen device via a wireless connection or a physical one," it added. It said the method could be standardized to make it usable with any device no matter the screen size. Also, it said the protocol would likely extend Apple's VoiceOver feature, which uses voice commands to help the blind as well as the dyslexic navigate iOS devices. A separate article on tech site CNET also suggested Apple's recent patents, hiring data, and acquisitions suggestively hint that "voice recognition may be integrated into iOS 5." — TJD, GMA News