How to Describe Complex Images for Accessibility

Presented by the DIAGRAM CenterBryan Gould

WGBH National Center for Accessible Media

1. Introduction

2. Describing Complex Images: Guidelines

3. Describing Complex Images: Examples

4. Adding Image Description to Digital Media

5. DIAGRAM Tools & Resources

6. Alternatives: Recorded, Tactile, Haptic &

Smart Images

Digital Image And Graphic Resources for Accessible Materials

• 5-year Research & Development Center

• Funded by Department of Education, Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP)

• Awarded to Benetech along with partners:• NCAM• U.S. Fund for DAISY

(some) DIAGRAM Activities• Description guidelines training• Product evaluation matrices• User survey on reading technologies• Report on metadata images• SVG and 3D printing evaluation• Audio-Tactile usability study• POET• Standard development: content model• Collaboration with Mathematics eText Research

Center (MeTRC, U. of Oregon)

diagramcenter.org

NCAM (est. 1993)

Research and DevelopmentResearch and Development–develops technical solutions develops technical solutions –conducts research conducts research –promotes advocacy via outreachpromotes advocacy via outreach–supports national policy decisionssupports national policy decisions

Accessible Digital Images

ASSESMENTS

WEBSITES

iBooks

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2. Describing Complex Images:

Guidelines

How to Write Descriptions• Be a subject matter expert.

• Write well and take care to review spelling, grammar and punctuation.

• Monitor length, vocabulary and sentence structure to minimize cognitive load.

• Review image in context to ensure the proper tone, structure and vocabulary.

• Have access reference materials.

• Descriptions should be reviewed by someone who has not seen the image, to ensure clarity and effectiveness.

How to Write Descriptions

The description author should consider three basic questions about each image in order to give effective and efficient description.

1.Why is the image there?

2.Who is the intended audience?

3.If there is no description what will the viewer miss?

Four years of NSF-funded research produced guidelines for making STEM images accessible.

STEM = Science, Technology, Engineering and Math

STEM Description Guidelines

STEM Description Guidelines

Brevity

Data

Clarity

Drill-Down Organization

Tables, Lists & MathML

3. Describing Complex Images:

Examples

1. Title2. Construction of the Image 3. Summary or Overview4. Data

Parts of a Complex Description:

TitleThe line graph is entitled "FOREIGN TRADE OF COUNTRY X, 1968 through 1980, in United States dollars".

ConstructionThere are two lines on the graph, a dashed line labeled "Exports" and a solid line labeled "Imports".

The vertical axis is labeled "Billions of Dollars," beginning with zero to eighteen, in increments of 2. Note: one billion equals a one followed by 9 zeros.

The horizontal axis is labeled "Year" and lists all the years from 1968 through 1980.

SummaryThe Exports line begins in 1968 at 3 billion dollars, rises steeply, then drops, then shoots up to 15.5 billion, then trails off to 10 billion in 1980.

The Imports line begins in 1968 at 2 billion and rises steadily to 8.75 billion in 1980, except for 2 minor dips.

Year Imports Exports

1968 3 2

1969 3 2.3

1970 4 2.4

1971 5 3.1

1972 10 2.5

1973 13 3.3

1974 14.2 3.7

1975 9.7 4

1976 9.5 5

1977 15.5 5.7

1978 12.5 6.3

1979 12 6.3

1980 10.2 8.6

DataThe data is provided in the following table. Figures are in billions of dollars. All data are approximate.

Common Types of Complex Images

Straight to Table

Straight to List

Tons of Info!

Tons of Words!

Illustrations & Cartoons

Straight to Table

Table titled, Expanding Education/Decreasing Illiteracy

Year School Age Population (5 to 18 Years of Age)

Illiteracy (% of total population)

1870 12,000,000 20.0%

1880 15,065,767 17.0%

1890 18,543,201 13.0%

1900 21,404,322 10.7%

1910 24,360,888 7.7%

1920 27,728,788 6.0%

Straight to Table / List

A bar chart shows funding in billions of dollars per year (2010)

• Marshall Plan (1948-1951), $27 billion• Global Environment Facility lending (2009), $1 billion• Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation lending (2009), $3 billion• World Bank lending (2008), $39 billion• Foreign Aid budget of developed economies (2008), $125 billion• Millennium Development Goals financing gap (2003), $105 billion• Investment needs for universal modern energy (2009), $37 billion• UNFCC commitment, $100 billion

Straight to List

A flow chart titled Adding an article to Wikipedia1.Search Wikipedia2.Is it found?• Yes – think of another term and return to Search Wikipedia• No – Is there a related term?• No – Create a new article• Yes – Create a redirect

Straight to List?

A diagram titled, basic overview of energy and human life.

Going in the body:• Chemical energy• Carbohydrates• Fats • Others

Inside the body:• ATP• body’s “energy currency”

• metabolismLeaving the body:• chemical waste • carbon dioxide • water

• heat

Unnecessarily Complex!

A diagram titled, basic overview of energy and human life. The diagram shows chemical energy (carbohydrates, fats and others) going into a human body. Inside the body are ATP (body’s “energy currency”) and metabolism. Leaving the body are chemical waste (carbon dioxide and water) and heat.

Tons of Info!

Parts of a Complex Description:1.Title2.Construction of the Image3.Summary or Overview4.Data

Title

Much Some

Little or

None

TitleTable

MapProvide map as separate list.

Map of Electoral Votes

Democratic: Won all states except those listed below (California was the only state to divide its electoral votes: 2 to Democratic and 11 to Progressive.)

Progressive: Washington, South Dakota, Minnesota, Michigan, Pennsylvania. (California: 11 to Progressive and 2 to Democratic.)

Republican: Vermont and Utah.

Socialist: None

Alternative approach: add map info to the table as a new column.

States Won

All except those listed below

WA, SD, MI MN, PA. CA…

VT and UT

None

Break it down into parts

1. Summary of Time Zones

2. Summary of railroads by 1870, in relation to time zones, name key cities and the one transcontinental line (outlier.)

3. Summary of railroads by 1890, in relation to time zones, name key cities.

Tons of Words!

1

2

3

Break it down into parts

This is a vertical info-graphic, containing a header, footer, and three main sections between them.

The header reads, 'FIND OUT IF YOU HAVE HEPATITIS C - IT COULD SAVE YOUR LIFE. SOME PEOPLE DON’T KNOW HOW OR WHEN THEY WERE INFECTED.'

The first section below the header reads, "BORN FROM 1945-1965? People born from 1945-1965 are 5X MORE LIKELY TO BE INFECTED WITH HEPATITIS C. 3 OUT OF EVERY 4 people with Hepatitis C were born between these years.'

The next section contains a silhouette of a human figure with the liver highlighted. Two text circles connect to the liver with lines.

•The text in the first circle reads, 'Up to 75% of people living with Hepatitis C DO NOT KNOW THEY ARE INFECTED.' •The second circle has an hourglass and text that reads, 'Many people can live with HEPATITIS C for DECADES WITH NO SYMPTOMS.'

Below the two text circles is a banner across the human silhouette’s abdomen. On the left side of the banner is a small to-do-list with a single item labeled 'Hep C Blood Test'. It is check-marked off. The banner text reads, 'CDC recommends anyone born from 1945-1965 GET TESTED'.

The final section before the footer has two columns, representing a choice of two paths - one, to get Tested; the other column/path, to not get tested.

•Under the 'Tested' column, text reads, 'KNOWING YOU HAVE HEPATITIS C can help you make important decisions about your health. Many people can get LIFESAVING CARE AND TREATMENT. Successful treatments can ELIMINATE THE VIRUS from the body.' •Under the 'Not Tested' column, the text reads, '60% of people with HEPATITIS C will develop SERIOUS LIVER PROBLEMS. Left untreated, HEPATITIS C can cause LIVER DAMAGE & LIVER FAILURE. HEPATITIS C is a leading cause of LIVER CANCER.

The footer has the logos for CDC-HHS and Know More Hepatitis on the right-hand side and text on the left that reads, 'Don’t go down the wrong path, talk to your doctor about getting tested. It could save your life.

Break it down into parts

Illustrations & Cartoons

Summarize!

Mostly blue and green

Mostly orange and red

Context

Requires specific description detail.

Cartoons

1. Setting2. Characters3. Details as needed4. Caption

Data Visualization

4. Adding Image Description to

Digital Media

HTML & EPUB• alt• longdesc• ARIA (W3C) contains several image-

description propertiesDTB • alt• prodnote

Adding Image Description

PDF

• figure tag (text only, no markup)

MS Word

• alternative text within image properties

InDesign

• alternative text

Adding Image Description

5. DIAGRAM Center Tools & Resources

DIAGRAM’s POET

http://www.youtube.com/user/diagramc

DIAGRAM’s Content Model

Multiple Alternative Elements

•short description

•long description

•SVG reference

•description of SVG, tactile

•simplified description

•alternative image

•alternative image description

Content Model:Container for Additional Information

Metadata

• purpose, age/grade level

• links to specific image description repositories

• quality rating

• concept (of the image)

• version of content model

Content Model:Container for Additional Information

6. Alternatives: Recorded, Read

Live, Tactile, Haptic, and

Smart Images

Parts of a Complex Description:1.Title2.Construction of the Image 3.Summary or Overview4.Data

Recorded Narration or Read Live

Title

The figure is entitled "FOREIGN TRADE OF COUNTRY X, 1968 through 1980, in United States dollars".

Construction

There are two lines on the graph, a dashed line labeled "Exports" and a solid line labeled "Imports".

The vertical axis is labeled "Billions of Dollars," beginning with zero to eighteen, in increments of 2. Note: one billion equals a one followed by 9 zeros.

The horizontal axis is labeled "Year" and lists all the years from 1968 through 1980.

Summary

In the graph, the Exports line begins in 1968 at 3 billion dollars, rises steeply to 14 billion in 1974, then drops to 9.5 billion in 1975 and 1976. In 1977, the Exports line shoots up to 15.5 billion, then trails off to 10 billion in 1980.

In the graph, the Imports line begins in 1968 at 2 billion and rises steadily to 8.75 billion in 1980, except for minor dips in 1972 and 1979.

Data

The year is followed by imports in billions of dollars and then exports in billions of dollars.

•1968, 3, 2

•1969, 3, 2.3

•1970, 4, 2.4

•1971, 5, 3.1

•…continued

Read Just Like the Table

Tactile

Enhanced Tactile

Manipulatives

3D Printers

Haptic

Smart Images

Vibration!

Contact Information

Bryan GouldWGBH National Center for Accessible Mediabryan_gould@wgbh.org

DIAGRAM Center

Funded by Department of Education, Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP)

diagramcenter.org