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American Institute of Physics (AIP) Publishing

Summary

Accessiblü conducted a high-level accessibility evaluation of the AIP Publishing platform to assess its usability for individuals with disabilities. The review was conducted using the JAWS and NVDA screen readers, keyboard-only navigation, and manual inspection for conformance to select WCAG 2.2 AA success criteria.

Key Findings

AIP Publishing demonstrates thoughtful design in several key areas, particularly in its content organization and search functionality. The platform provides multiple pathways for users to access scientific literature, with clearly structured navigation patterns that support different research workflows. However, our evaluation identified several accessibility barriers that may create challenges for users who rely on assistive technology. The primary improvement opportunities center around page structure, landmark regions, and interactive element labeling. While these issues do not prevent basic platform functionality, addressing them would significantly enhance the user experience for people with disabilities and improve overall platform usability for all users.

Top 3 Issues Identified

1. Missing Landmark Regions

•  Description: Page content lacks proper landmark regions (main, navigation, complementary) that 
help screen reader users navigate efficiently.
•  Impact: Blind and low-vision users may have difficulty understanding page layout and locating 
specific content sections.
•  WCAG Success Criteria: 1.3.1 Info and Relationships (A), 2.4.1 Bypass Blocks (A)

2. Inconsistent Link Labeling

•  Description: Some interactive elements lack descriptive accessible names, particularly image 
links and navigation elements.
•  Impact: Screen reader users may encounter generic announcements like 'link graphic' without 
understanding the link's purpose or destination.
•  WCAG Success Criteria: 2.4.4 Link Purpose (In Context) (A), 4.1.2 Name, Role, Value (A)

3. Heading Structure Gaps

•  Description: Page heading hierarchy contains gaps, jumping from H1 directly to H3 without 
intervening H2 levels.
•  Impact: Users navigating by headings may become confused about content hierarchy and miss 
important sections.
•  WCAG Success Criteria: 1.3.1 Info and Relationships (A), 2.4.10 Section Headings (AAA)

Disabilities Impacted

Blind and Low-Vision Users

  • Issues: Missing landmark regions, unclear link purposes, and inconsistent heading structure create navigation challenges.
  • Impact: These users may need to explore more content linearly rather than jumping efficiently between sections, potentially increasing time to complete research tasks.

Users with Motor Disabilities

  • Issues: Keyboard navigation patterns may be affected by unclear interactive element boundaries and focus management.
  • Impact: Users who rely on keyboard navigation may need additional keystrokes to locate and activate desired controls.

Neurodiverse Users

  • Issues: Inconsistent page structure and unclear element labeling may increase cognitive load during platform navigation.
  • Impact: Users may experience increased difficulty understanding page organization and predicting where to find specific functionality.