A framework to facilitate the implementation of technical aspects of web accessibility

Abstract

The expansion of the internet has become apparent in recent years, both by the number of users, and by the number of services available on the network. Considering such an expansion it is essential that the content be accessible to all people, regardless their abilities or different disabilities. Thus, it is necessary that IT professionals dedicate time and effort in planning accessible online solutions. In this paper, we proposed the Homero framework in order to support the development of accessible interface layer of web applications. Developed using the PHP language, the Homero framework automates the generation of web pages in accordance with guidelines defined in Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0. In order to provide evidence of the quality of web applications generated using the framework, an empirical study was conducted. The results showed the effectiveness of Homero to assist the development of accessible web applications, achieving level AAA in automatically detectable WCAG 2.0 success criteria. © 2014 Springer International Publishing.