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Meet the researchers
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Every year, the alphaWorks teams seeks out new developments in IBM Research labs around the world, new areas of focus, new themes, and new standards. And every year, we have the opportunity to work with researchers who turn forward-looking concepts into emerging technologies. Now, meet some of the researchers who helped to develop the accessibility technologies showcased in this Research Topics series.
Chieko Asakawa, aDesigner
 Chieko Asakawa joined the Tokyo Research Laboratory in 1985. She has conducted research and development on nonvisual computer interfaces for the blind since that time; these interfaces include the Home Page Reader in 1997. Dr. Asakawa received recognition from the Japanese Ministry of Health and Welfare in 1999 and was inducted into the Women in Technology International Hall of Fame in 2003. She received a Ph.D. from the Department of Advanced Interdisciplinary Studies in the Graduate School of Engineering at the University of Tokyo in 2004. Dr. Asakawa is a member of the IBM Academy of Technology, ACM, IEICE, and IPSJ.
The aDesigner team includes Shin Saito, Kentarou Fukuda, Hironobu Takagi, and Junji Maeda.
Learn more about the aDesigner.
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Rick Kjeldsen, Head Tracking Pointer
 Rick Kjeldsen is a Research Staff Member at IBM's T.J. Watson Research Center. He received his BSEE, With Great Distinction, from Clarkson University in 1981, his MS from the University of Massachusetts in 1987, and his PhD from Columbia University in 1997. Between stints at school, he has held various programming and research positions within IBM. He was a member of the Exploratory Computer Vision Group at Watson Research from 1987 through 2001, when he joined the Accessibility Research Group. He has published and filed patents on a wide range of topics in artificial intelligence, computer vision and perceptual user interfaces. He is the inventor of the TouchFree Switch, an inexpensive vision-based input device that allows users with limited physical mobility to trigger computer events. His image processing software was featured in the theatrical production “Alladeen”, which has just completed a world tour. He is the inventor of the user vision-based interaction system for the Everywhere Display, which allows interactive displays to be projected onto any surface. His current research is aimed at the application of human-centric computer vision to create practical, customizable user interfaces for both general and special needs users.
Learn more about the Head Tracking Pointer.
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Barry Feigenbaum, IBM Reflexive User Interface Builder
 Barry Feigenbaum is a member of the IBM Worldwide Accessibility Center, where he is part of the team that helps IBM make its own products accessible to people with disabilities. Dr. Feigenbaum has published several books and articles, holds several patents, and has spoken at industry conferences such as JavaOne. He serves as an adjunct assistant professor of computer science at the University of Texas, Austin. He has more than ten years of experience using object-oriented languages such as C++, Smalltalk, Java, and Jython, and he uses the Java language and Jython frequently in his work. Dr. Feigenbaum is a Sun Certified Java Programmer, Developer, and Architect.
Learn more about the IBM Reflexive User Interface Builder.
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Shari Trewin, Keyboard Optimizer
 Dr. Shari Trewin is a member of the Accessibility Research Staff at the IBM T. J. Watson Research Center, New York. She has worked with people with motor impairments since 1989. Her research focus is on physical control of information technology, software for enhancing physical control, and access to technologies via standard abstract interfaces. Dr. Trewin has written numerous research publications, and she received the Best Student Paper Award for her Ph.D. research entitled A model of keyboard configuration requirements at the 1998 ACM Conference on Assistive Technologies. She was also part of the team that created the award-winning IBM Web Adaptation Technology. Dr. Trewin served as co-editor of the ANSI "Universal Remote Console" suite of standards for remote control of devices and services. She earned her Ph.D. and B.Sc. in computer science and artificial intelligence from Edinburgh University, U.K., and joined IBM in 2000..
Learn more about the Keyboard Optimizer.
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Jim Levine, Mouse Smoothing Software
 Jim Levine is a research staff member at IBM's T. J. Watson Research center. His interests include low- and ultra low-temperature physics, gravity wave detection, interactive display technology, and computer accessibility. He holds a Ph.D. and an M.S. in physics.
Learn more about Mouse Smoothing Software.
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Shumin Zhai, Shorthand-Aided Rapid Keyboarding
 Shumin Zhai is a research staff member at the IBM Almaden Research Center. He has done basic and applied research, published over 80 papers, and developed products in the area of user interface technologies. Dr. Zhai holds many patents and is on the editorial boards of a few leading journals in the human-computer interaction field. He is co-chairman for papers of ACM CHI 2005. He has also lectured as visiting professor at many universities in the U.S., China, and Europe.
Learn more about the Shorthand-Aided Rapid Keyboarding.
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Vicki Hanson, Web Adaptation Technology
 Vicki Hanson is a research staff member and the Manager of the Accessibility Research group at IBM's T. J. Watson Research Center. She received M.A. and Ph.D. degrees in cognitive psychology from the University of Oregon in 1976 and 1978, respectively, and a B.A. in psychology and speech pathology and audiology from the University of Colorado in 1974. Dr. Hanson worked as a postdoctoral fellow in the Laboratory of Language and Cognition at the Salk Institute and then as a research associate at Haskins Laboratories in New Haven before joining the IBM Research Division in 1986. She is active in the ACM (Association of Computing Machinery) organization and currently serves as Chair of the ACM Special Interest Group on Accessible Computing (SIGACCESS). She is an ACM Fellow.
The Web Adaptation Technology team includes Jonathan Brezin, Susan Crayne, John T. Richards, Cal Swart and Shari Trewin.
Learn more about Web Adaptation Technology.
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