Apple was recently granted a patent titled “interface scanning for disabled users” that will allow motor-impaired users to navigate computer interfaces and electronic devices such as MacBooks, iPads, or iPhones using assistive technology.
Apple has worked on new ways to allow a user with a disability to control an iPhone or iPad.
Examples of these user inputs include a breath sensor to measure air pressure blown in to a straw to select items on a screen, an image sensor to detect movement such as blinking, an IR proximity sensor to detect objects within a certain distance from the sensor, and an audio sensor to detect a sound having a predetermined characteristic, such as volume or pitch.
Apple’s new patent will tremendously improve accessibility to their users with motor disabilities.