Software for Automatically Making Diagrams Accessible

摘要 图表是新文章中从统计数据和图表中传达科学信息的重要手段 到STEM学科教学材料的插图。然而，即使在电子材料中，图表也是 通常以标准图像格式提供，使视力受损的读者无法访问， 他们获得新闻、信息和学习材料。 因此，该项目的最终目标是开发一个软件解决方案， 图表自动生成，并创建音频/触觉无障碍版本。第一阶段项目的具体目标 是 开发一个通用的识别器，用于各种各样的科学图表， 创建一种基于规则的方法，用易于适应的语义信息丰富结果 对于不同范围的图表， 将结果以ViewPlus IVEO智能可缩放矢量图形格式保存。 IVEO信息对于大多数盲人来说都很容易阅读，无论他们是否能阅读盲文， 其他有打印障碍的人。 在开发过程中，该软件将由志愿转录员和盲终端用户进行测试， 反馈将指导发展。

Abstract Diagrams are an important means of conveying scientific information from statistics and graphs in new articles to illustrations of teaching material in STEM subjects. However, even in electronic material, diagrams are commonly given in standard image formats leaving them inaccessible for visually impaired readers, denying them access to news, information and learning material. The eventual goal of this project is therefore to develop a software solution that can recognize most standard diagrams automatically and create an audio/tactile accessible version. The specific aim of the Phase I project is to  develop a generic recognizer for a wide variety of scientific diagrams,  create a rule-based method for enriching the result with semantic information that is easily adaptable for a diverse range for diagrams,  save results in the ViewPlus IVEO intelligent Scalable Vector Graphic format. IVEO information is easily readable by most blind people whether or not they can read braille and by many other people with print disabilities. The software will be tested by volunteer transcribers and blind end users during the development, and their feedback will guide development.