AutoVizuA11y Tool for Screen Reader Accessibility in Charts

This technical report presents AutoVizuA11y, a tool designed to enhance screen reader accessibility for web-based charts. The tool automates the addition of accessible features to charts, generating human-like descriptions of data, calculating statistical insights, and facilitating keyboard navigation. The report outlines the challenges faced by screen reader users, who often struggle with accessing visual information due to the lack of accessible charts on the web. A usability study involving 15 screen reader users demonstrated that AutoVizuA11y significantly improves the user experience, allowing participants to complete analytical tasks with a high success rate and in a short time frame. The report details the design requirements derived from interviews with users and data visualization experts, emphasizing the importance of rich descriptions, data insights, and enhanced navigation. Additionally, it discusses the limitations of existing accessibility guidelines and how AutoVizuA11y addresses these gaps by providing a user-friendly solution that does not require extensive accessibility knowledge from data visualization experts.