Innovative Techniques for Creating and Distributing Described Video for the Blind

描述（由申请机构提供）：建议的项目会发展一项创新的互联网技术-描述性视频交换（DVX），以协助研究业馀视频描述对盲人和视障人士的成效。视频无障碍是盲人和视力受损者康复中一个日益严重的关键问题，对教育和就业以及娱乐和社会融合产生影响。专业的视频描述需要仔细的脚本和简短的画外音段宣布屏幕上的事件，否则将无法访问盲人和视力受损的记录。视频描述已被证明可以使教育和娱乐视频对盲人和视力受损的观众更有效，但它非常昂贵和耗时。随着视频材料制作的加速和用于支持专业描述的资金的减少，调查以志愿人员为基础的视频描述系统的有效性和可行性变得越来越重要。DVX将提供一个平台，用于简单创建、共享、查看和评估由志愿者录制的DVD和基于互联网的视频内容的描述，并由各种视力残疾人士进行评估。DVX将是第一个将视频描述记录和播放工具与基于服务器的共享机制紧密结合的系统，从而使志愿者和盲人消费者能够无缝地创建和消费所描述的材料。DVX的可用性将使解决有关使用业余爱好者描述视频的有效性的几个重要研究问题成为可能。我们提出了几个具体的研究问题，但DVX打开了未来更多的视频描述研究的可能性。本项目建议利用基于互联网的调查协议进行以下调查，涉及50名有视力的业余描述者和200名视力残疾的评估参与者：1。与传统的专业视频描述相比，评估各种类型和视频格式的业余描述的有效性。此外，评估消费者反馈对业余描述质量的影响。2.评估一套建议的增强回放功能的有效性，旨在减轻业余描述中常见的问题; 3.对主流社交网络平台的使用进行初步研究（例如，Facebook和Twitter）招募业余描述者。 公共卫生相关性：在盲人和视力受损者的康复方面，大多数视频材料的可获得性有限是一个日益严重的关键问题，对他们的教育和就业以及娱乐和社会融合产生了负面影响。建议的计划将发展一项创新的互联网技术-描述性视频交换系统，以协助研究使用业馀描述者的成效，从而为失明及视障人士提供更多无障碍视频。随着视频材料制作的加速和用于支持专业描述的资金的减少，调查以志愿人员为基础的视频描述系统的有效性和可行性变得越来越重要。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The proposed project will develop an innovative Internet technology - the Descriptive Video Exchange (DVX) - to facilitate research into the effectiveness of amateur video description for the blind and visually impaired. Video accessibility is a critical and growing issue in the rehabilitation of the blind and visually impaired, and has impacts in education and employment, as well as entertainment and social integration. Professional video description requires careful scripting and recording of brief voiceover segments announcing on-screen events that would otherwise be inaccessible to the blind and visually-impaired. Video description has been shown to make educational and entertainment video more effective for blind and visually-impaired viewers, but it is extremely costly and time-consuming. With the accelerated production of video materials and dwindling funding to support professional description, it is increasingly important to investigate the effectiveness and viability of a volunteer-based system of video description. DVX will provide a platform for the simple creation, sharing, viewing, and evaluation of descriptions of DVD and Internet-based video content recorded by volunteers, and evaluated by people with a wide range of visual disabilities. DVX will be the first system to tightly couple video description recording and playback tools with a server-based, description-sharing mechanism, thus making the creation and consumption of the described materials seamless for both volunteers and blind consumers. The availability of DVX will make it possible to address several important research questions about the effectiveness of using amateurs to describe video. We propose several specific research questions; however DVX opens the possibility for many more future video description studies. The present project proposes to conduct the following investigations utilizing an Internet-based survey protocol involving 50 sighted amateur describers and 200 evaluation participants with a broad range of visual disabilities: 1. Evaluate the effectiveness of amateur description for a variety of genres and video formats, in comparison to traditional, professional video description. In addition, evaluate the influence of consumer feedback on the quality of amateur description. 2. Evaluate the effectiveness of a proposed set of Enhanced Playback Functions intended to mitigate problems commonly encountered in amateur description; 3. Conduct preliminary research into the use of mainstream social networking platforms (e.g., Facebook and Twitter) for the recruitment of amateur describers. PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE: The limited accessibility of most video materials is a critical and growing issue in the rehabilitation of the blind and visually impaired, and has negative impacts on their education and employment, as well as entertainment and social integration. The proposed project will develop an innovative Internet technology - the Descriptive Video Exchange (DVX) - to facilitate research into the effectiveness of using amateur describers to boost the availability of accessible video for the blind and visually impaired. With the accelerated production of video materials and dwindling funding to support professional description, it is increasingly important to investigate the effectiveness and viability of a volunteer-based system of video description.