Automated accessibility testing of Android mobile APPs

• Grant number: 18/12287-6
• Support Opportunities: Regular Research Grants
• Start date: September 01, 2018
• End date: November 30, 2020
• Field of knowledge: Physical Sciences and Mathematics - Computer Science - Computing Methodologies and Techniques
• Principal Investigator: Marcelo Medeiros Eler
• Grantee: Marcelo Medeiros Eler
• Host Institution: Escola de Artes, Ciências e Humanidades (EACH). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). São Paulo , SP, Brazil
• Associated scholarship(s): 19/15367-3 - Automated accessibility tests of Android mobile apps, BP.TT

Abstract

A significant part of the world population experience some form of disability and face barriers in regular life, including access to information and electronic services,which makes urgent that every software developed for any platform to be accessible to all users, regardless their physical, mental or intellectual conditions. Unfortunately, studies show that many software applications in the public and private sector still presents many simple accessibility problems, yet causing many barriers for several users. There are many reasons for the low accessibility in mobile applications: lack of knowledge and training of developers; tight deadlines and functional requirements prioritization; high cost and effort of manual evaluation; limited automation for the low coverage of accessibility recommendations and app exploration strategies. This research project aims at collaboration with the automatic accessibility testing of mobile applications in many ways: increasing the number of accessibility recommendations automatically evaluated by current tools; investigating and evaluating algorithms to explore apps behavior and activities; identifying developer's needs in order to adapt tools for the automated accessibility testing in a development process and environment. Particularly, the evaluation of accessibility recommendations, the algorithms for the apps exploration and the adaptations to include an automated tool into the developer process and environment will be implemented in the MATE (Mobile Accessibility Testing) tool, which has been recently developed in the context of a FAPESP BPE project. This project will be conducted with the support of national and international collaborators, and master degree students of the host institution. (AU)

Scientific publications

(5)

(References retrieved automatically from Web of Science and SciELO through information on FAPESP grants and their corresponding numbers as mentioned in the publications by the authors)

MATEUS, DELVANI ANTONIO; SILVA, CARLOS ALBERTO; ELER, MARCELO MEDEIROS; FREIRE, ANDRE PIMENTA; KEMCZINSKI, A; SANTOS, CQ; TREVISAN, DG; GASPARINI, I; ZAINA, L; PEREIRA, M; et al. Accessibility of Mobile Applications: Evaluation by Users with Visual Impairment and by Automated Tools. IHC 2020: PROCEEDINGS OF THE 19TH BRAZILIAN SYMPOSIUM ON HUMAN FACTORS IN COMPUTING SYSTEMS, v. N/A, p. 10-pg., 2020-01-01. (18/12287-6)

SANTOS, DIOGO OLIVEIRA; DURELLI, VINICIUS H. S.; ENDO, ANDRE TAKESHI; ELER, MARCELO MEDEIROS; FILIPE, J; SMIALEK, M; BRODSKY, A; HAMMOUDI, S. Evaluating Random Input Generation Strategies for Accessibility Testing. PROCEEDINGS OF THE 23RD INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON ENTERPRISE INFORMATION SYSTEMS (ICEIS 2021), VOL 1, v. N/A, p. 10-pg., 2021-01-01. (18/12287-6)

ELER, MARCELO MEDEIROS; ORLANDIN, LEANDRO; ALVES OLIVEIRA, ALBERTO DUMONT; DESANTANA, VF; KRONBAUER, A; FERREIRA, JJ; VIEIRA, V; GUIMARAES, RL; SANTOS, CAS. Do Android App Users Care about Accessibility? An Analysis of User Reviews on the Google Play Store. PROCEEDINGS OF THE 18TH BRAZILIAN SYMPOSIUM ON HUMAN FACTORS IN COMPUTING SYSTEMS (IHC 2019), v. N/A, p. 11-pg., 2019-01-01. (18/12287-6)

LEITE, MANOEL VICTOR RODRIGUES; SCATALON, LILIAN PASSOS; FREIRE, ANDRE PIMENTA; ELER, MARCELO MEDEIROS. Accessibility in the mobile development industry in Brazil: Awareness, knowledge, adoption, motivations and barriers. JOURNAL OF SYSTEMS AND SOFTWARE, v. 177, p. 25-pg., 2021-03-21. (18/12287-6, 19/15367-3)

QUISPE, FIAMMA E. M.; SCATALON, LILIAN P.; ELER, MARCELO M.; FILIPE, J; SMIALEK, M; BRODSKY, A; HAMMOUDI, S. Prioritization of Mobile Accessibility Guidelines for Visual Impaired Users. PROCEEDINGS OF THE 22ND INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON ENTERPRISE INFORMATION SYSTEMS (ICEIS), VOL 2, v. N/A, p. 8-pg., 2020-01-01. (18/12287-6, 19/15367-3)