Dialers are standalone devices that allow the user to press a button to speed dial a pre-stored telephone number. They come in several designs and vary in size and memory (how many numbers they can store). Most are designed to be small enough to sit next to a telephone without taking up too much additional space; this limits the size and spacing of the buttons and the area for labeling. However, some units are larger; one has 12 buttons, each 1.25 inches square, behind which a picture or large print label can be placed. Note: speed dialing is also available as a network-based service, purchased from the local telephone company, in most areas of the United States.
Dialers are helpful to people with cognitive disabilities that affect their ability to dial accurately. They are also helpful to people with difficulty seeing the keypad or pressing keys.
In one study, more than half of the people with speech impairments who use
communication aids use the speed dial function (Simpson/UCPA, 1997).
1193.41(c) Operable with little or no color perception.
1193.41(d) Operable without hearing.
1193.41(f) Operable with limited reach and strength.
1193.41(g) Operable without time-dependent controls.
1193.41(h) Operable without speech.
1193.41(i) Operable with limited cognitive skills.
1193.43(h) Non-interference with hearing technologies.
1193.51(c) Compatibility with prosthetics.
A voice dialer allows the user to speak the name of the person they want to
call, instead of pressing a button. Note:
voice dialing is also available as a network-based service, purchased from the
local telephone company, in some areas of the United States.
Caller ID is a service that allows the person receiving the call to see the number and/or name of the person placing the call. It allows for screening of calls. It requires that the user subscribe to Caller ID service from their local telephone company, and also install a Caller ID display device.
These devices connect between the telephone line and the telephone. Between the first and second ring, the telephone company switch sends a burst of data to the display device that carries the caller’s information. The device then displays it.
Some TTY users use Caller ID to discriminate between voice calls and TTY calls from known numbers. Some (but not all) TRS numbers are delivered as well, so that TTY users can know when the incoming call is a relay call. The number originating the call to TRS is not displayed, so the TTY user does not know who the voice party is.
A user who is deaf:
“I always look at the screen. I do not answer calls unless I know the
numbers. If it’s one I don’t
know I call them back through relay.”
There are three varieties of Caller ID. Not all are available from every local telephone company, and all require compatible display devices:
Numeric. Only the caller’s telephone number is displayed.
Name and number. Both the number and the name of the caller are displayed (the name is the name under which that telephone number is subscribed).
Caller ID on Call Waiting. This added feature displays the name and number of a new caller when another call is already in progress. This has a particular benefit to people who are deaf or hard of hearing, because they might not otherwise detect the call waiting tone. In some areas the telephone company allows users to decide what to do with the second incoming call: send it to voice mail, answer it while putting the other call on hold, or add the new caller to the existing call as a three-way call.
Caller ID displays vary as to the size and legibility of the display. Here are some available features:
1193.41(c) Operable with little or no color perception.
1193.41(d) Operable without hearing.
1193.41(f) Operable with limited reach and strength.
1193.41(g) Operable without time-dependent controls.
1193.41(h) Operable without speech.
1193.43(f) Prevention of visually-induced seizures.
1193.43(h) Non-interference with hearing technologies.
1193.51(c)
Compatibility with prosthetics.
People who are blind or visually impaired commented on their lack of access to Caller ID.
Two users who are low vision:
“I ask my wife if it’s a number she recognizes because I can’t
read it.”
“I got one with a big LCD but then found out that most of the LCD is
taken up with other info, so the letters aren’t bigger at all.”
In addition to visual displays, there are some Caller ID devices that speak the caller’s number. This eliminates the need to go to the visual display to retrieve the information, and is more usable by people who are blind or visually impaired. It may also be an advantage for some people with learning disabilities.
Most of these devices have special handling for “VIP” numbers.
When someone calls from a pre-stored number, any message that the user
(not the caller) has pre-stored for that number is announced. For
example, if the user’s mother’s number is 555-1234 and the user has
recorded the message “It’s Mom” for that number, any time anyone
calls from 555-1234 the message “It’s Mom” will be spoken aloud.
Non-VIP numbers are announced digit by digit. Consumers commented on their talking Caller ID devices both
positively and negatively.
A user with a mobility impairment:
“I can understand the numbers and it’s loud enough from anywhere
in the apartment, so I feel it meets my needs very well.”
A user who is blind:
“I had to spend a lot more for this box than a sighted person, and
it only announces the names of 30 people and only if I store them myself.”
Information about an incoming call is available in some areas as a network-based service. When the phone rings, the user can pick it up. The caller still hears it ringing, while the caller’s number (and possibly name) are announced over the telephone line. The user can then decide whether to answer the call or send it to voice mail, etc., by pressing a touch tone key. This service works from any telephone in the household.
There is at least one Caller ID device that flashes green in one condition
(new incoming call) and red in another (message waiting).
This information may not be available to individuals with color perception
impairments.
Answering machines are used in approximately 60% of American households. They store user-recorded or factory installed outgoing messages either digitally or on tape. This message is played to callers after an adjustable ring count, after which the caller is allowed to leave a recorded message. The user returning to the household can then play the messages back, or optionally, remotely.
Answering machines may be presumed to be CPE because they are capable of terminating calls.
Answering machines vary in their ability to record and play back TTY messages.
Here are some access features found on some answering machines:
A user who is speech impaired:
“I always use my answering machine.
I never answer the phone. When
I know who called I create sentences in my [communication aid] so I have something
set up to say when I call them back.”
Some users have selected voice mail, a network-based service, as an alternative to an answering machine. Voice mail operates like an answering machine, with the “machine” kept at a telephone company facility. Users can create outgoing messages and receive incoming messages as they do with answering machines. All interactions are performed over the telephone. Voice mail tells users that they have messages by delivering a “stutter” dial tone when the user first lifts the phone. There are devices that convert this stutter dial tone into a visible signal. Unfortunately, some direct connect TTYs cannot recognize the stutter dial tone as a dial tone, which interferes with their ability to dial.
Voice mail can collect messages while the phone line is in use, which allows people who cannot use Call Waiting not to miss important calls.
A hard of hearing user:
“I prefer the voice mail over my answering machine because I don’t need call waiting any more. I always had trouble hearing it.”
TTY users have trouble with most voice mail systems. See the Appendix on TTY access to voice mail for details.
Many modems on the market include a voice capability, both hardware and bundled software, intended to be used for personal voice mail and Internet telephony. This lets the user set up the computer as a feature-rich answering machine.
Some of the additional access features are based on Caller ID integration. If the user has Caller ID service and a contact database application, the incoming call can be check for a match, and the caller’s name and contact details can be displayed. This may be an advantage for people with visual or cognitive impairments. The outgoing message can be customized for different callers; this allows a voice or TTY outgoing message depending on which equipment the caller is known to use.
See the modem section for more details on voice modems.
1193.41(c) Operable with little or no color perception
1193.41(h) Operable without speech
1193.43(f) Prevention of visually-induced seizures
1193.43(h) Non-interference with hearing technologies
1193.51(c)
Compatibility with prosthetics
These devices work in tandem with answering machines, or are features built into answering machines.
Message forwarding takes the recorded incoming message from the answering machine, dials a stored number that had been entered by the user, prompts the user for a PIN, and plays the message.
Page forwarding calls the user’s paging service and delivers the telephone
number of the most recent caller.
These devices route calls to individual devices all connected to the same line. Devices may include a telephone, an answering machine, a fax machine, and a modem/PC. They operate in two ways. A line switch may use distinctive ringing to route calls. Distinctive ringing is a network-based service that allows users to have different telephone numbers all terminating on the same telephone line. Each number, when called, delivers a different ring pattern. The line switch detects the ring pattern and routes the call to the correct device, which answers the call.
In the other method the line switch answers the call first and waits for a calling tone, either fax or modem. If it hears either of these, it routes the call to the correct device. If there is no tone, it routes the call to the answering machine.
TTYs do not have a calling tone, and so are treated like a call from a voice
telephone.
These assistive devices light a signal when the call waiting tone is sent, allowing deaf or hard of hearing users to know that they have an additional incoming call.