The project

Overview

PROTECT will define new methodologies and technologies that will increase the inclusivity of Web resources, offering benefits to those users that can take advantage from conversational UIs, from blind and visually impaired users to the elderly and other fragile populations. In particular, the project will pursue the following innovative goals:

• Identifying challenges posed by current technologies for a more inclusive interaction with digital services on the Web, by means of a human-centric process including extended (large-scale) user studies.

• Defining design methodologies that embed design patterns for conversational user interfaces for Web browsing.

• Designing technologies for the integration of Conversational AI in Web platforms that will be available as open-source software and contribute to making proposals towards new standards for the Web.

• Designing techniques for AI model transparency and explainability, to promote Conversational AI as a trustworthy technology for accessing the Web.

Overall approach and Expected Results

PROTECT will adopt a “research-through design” approach, in which prototypes will be created as vehicles for exploring foundational aspects. Rapid prototyping, in the form of Minimum Viable Prototypes (MVPs) will assure the users’ involvement.

As illustrated in the figure below, the main iterative process of human-centered design is complemented by three main reflective processes aimed to produce new theoretical and practical knowledge. 

In particular:

●  Within WP1, by adopting human-centered methods, users living with impairments will be observed while interacting with Web resources to identify the aspects relevant to the design of the new paradigm for conversational Web browsing. 

●   Within WP2, the most promising MVPs developed in WP1 will be refined and integrated to deploy the demonstrator of the platform for Conversational Web access, on which user testing activities will be conducted in WP3. 

●    Within WP3, the prototypes developed in WP2 will be evaluated through two series of activities: i) quick, in-the-lab, evaluations on technical feasibility and usability aspects, and ii) longer-term user experience and acceptance evaluation. 

●  With reference to dissemination (WP4), further expected outcomes of the project will be the scientific publications that will report on significant research contributions in relevant journals and conferences in the field of HCI (e.g., International Journal of Human-Computer Studies, ACM CHI conference), Web Engineering (ACM transactions on the Web, The Web conference), and Artificial Intelligence (e.g., IEEE TPAMI, ACM TOMM). WP4 will also focus on the production of educational material, addressing both Web developers, especially those acting in PAs, and Master and Ph.D. students.