In the thesis we address the areas of accessibility, user experience, augmented reality, and broadcasting content. In the study we focused on the accessibility improvements through usage of augmented and mixed reality within broadcasted content as well as the methodology and measurement of the user experience for the deaf and hard of hearing. More emphasis was placed on the adaptation to Slovenian Sign Language, as this is the native language of the deaf and hard of hearing.
In the introductory chapters, an overview of the discussed topics is given, first in the field of ensuring accessibility where the standards, legal basis, history and basic concepts of ensuring accessibility, which are often used today with the broadcasting services, are highlighted. Technologies for ensuring accessibility are then presented, with an emphasis on broadcast transmissions, hybrid solutions combining broadcasting and broadband transmissions over Internet networks, and the integration of mixed reality technologies as one of the possibilities for improving accessibility. This is followed by an overview of different approaches for the evaluation of user interfaces with an emphasis on measuring the user experience with the help of standardized questionnaires and methodologies, comprised of simpler questions and expressions.
A special chapter is devoted to the preparation of the experiment, including the development of a prototype solution, which was used for the evaluation and suitability verification of the customized questionnaires. The chapter describes the proposal of a technical solution for the inclusion of a flexible interpreter with the added possibility of monitoring contents or a sign language interpreter on a separate device, e.g. on augmented reality glasses. Such a solution would allow deaf and hard of hearing people to watch broadcast content together with people who do not need interpretation into the sign language. This is followed by a presentation of the selected user experience evaluation method – UEQ (User Experience Questionnaire), translated into the Slovenian sign language. At the end the methodology with a description of the experiment and the user interface evaluation procedure, using customized questionnaires, is explained.
The chapter with the presentation of the results first addresses the findings regarding the suitability of augmented and mixed reality technologies for increasing the accessibility of content with broadcasting services. Its emphasis is on the results obtained during the development phase of the prototype solution and preliminary testing, because due to the findings during development and limitations due to the corona virus, it was not possible to conduct tests and measurements with real users in a laboratory environment. This is followed by a presentation of the conducted user experience study, its design, participants’ demographics and finally the analysis of results for two experiments.
In the next chapter, a comparative analysis of the users' responses to the questionnaire in a standardized format and the questionnaire in Slovenian sign language is presented. The analysis includes comparisons via questions, scales of the questionnaire and users. In the last part of the results, a comparison of the mean values, deviation, and dispersion of the questionnaire scales between the two pairs of questionnaires is presented. The results of the analysis show that the responses to both questionnaire formats were very similar, which is supported by a thorough statistical analysis of the questionnaire data in both forms.
The thesis is concluded by a discussion and a summary of the findings, comments and suggestions of the participants and a conclusion with plans for further work.
In the framework of the doctoral dissertation, we examined and analysed the possibilities of using augmented or mixed reality technology as a technology for increasing accessibility in broadcast transmissions of multimedia content. We also created a customized questionnaire for measuring the user experience in Slovenian sign language and prepared a heuristic methodology for carrying out evaluations of the user experience with the deaf and hard of hearing.
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