Can VoiceScapes Assist in Menu Navigation?

Abstract

Providing better information access to blind users is an important goal in the context of accessible interface design. Similarly, designers of user interfaces benefit from alternative interface techniques for usage scenarios in which visual (graphical) interfaces are either not possible or suboptimal. In our study we compared a traditional serial aural presentation of menu items to a new simultaneous aural presentation of up to seven menu items. These continuously present VoiceScapes allow the user to actively scan the auditory display to find the most appropriate command. While VoiceScapes are more difficult and attentionally more demanding than other formats of presentation, extended use might allow experienced users to more efficiently navigate complex menu hierarchies. A first pilot experiment with 13 sighted participants presented here tested the basic viability of this approach.

Navigating Hierarchical Menus Through Sound

“…This leads to the research question of the current study: Can an immersive spatial audio interface within a VR headset outperform conventional screen reader technology in computer navigation tasks? We followed the overall metaphor used by Frauenberger et al (2004) and Werner et al (2015) of navi-gating different rooms or places with spatially arranged auditory elements in our design of the spatial audio interface. With the current technology in headsets like the Oculus Rift, the amplitude of audio objects within the information space can be modulated based on the user's head position.…”