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The State of Technology (SoT) Project of the Wireless RERC filed comments on February 18, 2010, in the FCC’s Second Further Notice of Proposed In the Matter of Review of the Emergency Alert System [EB Docket No. 04-296]. The FCC sought comment on revising Part 11 rules governing EAS to allow for periodic testing of EAS on a national scale. Though EAS was created to be a national alerting system, providing the president the capability to reach all US citizens simultaneously, it has never been...

Helena Mitchell and Frank Lucia, WEC co-project directors, visited Washington, D.C. on April 25, 2011 for a series of meetings with FEMA (Office of Disability Integration and Coordination and IPAWS) and the FCC (Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau, Wireless Telecommunications Bureau, and Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau).

Recently published in the February 2013 issue of Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation published by the journal for the American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine (ACRM), this Emergency Preparedness Checklist for People with Disabilities Information and Education Page was created by Wireless RERC researcher, John Morris and Wireless RERC co-director, Mike Jones. 

The Envisioning Inclusive FUTURES Summit Proceedings have been published by the Rehabilitation Engineering Research Center for Wireless Technologies (Wireless RERC) on our website. The Summit focused on 1) key social, economic, political and technological forces at play in the migration from legacy, analog technologies to mobile, digital technologies, and 2) the consequential futures for people with disabilities. The Proceedings concluded that a variety of technological...

In response to consumers with disabilities unsure about which wireless devices and services best fit their needs and abilities, the Wireless RERC developed “Your Guide to Choosing a Cell Phone” in 2004. 

Today, all of the major wireless manufacturers and service providers, as well as some third party resources, maintain websites offering accessibility information.  These websites are powerful tools for gathering and comparing information about available products and services...

We created “SUNspot” to share some of the latest findings from ongoing data collection for our Survey of User Needs (SUN), our cornerstone survey on use and usability of wireless technology by people with disabilities.  We launched the first version of the SUN in 2001. The current version (Version 4) was launched in September 2012. Data collection was conducted through September 2013. The data reported here are preliminary results.  

This SUNspot focuses on any...

March 2017 –  This document features twelve considerations for accessible emergency communications to help guide emergency communications planning for people with disabilities and those with access and functional needs. Also provided is a list of websites and resources with specific information concerning technology, policy, training and education.  ...