Accessible version of the presentation "Towards a Service Integration Portal for Deaf People" * slide 1: heading Towards a Service Integration Portal for Deaf People by: Christophe Ponsard (CETIC) Christiane Broekman (ISTI), Cécile Lamy (CRETH) Martine Fraiture (FFSB) presented at ICCHP – July 2006 * slide 2: outline - Introduction: deaf communication - Current/Emerging solutions - Towards more integration - Prototype design - Perspectives * slide 3: context deaf communication the slide depicts the way two people (one of them being deaf or hard-of hearing) can communicate alternative communication means are (in one or both directions) - writen language - lip reading - oralisation - sign language - cued speech - body language ... * slide 4: 3 key problems to address 1) communication with hearing people, especially in official context or at the work place especially for signing deafs who may have a poor level of written language if they have to rely on a sign language interpreter for optimal communication: availability is a problem 2) remote communication: there is still no deaf equivalent to the phone SMS, FAX, email are textual and lack true real-time experience 3) access to subtitled/signed news: still a problem in many countries small volume, low priority (resulting in cancellation, truncation...) * slide 5: emerging video-enabled solutions two kind of video enabled solutions are now appearing 1) video communication based on standard like SIP/H323 or PC messaging solutions like MSN or skype 2) deaf portal with signed content: mainly news by/for dead people they suffer a number of limitation we will try to address: - lack of service integration: SMS, FAX, email, MSN is a complex mix - lack of quality of service: deaf have specific requirements - only basic services for now, missing access to interpreters, deaf directories * slide 6: summary of some requirements for video communications - Resolution should be at least 352 by 288 pixels - Frame rate: 20 frame per second is recommended, 15 is the minimal tolerated - Delay should not be under 0,5 second - Audio should be available (for amplification) and synchronized - Screen size: videophones and mobile phones suffer from a small screen, 17 inch computer LCD and television are good * slide 7: comparison of user interfaces - a recent computer can be turned into a videophone device using cheap webcam. Client software include video enabled messengers or softphone clients. This is a cheap solution if a PC is available but the interface is complex. Incoming calls are also a problem as the PC has to be turned on. - TV with video set-top box is much appreciated as they enable a very convivial use on the TV set in the living room and are simple to use. - videophone provides a simple and familiar phone interface with only some extra buttons. The main concern here is the size of the screen. - mobile phone: 3G phones now support video at a poor resolution but with the fantastic advantage of mobility. To cope with this, deaf are developing a "short sign language" which is roughly the equivalent of SMS and for the same kind of usage * slide 8: some existing deaf portals with signed video content - websourd (france) - deafstation (UK) - Pisoud (swiss) * slide 9: remote access to a sign language interpreter Two scenarios can be distinguished - The first scenario is video relay: it allows a signing deaf to reach an hearing person on the phone, For this he calls an interpreter by video and the interpreters translates the call over a phone line. - The second scenario is remote interpretation: a deaf and hearing person are in a single place and call the interpreter for translating. Care must be taken about the context of the conversation, especially in the second scenario: complex/long matter require the physical presence of the interpreter. The system is already tested or operational is a number of countries like Sweden, UK, Germany. An interesting side effect is the greater availability of interpreters as they travel less and the ability for them to work from home. * slide 10: overview of the service integration portal The central part of the proposed architecture is a service integration portal. At user level it allows deaf and hearing people to communicate and share content in an optimal way, using their preferred user interface The service aggregated and hides a number of underlying services such as a video communication server, a video streaming server, a directory service and a call center for access to interpreters. * slide 11: some technical choices on the current implementation of the prototype the prototype was implemented on a PC platform in a browser environment because it is a good platform for prototype development and gives a good idea of what the interface could look like on other kinds of terminals moreover the hardware solutions are not yet ready for a browser-based interface the interface is detailled in the next slide, the design is simple and intuitive Video communications relie on the SIP standard with an softphone transparently installed as ActiveX. Offline Videos are streaming in windows media format for now (but this could change) * slide 12: the layout of the interface is detailled. Only a small number of information elements are displayed at a time. The navigation zone on the left gives access to video call, directory, messages, access to interpreter, information and emergency call. All the information displayed is also explained in sign language in a small video area in the bottom left. The large part on the right of the screen is dedicated to the content: web page browsing or video content. * slide 13: conclusion and perspectives the strategy followed is to rely on mature/affordable/standard technology The approach is incremental: core services then services on top There is a involvement of the deaf Community, sign language interpreter and national Telco. Awareness is also being raised with public authorities (regional & local) An internal Prototype at FFSB & Belgacom, it will be launched more officially during next Deaf National Day. Other projects are already joigning such as can@l sourd project (video program by/for deaf). Tests on 3G mobile phones are also being done.