Video Phones

Dedicated video phones and PC multi-media systems offer the possibility of communicating visually. This would allow objects and text to be shown visually, as well as allow signing to a deaf person through video interpreting.

Picture of a woman using a video telephone.

With more elderly people living alone, a simple to use video phone can provide greater security and independence. Research in Sweden has shown that video phones can be very useful for someone with an intellectual impairment.

Mobile video telephony is now also available on several handsets.

What is a video phone?

A video phone is a telephone with a viewing screen and a built-in camera, and is capable of full duplex (bi-directional), video and audio transmissions for communication between people in real-time.

Video phone calls differ from videoconferencing in that they expect to serve individuals, not groups. However, that distinction is becoming increasingly blurred with technology improvements such as increased bandwidth, which can allow for multiple parties on a call.

Video interpreting

Video interpreting services are also known as Video Remote Interpreting (VRI), it is where a deaf person and hearing person are sitting beside each other in the same place and the interpreter is in another place interpreting for them through a video phone.

Picture showing a video interpreting session with two people.

Mobile video telephony

With the advance of new third generation (3G) technologies such as UMTS (Universal Mobile Telecommunications System), mobile video telephony is available on a large (and growing), number of handsets.

By pressing a number (or selecting a contact from the address book), a user can opt to dial a video call instead of a regular voice call.

Picture video telephony on a mobile phone.

Problems encountered by disabled people and the ageing population using video phones

Potential accessibility barriers include:

Blind and partially sighted

People with visual impairments may face problems reading from the screen if they are unable to increase the type size.

They may also be unable to define the line status if just relying on a visual indicator.

Hearing impaired

Hearing impaired users may not be able to hear the ringer or identify the line status.

They may also be prevented to communicate via lip reading or sign language, which requires at least 25 frames per second, if the bandwidth is low and processing levels are poor.

Physically impaired

Physical problems (e.g. weak grip and hand tremors), can make lifting the handset and accessing buttons difficult.

Those with head and neck problems or those in a wheelchair may have problems seeing the screen.

Cognitively impaired

People with an intellectual impairment may have difficulties understanding the functions of a video phone.

Ageing population

Some members of the ageing population can often experience a range of difficulties with video phones, such as those stated above: from not hearing the telephone ring; being unable to pick the handset up, not seeing the screen very well and the incompatibility with a hearing aid.

Checklist for Video Phones

Recommendations

Possible recommended features include:

Higher bandwidth and better processing will permit lip reading as well as sign language communication
Good lighting and contrast between the person and a plain background can improve visual clutter; this is particularly important for reading sign language
Phone should be ergonomically designed
General layout of the phone should be standardised and functions should be easy to understand
Menu systems should be helpful and logical

Displays

Good contrast should be provided i.e. for text, graphics
Provision for adequate and adjustable illumination of the display whenever possible
A large tilting display makes it easier to see the picture clearly and can reduce the glare from lights
Anti-glare provision to avoid reflections whenever possible
A line by line presentation is often preferable to a single line of scrolling text
Combinations of blue, green and violet should be avoided
Colour alone should not carry information
Visual indication of line status is available
Visual indicator for ringer, or a socket for external flashing light

Keys

A keyboard will permit the addition of text messages which can be particularly useful for deaf persons
Good visual contrast between the keys and the body of the phone
Key tops should be convex or flat with a raised edge
Keys should be as large as possible without reducing the distance between the keys to less than half the key width
Ideally the keys should be internally illuminated, but the internal illumination should not reduce the legibility of the numbers in daylight
The visual markings on the keys should be of high contrast, clear and as large as possible on the key top
Keys should be raised above the body of the phone (preferably by 5 mm)
Auditory and tactual feedback of key activation
Tactual indication on the '5' key or on a QWERTY keyboard on the 'F' and 'J' keys
A voice mode selection that announces all key presses
Key functions that are easy to understand

Fonts

Fonts should be clear, have a minimum size of 12 point, with high contrast backgrounds
There is clear letter spacing between each character
Kerning between specific characters is sufficient so as to ensure legibility
Avoid the use of italic fonts as they are more difficult and slower to read
Avoid patterned backgrounds for fonts
Ensure the font has both upper and lower case letters as it is easier to read text in upper and lower case than all capital letters
Ability to select larger text
Information should be presented in small amounts which can be easily retained

Picture of a deaf man using a video telephone.

Audio

There is the ability to select special volume settings
Sound indication of line status is available
High audio quality
There is an option to switch off verbal feedback when/if not required
There is an option to switch off non-speech sounds, if used
Voice warnings should be presented in a voice that is different from other voices that will be heard in the task situation
Maximise the intelligibility of the messages
Make the voice as natural as possible so people are more likely to accept it
If the message is missed, it is beneficial for people to be able to replay it
If the message is familiar, the ability to interrupt the message would be beneficial for experienced users
Where the choice of messages is relatively limited, human voices are preferred because synthetic speech is less intelligible and less preferred
Use non-speech audio messages only for the purposes of alerting

Relevant standards

ETSI ES 201 275 (1998) Human Factors (HF); User control procedures in basic call, point-to-point connections, for Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN) videotelephony
ETSI ETS 300 375 (November 1994) Pictograms for point to point videotelephony
ETSI TR 101 806 (2000) Human Factors: Guidelines for telecommunications relay services for text and video
ISO/CD 24500 Guidelines for all people, including elderly persons and persons with disabilities - Auditory signals on consumer products
ISO / IEC 24755 (2007) Information technology - Screen icons and symbols for personal mobile communication devices
ITU-T E.161 (2001) Arrangements of digits, letters and symbols on telephones and other devices that can be used for gaining access to a telephone network
ITU-T F.724 (2005) Service description and requirements for videotelephony services over IP networks
ITU-T F.790 (2007) Telecommunications accessibility guidelines for older persons and persons with disabilities
ITU-T H Supplement 1 (1999) Application profile - Sign language and lip-reading real-time conversation using low bit-rate video communication

Further information

Gill, J. M. & Shipley, A. D. C. (1999) Telephones - What features do disabled people need? [accessed 12/03/09]
Kyle, J. (2004) Video telephony and video information for deaf people. Proceedings of the Conference on The Use of Broadband by Older People and People with Disabilities, UK, 24 November 2004. London: PhoneAbility. [accessed 12/03/09]
Nordic Forum for Telecommunication and Disability (2002) Nordic Guide to Video Telephony and Video Relay Service - for persons with impairments (PDF). [accessed 12/03/09]
Plain Old Telephone System (POTS)
RNID (n.d.) Video communications (factsheet). [accessed 12/03/09]
Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP)

Acknowledgements

Gill, J. (1999) Video Telephony. In: Gill, J. Telecommunications - Guidelines for Accessibility. [accessed 09/03/09].
UK Council on Deafness (n.d.) Video Remote Interpreting for BSL users. [accessed 12/03/09]