Rezylle Milallos | UX Researcher
Research
Current Topics
- Effectiveness of electrotactile stimuli for tactile graphic interpretation of the blind and visually impaired (BVI)
- Mobile interface design of indoor navigation apps for BVI users
- Accessibility of food delivery applications for BVI users
- Experiences of teachers of deaf or hard-of-hearing (DHH) in online learning
Accepted Work
"Would the smart cane benefit me?": Perceptions of the Visually Impaired Towards Smart Canes
Poster accepted at ASSETS '21
BVI users typically rely on traditional methods of navigation such as white canes, guide dogs, or sighted peers. To address the limitations of the white cane, researchers developed the smart cane--a device that had additional features which may include increased forward and overhead detection of obstacles, additional feedback ranging from auditory, tactile, or thermal methods, and smart phone compatibility.
The team conducted a study to understand users' perspectives and concerns regarding the smart cane by conducting interviews with BVI users. This poster showcases the qualitative results from the study. |
Collaborated with Vinita Tibdewal, Yiwen Wang, Andre Udegbe, and Dr. Tae Oh
Keywords: Blind and low vision, Assistive technology, Smart canes, Interview |
An Exploratory Study on the Low Adoption Rate of Smart Canes
Paper accepted at HCI International '22
As an extension of the poster highlighted above, this exploratory research focuses on the potential reasons why the smart canes has a low adoption rate despite all its additional features. In addition to the interviews, we spoke with orientation and mobility specialists for some background on BVI mobility and conducted a survey to gauge user awareness and initial perceptions of the smart cane. While most of the participants’ apprehension were based on initial product cost, we found that other factors like user personality, durability, battery life, experience bias, as well as the lack of awareness from the users all contribute to the low adoption rate of smart canes.
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Collaborated with Vinita Tibdewal, Yiwen Wang, Andre Udegbe, and Dr. Tae Oh
Keywords: Blind and low vision, Assistive technology, Smart canes, Interview, Survey |
Effectiveness of Zoom when Teaching Deaf or Hard-of-Hearing Students
Paper accepted at UKC '21
The COVID-19 pandemic launched an experiment to transform traditional, in-person education online. Teachers and students were forced to interact solely via online classrooms and remote learning tools. While significant research and engineering resources have been put into easing this transition for students, the same cannot be said for teachers who must not only interact with students remotely but also teach as effectively as they would in traditional classrooms. This study focuses on the effectiveness of Zoom as an online learning tool for professors of Deaf or hard-of-hearing (DHH) students.
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Collaborated with Madhura Valvaikar, Roshan Mathew and Dr. Tae Oh
Keywords: Deaf of hard-of-hearing, Education, Professors, Zoom, Accessibility |
Accessibility of Mobile Apps for the Blind and Visually Impaired
Poster accepted at UKC '21
As of 2021, there are about 5 million mobile applications available for download on the Apple App Store and Google Play Store. While both iOS and Android offer design guidelines for accessibility, most of the commercially available applications lack basic accessible components. These guidelines currently serve only as recommendations and are not required when submitting an app for publication. As a result, people who are blind and visually impaired (BVI) have limited choices when it comes to mobile applications. This study focuses on identifying potential improvements to current applications and practices to help foster greater app accessibility for BVI users.
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Advised by Dr. Tae Oh
Keywords: Blind and low vision, Mobile apps, Accessibility |
Challenges Users Face when Holding the Intelligent Mobility Cane
Paper accepted at UKC '20
This paper identifies the challenges that people who are blind or visually impaired may experience with a smart cane handle. To investigate this issue, the authors developed a smart cane prototype called the Intelligent Mobility Cane (IMC). It provides an obstacle detection and notification system to extend the capabilities of a traditional white cane.
Some of the challenges participants faced include trouble adjusting their cane grip to fit the location of the vibrators, differentiating vibration sources (i.e., from the cane or from the ground), and feeling the cane and its handle constantly vibrating or not feeling the vibration at all. |
Collaborated with Jagannadh Pariti and Dr. Tae Oh
Keywords: Blind and low vision, Smart cane, Usability |
Unpublished Research
Drivescape: An Exploratory Study on a Sound Notification System for Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing Drivers (2021)
- Surveys, interviews, and focus groups were conducted to identify user's reactions towards a potential sound notification system for DHH drivers. A standalone clip with an accompanying smartphone app was identified as the best form factor
- Collaborated with Roshni Wadhwa and Sagarika Verma
- The team simulated lecture scenarios and encouraged DHH users to provide their accessibility ratings for common video conferencing tool. We found no significant difference in accessibility ratings
- Collaborated with Roshan Mathew, Matthew Watkins, Wentao Bao
- Conducted a survey for DHH students across the US and found that most students are satisfied with their respective online learning platforms and video conferencing tools (e.g., Zoom, Skype, Google Meet), even with some of its accessibility barriers such as the lack of accurate automatic captioning
- Collaborated with Roshan Mathew, Matthew Watkins, Wentao Bao
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