TTY phone

Abstract

Seeking to enable direct and equal access for the Deaf to emergency call centers, we analyze the current state of the emergency phone system in the United States and elsewhere in the world. Leveraging teletypewriter (TTY) technology mandated by the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 to be installed in all emergency call centers in the United States, we developed software that emulates a TTY on a smart phone. We present an Instant Messaging style interface for mobile phones that uses the existing emergency infrastructure and allows Deaf users to communicate directly with emergency operators.