Navisio: Towards an integrated reading aid system for low vision patients

We propose the Navisio software as a new integrated system to help low vision patients read complex electronic documents (here, PDF files) with more comfort. Navisio aims at taking into account main psychophysical results on reading performance of visually impaired patients. To do this, we analyze what are the main factors in uencing reading performance, and review some existing reading aid systems, dealing with printed and electronic documents. Then, we show how Navisio allows to extend the capabilities of existing reading systems, focusing on the facilitation to navigate in complex documents, and on the highly customizable display. Navisio performance was evaluated against a standard CCTV magnifier tool, with 26 low vision patients. Two kinds of texts were proposed (simple and complex documents) elaborated from a standardised text database. Results show a clear advantage of Navisio in terms of reading speed and comfort. Navisio is intended to evolve: we discuss how it could be extended to any scanned document, thanks to recent computer vision approaches in document layout analysis. Further challenging perspectives are also mentioned.

[1]  Michael D Crossland,et al.  Fixation stability and reading speed in patients with newly developed macular disease * , 2004, Ophthalmic & physiological optics : the journal of the British College of Ophthalmic Opticians.

[2]  Gordon E. Legge,et al.  Psychophysics of Reading in Normal and Low Vision , 2006 .

[3]  Paul J. Beckmann,et al.  Psychophysics of Reading—XIV. The Page Navigation Problem in Using Magnifiers , 1996, Vision Research.

[4]  P. Kornprobst,et al.  The SOLAIRE Project: A Gaze-Contingent System to Facilitate Reading for Patients with Scotomatas , 2006 .

[5]  Joseph F. Rizzo,et al.  Visual prosthesis and opthalmic devices : new hope in sight , 2007 .

[6]  L. L. Sloan READING AIDS FOR THE PARTIALLY SIGHTED , 1977 .

[7]  G. Legge,et al.  Psychophysics of reading—I. Normal vision , 1985, Vision Research.

[8]  G E Legge,et al.  Psychophysics of reading. IV. Wavelength effects in normal and low vision. , 1986, Journal of the Optical Society of America. A, Optics and image science.

[9]  Tracey D. Berger,et al.  Crowding and eccentricity determine reading rate. , 2007, Journal of vision.

[10]  Jean-Baptiste Bernard,et al.  Page mode reading with simulated scotomas: A modest effect of interline spacing on reading speed , 2007, Vision Research.

[11]  Susana T. L. Chung The effect of letter spacing on reading speed in central and peripheral vision. , 2002, Investigative ophthalmology & visual science.

[12]  Andreas Paepcke,et al.  EyePoint: practical pointing and selection using gaze and keyboard , 2007, CHI.

[13]  Eli Peli,et al.  Preferred Retinal Locus and Reading Rate with Four Dynamic Text Presentation Formats , 2004, Optometry and vision science : official publication of the American Academy of Optometry.

[14]  S Harland,et al.  Psychophysics of Reading. XVII. Low-Vision Performance with Four Types of Electronically Magnified Text , 1998, Optometry and vision science : official publication of the American Academy of Optometry.

[15]  Alex Bowers,et al.  Reading With Optical Magnifiers: Page Navigation Strategies and Difficulties , 2007, Optometry and vision science : official publication of the American Academy of Optometry.

[16]  G. Legge,et al.  Psychophysics of reading. VI—The role of contrast in low vision , 1989, Vision Research.

[17]  D. Pelli,et al.  Crowding is unlike ordinary masking: distinguishing feature integration from detection. , 2004, Journal of vision.

[18]  Anil K. Jain,et al.  Document Representation and Its Application to Page Decomposition , 1998, IEEE Trans. Pattern Anal. Mach. Intell..

[19]  K. Rayner Eye movements in reading and information processing: 20 years of research. , 1998, Psychological bulletin.

[20]  I L Bailey,et al.  Reading and eye movements in age-related maculopathy. , 1995, Optometry and vision science : official publication of the American Academy of Optometry.

[21]  Chandra M. Harrison Low-vision reading aids: reading as a pleasurable experience , 2004, Personal and Ubiquitous Computing.

[22]  G. Rubin,et al.  New standardised texts for assessing reading performance in four European languages , 2006, British Journal of Ophthalmology.

[23]  Gordon E Legge,et al.  Psychophysics of reading XX. Linking letter recognition to reading speed in central and peripheral vision , 2001, Vision Research.

[24]  GORDON E. LEGGE,et al.  Psychophysics of Reading. VIII. The Minnesota Low- Vision Reading Test , 1989, Optometry and vision science : official publication of the American Academy of Optometry.

[25]  Gordon E. Legge,et al.  Psychophysics of reading—II. Low vision , 1985, Vision Research.

[26]  L. L. Sloan,et al.  Reading Aids for the Partially Sighted: A Nontechnical Explanation of Basic Optical Principles , 1971, International ophthalmology clinics.

[27]  J. Graham Strong,et al.  The Legibility of Typefaces for Readers with Low Vision: A Research Review , 2007 .

[28]  Aries Arditi,et al.  Adjustable typography: an approach to enhancing low vision text accessibility , 2004, Ergonomics.