• Journal of Information Management
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• v.41 no.1
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• pp.97-126
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• 2010

Many visually handicapped people face difficulties with using libraries. Public libraries are thus required to meet the need of visually handicapped people. Public libraries should guarantee the visually handicapped the right to use appropriate services. If so, the visually handicapped can improve their life quality by decreasing information gap and increasing information comprehension or accessibility. This study is designed to analyze how visually handicapped people can use public libraries. Based on the analysis, this study can provide actual suggestions to improve opportunities for the visually handicapped to use libraries. Data are collected from visually handicapped people who are the members of Suseong Public Library, Daegu, Korea. In specific, this study can analyze various characteristics(i.e., information needs, selection and use behavior of information sources, difficulties and gaps to access information, use behavior and service satisfaction of public library) regarding their library use by telephone interviews.

• Journal of Korean Library and Information Science Society
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• v.32 no.4
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• pp.229-256
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• 2001

Library service should be available and accessible to every one. But people with disabilities were much excluded from library and information service in Korea. The information and communications revolution ought to be a passport to inclusiveness the disabled in library and information service. This study describes current library services for the visually handicapped and reviews related critical issues in Korea and the state of the art in adaptive technology for low vision and blindness. And proposes necessary methods to improve library and information services for the visually handicapped in Korea.

• Proceedings of the KSR Conference
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• 2004.10a
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• pp.1725-1730
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• 2004

The railroad station building is a public facility that many people use. The disabled persons cannot move as freely as the ordinary persons do, so the facility shall be considered on this matter. We reviewed on the features of the retarded, visually handicapped and mentally retarded persons upon moving, and calculated the minimum space required in their move, access and use of the reachable space, and we also analyzed the design factors so that the prior guidance can be considered for the visually handicapped such as installation of guidance facility, change of finishing material and Braille points block handrail to avoid obstacles for the use of senses of touch, hearing and remained eyesight of the visually handicapped. In addition, we also analyzed the requests of general design totally to analyze and arrange the design factors with the thought that the facility for the handicapped shall be useful for the ordinary people as well as the handicapped.

• Journal of Information Technology Services
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• v.6 no.1
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• pp.17-30
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• 2007

The rapid development of information and communication technologies has resulted in rapid increase in the qualitative and quantitative information that can be accessed by information technology. Furthermore an enormous amount of information is provided in various formats. However, there are a group of people who are not able to even approach to targeted information due to physical or environmental problems. Visually handicapped users constitute a class of these users. In this paper, a method of developing user interface for web-based education service is described for the visually handicapped users to access information more efficiently. First, this paper analyzed the problems of visually handicapped users to access information targeting representative domestic sites that supply education services. And based on the results of the above analyses, Nest, this paper explains the web-based education service interface implementation method according to types of the content to be delivered. Lastly, the validity of this method is provided by testing a web page based on the implementation method according to the types of content.

• Journal of the Korea Society of Computer and Information
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• v.19 no.11
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• pp.167-173
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• 2014

A white cane is used by many people who are blind or visually impaired. The studies and developments in the field of smart electronic white cane have been progressed to improve walking safety of the visually handicapped person. In this paper, we describe a situation-awareness white cane which support and guide walking of the visually handicapped person by giving information of surrounding situation through connection of a white cane and a mobile device. There are easily accessible buttons in the situation-awareness white cane. These buttons is connected with the mobile device by blue-tooth, so by pushing these buttons, the visually handicapped person can receive sound-guidance. As a result, the visually handicapped person can walk more safely by getting more information of situation.

• The Journal of the Korea Contents Association
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• v.15 no.6
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• pp.125-135
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• 2015

As the elderly and the disabled populations increase, the importance of the universal design is more highlighted to form equal and secured environment. Particularly, as the desire for the cultural experience has grown, investment and construction of the cultural space are actively carried forward at the state level, but there are a lot of restrictive elements for the disadvantaged to have the cultural experience in the public facilities. To analyze these elements, investigation into the present conditions and analysis of use evaluation were conducted over the construction environment of museums, the public cultural space, in terms of the visually handicapped and non-handicapped people. Through the literature review, this study understood the concept and principle of the universal design, analyzed and reclassified the existing evaluation elements. As a result of evaluating museums in the country based on the analyzed evaluation elements, the information, environment and supplement points in service were investigated for the visually handicapped to tour museums and remedies were drawn. This study tries to consider these disadvantaged and to suggest evaluation elements and remedies for environment construction, so that everyone can do pleasant activities.

• Proceedings of the Korean Institute of Intelligent Systems Conference
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• 2006.05a
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• pp.409-412
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• 2006

본 연구는 장애인생활시설에서의 정보화에 대한 고찰이다. 정규 시각장애인학교와 장애인생활시설의 시각장애인 교육환경의 비교하기 위하여 대전의 한 장애인생활시설을 선정하고. 장애인생활시설에 몸담고 있는 원생의 유형별, 연령별 인원현황, 연령별 교사현황, 컴퓨터 보유현황, 원생의 주간교육 일정, 시각장애인용 기자재 보유현황 등을 조사하였다. 그 결과 시각장애자에게 있어서 정보화의 기초가 되는 점자 숙지자가 많지 않아 점자교육의 확대가 필요하였고, 정규학교와 달리 컴퓨터교육에 필요한 기자재가 턱없이 부족하여 학습의 환경조성이 시급한 상황이었다. 또한, 교사 중 일부만이 사회복지나 특수교육을 전공하였고, 컴퓨터를 전공한 사람은 단 한 명도 없었다. 그 이유는 아직 장애인 생활시설의 교사채용기준은 법으로 규정되어 있지 않고 생활시설의 교사에 대한 처우가 일반학교의 교사에 대한 처우에 못 미치는 상황이어서 전공자의 임용지원이 많지 않기 때문이었다. 장애인 생활시설에서 정보화 촉진을 위해 정부의 지원을 바탕으로 한 기자재의 확충과 꾸준한 교육연수를 통한 전문지식인의 양성과 그에 걸 맞는 물리적, 사회적 대우를 통하여 원생들에게 질 높은 교육환경을 제공하는 것이 시급한 것으로 조사되었다.

• Journal of the Korea Society of Computer and Information
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• v.9 no.2
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• pp.131-138
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• 2004

Considering international trends and foreign cases, it can be easily expected that web accessibility issue is becoming more and more important. While information technology has changed Korean society rapidly and widely, there are many People who have difficulties in using information services such as the elderly and persons with disabilities. One of the big barriers they face is the lack of accessibility of web services. These social problems have been rarely studied in Korea but surface as very import subjects to be addressed concerning IT and welfare policy. The objective of this study is to ensure web accessibility right for visually handicapped and reduce digital divide through development of a recommendation guideline of mobile internet user interface. In this study the trends of politics and laws related to web accessibility in developed countries are surveyed and some advisable recommendation guidelines of mobile internet user interface for visually handicapped to improve web accessibility are proposed.

• The Journal of The Korea Institute of Intelligent Transport Systems
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• v.9 no.5
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• pp.25-37
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• 2010

This study is aimed at enhancing mobility rights for the transportation underprivileged that has been made light of relatively compared to normal people. In order to do this, we've suggested having ITS (Intelligent Traffic System) built and improving satisfaction through the test operation of its main system. The existing sound signal device for the visually handicapped has one problem with managing it. Because, the people in charge of it had to visit each problematic site directly to maintain and fix some problems every time it was out of order. Moreover, it couldn't provide sustainable services about voice guidance and the visually handicapped had to control it by either confirming the location of buttons that were installed on the pillar of traffic light and then pressing one of them or using a remote controller on their own. In order to improve such inconveniences, we have created a new typed sound signal device for the visually handicapped by applying the cutting-edge wireless technology based on ergonomics considering actual road situations. Such technology enables it report the status of signal device and light to them by using its voice guidance system automatically every time they have access to it. Additionally, we've already introduced it to a couple of test areas and then known the fact that they recognized traffic situation more conveniently and safely compared to the existing sound signal device. That is above average in terms of satisfaction. In addition to that, we've provided LTS (Location Tracking System - Location-based service intended for elementary students) by utilizing the existing wireless infrastructure and founded the fact that about 87% of their parents were satisfied with the service based on LTS.

• Journal of Korea Society of Industrial Information Systems
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• v.12 no.5
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• pp.98-109
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• 2007

The era of Web 2.0, which is the web environment that offers end user oriented web platform, has arrived. Moreover, as the interest in UCC (User Created Contents) environment increases, it is a fact that the involvement of the users in multimedia contents is increasing rapidly. When the aim of Web 2.0, i.e. active involvement of the user, is considered, the necessity and the understanding about accessibility problem of the people who have difficulties about accessing web information, such as elderly and visually handicapped people, is increasing as well. This research analyzes the problems of virtually handicapped users to access web-based UCC services, and proposes an efficient implementation plan for a web-based UCC service that enables smooth access for them. Especially, the validity of the proposed method was verified by comparing the reaction time of the visually handicapped users with that when using the existing UCC services, through the implementation of the test page according to the plan proposed in this research.