From: Gene Fleeman
Hi everyone,
I've started the petition "Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers:
Incorporate voice technology, audio queues, and/or tactile buttons into
your flat panel appliances to make them accessible to the blind and
those with low vision." Thanks to 500 supporters,
the petition is off to a good start. But to really make a statement to
the Appliance Manufacturers of how important this issue is to those with
sight impairment, I need your support to make the number of signatures
to grow exponentially! Lets join together
to make our voices heard.
Thank you,
Will you take 30 seconds to sign it right now? Here's the link:
http://www.change.org/petitions/association-of-home-appliance-manufacturers-incorporate-voice-technology-audio-queues-and-or-tactile-buttons-into-your-flat-panel-appliances-to-make-them-accessible-to-the-blind-and-those-with-low-vision
Here's why it's important:
I started this petition on Change.org, because of the perceived lack of
demand, appliance manufacturers have been reluctant to build inexpensive
voice/touch technology into their products, thereby making them
inaccessible to the blind. There are approximately
seven million blind or low-vision people living in the United States
today, and that number is growing every day, due to causes ranging from
birth defects, diabetes, to combat injuries, etc. We clean, do laundry,
iron, sew, and travel independently. We are
foodservice managers, attorneys, scientists and more. And yet, when it
comes to operating our touch panel home appliances we are practically
helpless. Why?, because appliance manufacturers refuse to incorporate
inexpensive technology that already existssuch
as those used in smartphones and iPads that make their flat panel
appliances accessible to the blind.
By including audio cues, speech output, or tactile buttons,
manufacturers will reduce the likelihood that a blind or sighted person
will inadvertently touch a spot on a panel and turn on a burner without
knowing it, potentially causing a fire or serious personal
injury. Without accessible technology being offered to consumers,
people who were once able to cook and clean independently could well
find themselves unable to live alone in their own homes.
But it doesn’t have to be this way! If manufacturers incorporate
inexpensive audio and/or tactile technology into their products, they
will make a huge difference in the safety of the blind and others as
well as the ability of the blind to continue to lead
their lives independently, while simultaneously gaining thousands, if
not millions, of newly satisfied customers. This is good for blind
people who will remain independent; good for manufacturers who will sell
products that the blind can use and that are safer
for all who buy them; and good for society, which will not be asked to
help normally competent human beings live in assisted living or nursing
facilities simply because new appliances do not have displays they can
read.
By signing our petition, you will be showing your support and telling
the Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers to work in collaboration
with the National Federation of the Blind to get their manufacturer
members to incorporate these immeasurable improvements
in the quality of life, convenience, and safety of the blind and those
who are losing their vision.
Again thank you for your support,
Gene Fleeman
Member,
National Federation of the Blind
