A Two-Phase Method of User Interface Adaptation for People with Special Needs

The paper is devoted to a problem of increasing accessibility of mobile applications for people with disabilities, that requires the creation of specialized adaptive user interfaces. A knowledge-intensive approach to the design of adaptive user interface was proposed on the basis of integration of ontological user modeling and design pattern approach. An ontological model of the adaptive user interface and interface pattern model were developed as well as an ontological knowledge base and pattern database. A two-phase method of user interface adaptation for people with special needs based on the ontological user model, rule-based reasoning over ontology and interface design patterns was developed. The method was implemented in a software tool for user interface developers. The application of the proposed approach is illustrated by a number of examples of user interface design and adaptation for people with special needs.