DSpace: An inclusive repository for cost-efficient development of accessible control interfaces

The great increase of information and communication technology functionality in every-day living environments, from home appliances to public services, introduces complexities and inter-dependencies between heterogeneous devices and services, and imposes higher demands with respect to our digital literacy and technical knowledge. While young people seem to keep the pace, a large portion of the population world-wide cannot benefit of these advantages, especially people with disabilities, senior citizens and those having literacy and/or digital literacy problems. The development of cost-efficient solutions for those left behind, which would provide them with necessary assistive technologies and personalized user interfaces, can be achieved through reusability of resources and development of interoperable solutions. In this paper we present the design and implementation of a unified repository for developers - the Developer Spage (DSpace) - that was developed in the Prosperity4All project. The DSpace has an inclusive character and provides building blocks and resources for fast and cost-efficient integration of accessibility elements into new or existing applications and services.