ABA Banking Journal

Saturday, June 01, 2002

The Americans with Disabilities Act and Its Effect on Automated Teller
Machines

By Bill Jackson, CHIEF TECHNICAL OFFICER, TRITON

INTRODUCTION

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) was first enacted in the United
States in 1990. It covers a wide range of issues relating to the
accessibility of goods and services by those with some type of
disability. The US Government classifies approximately 43 million
Americans with some type of disability. The most common disabilities are
blindness (between 10 and 11 million Americans are legally blind, defined
as: corrected vision of no greater than 20/200), and paralysis or other
conditions that require the use of a wheelchair to get around.

Automated Teller Machines were one of the first "products" singled out
for specific regulation by the ADA guidelines. The regulations for ATMs
became law in 1992 and have not changed much in 10 years. Today,
technology has advanced well beyond what was available in 1992, so
changes to the current rules are in the works.

The Current State of the Regulations While the original text of the ADA
guidelines would fill a good-sized binder, the parts specific to ATMs are
focused and quite short. Unfortunately, one paragraph has sparked heated
debate and subsequent lawsuits over its interpretation.

This paper will discuss the state of the current guidelines in some
detail. The entire text of the ATM section of the ADA is included in
Appendix A for reference.

There are two general areas of concern for ATM design. First,
accessibility refers to the physical placement of the equipment and the
ability of a disabled person to actually get to it to use it. The second
concern is usability by visually impaired persons.

Section 4.34.1 General Accessibility

The installation of the ATM is generally controlled by the independent
sales organization (ISO). Manufacturers have no responsibility for the
final placement, but can ensure that their customers have the information
necessary to comply with the installation guidelines. This section simply
says that doorways and aisles must be a certain width to allow persons in
wheelchairs to navigate up to the ATM.

Section 4.34.2 Approaching the ATM, Clear Floor Space

Once a wheelchair user gets to the ATM, there must be enough room to
position the chair in a manner that will allow access to all necessary
controls. The minimum amount of floor space needed is shown in the figure
here.

Section 4.34.3 Reach Ranges

This section deals with the ability of a wheelchair user to reach the
controls of the ATM, without having to reach beyond a comfortable or safe
limit. The ATM owner can choose to comply with either the forward reach
requirements or the side reach requirements. As shown in the drawing to
the right, if approached from the forward position, the controls and
delivery slots must generally be between 15" and 48" from the floor
surface.

When approached from the side (the most common approach) the reach ranges
are somewhat wider. This is because the user does not have to reach out
over the front and possibly fall out of the chair. The range here is
between 9" and 54".

Section 4.34.4 Controls

This section ensures that all user controls, buttons, doors, etc. can be
operated with less than five pounds of force.

Section 4.34.5 Equipment for Persons with Vision Impairments

This section has sparked most of the debate among ATM owners,
manufacturers, and advocates for the visually impaired. In the early days
of the ADA, ATM manufacturers and advocate groups for the blind agreed
that Braille was the best method for instructing visually impaired people
on how to use the ATM. For many years, Braille was used on ATM keypads
and on auxiliary labels surrounding certain controls and slots.

In the late 1990s, advocate groups for the blind began to work with
certain banks and manufacturers to try to develop talking ATMs. The first
talking ATM in the US was installed by a credit union in San Francisco
City Hall in 1999. Many lawsuits have been filed based on the
interpretation that section 4.34.5 required speech output from ATMs.
While this has not actually been argued in court, since all cases have
been settled, many banks are working toward installing talking ATMs
before the changes that would clarify that speech is required are passed
into law. Bank of America has been the leader in installed machines
capable of speech, but several other large banks also are deploying
speech-capable machines.

The Proposed Changes to the Current ADA Laws

A government-sponsored group, called the Access Board, is responsible for
review of the current ADA guidelines and proposing changes where
appropriate or needed. This group is made up of both government employees
and representatives from the public sector, including representatives of
disabled groups. Their web site can be found at www.access-board.gov.

The Access Board published a proposed set of changes to the ADA laws in
November of 1999. The changes affected every aspect of ADA, not just
ATMs, but for the purposes of this white paper, we are concerned with
only those rules that affect ATMs. The proposed changes were put out for
public comment, and over 2,500 comments were received during the
six-month public input period. Final recommendations are pending. Once
the Access Board adopts the final guidelines, which is expected to occur
this summer, the Department of Justice must adopt them as part of its ADA
regulation before they have force of law.

The proposed changes affect several areas: Access and Reach

It is expected that the height and reach requirements will be changed so
that the maximum height will be 48 inches rather than the current 54
inches. The requirement for clear floor space remains the same.

Keypads

The most noteworthy proposal for keypads is the recommendation to use a
telephone-style layout for the number keys. A single raised dot on the 5
key would serve as a reference point. The proposed guidelines may
recommend minimum spacing between keys, certain heights to the keys
themselves and raised symbols on the function keys to allow blind and
visually impaired people to feel the different keys. There will probably
not be any recommendation for keys to be certain colors, as long as the
keys, the text on them, and the background around the keys contrast with
each other.

Output of Information

The change that has presented the greatest challenge for ATM
manufacturers is the proposed requirement for speech capabilities. This
section presents the greatest challenge for the ATM manufacturers as they
bring their equipment into compliance. It is also the only area where
technology really has had an impact.

The proposed guidelines require audible instructions to be available,
allowing a blind person to perform any transaction a sighted person would
be able to perform using the ATM. Blind and visually impaired users can
be accommodated in a different fashion, but access must be equal.

This particular provision has caused many manufacturers a great deal of
trouble, due to the flexibility required to be able to support it in its
entirety. In addition to "speaking" the menu, the terminal must also be
able to speak the following:

* What the user has selected before the transaction is executed.

* All transaction information on the receipt, including the ATM user's
balance.

* Instructions for use of the audio guidance portion of the terminal.

Under the proposal, confirmation of the transaction before it is executed
is simple and basic, and must allow the person to change or cancel the
transaction if a mistake has been made on input. Reading the receipt
allows a user to confirm that the transaction worked. Additionally,
transaction information on the receipt would have to be presented orally.
This would include the Reg. E information: amount, date, type of
transfer, account identification, terminal location as well as balance
information. However, it is expected that the final guidelines will not
require, for example, the account number, the date and terminal location.

Help must be provided for users who are not yet familiar with the
operation of the terminal. This should include description of the
location of the important user interface points (keypad description, card
reader, printer, etc.), description of the function keys and the symbols
on them, and how to perform simple tasks.

Changes to ATM output are not limited to assisting the blind users. The
Proposed guidelines also require simple san serif characters (this
typestyle is san serif; this is not) of a certain minimum height that
contrast with the background. This is to aid people who see poorly but
can make out large type styles. People who are not visually impaired but
cannot read the supported language can use the audio output. This group
can include dyslexic, illiterate, barely literate and visitors or
immigrants who may speak English but do not read the language.

One saving grace in the proposed guidelines is that in locations with
multiple ATMs, only one must provide speech capabilities. However, there
is no definition of "location." For example, a bank may have several ATMs
in a lobby area, and under the new guidelines only one would have to be
able to talk. This is fairly clear. On the other hand, consider an indoor
shopping mall, where there may be several ATMs throughout the general
area, as well as some in the larger retail locations. The machines may be
owned by different entities as well. In this example, it is not clear if
the "one talking ATM" per location applies, and if it does, who is
selected to bear the burden of providing the talking machines.

The Players

There are several organizations that are involved in the process of
changing the ADA guidelines. Each group is listed here along with a brief
description of who makes up the group and what their relationship is to
the process.

The Access Board

The Access Board is a group of about 30 people, half of them government
representatives from most of the federal departments, and the other half,
members of the public. The public members are appointed by the President
and serve four-year terms. The board came into existence in 1973.

It's chartered with:

* Developing and maintaining accessibility requirements for the built
environment, transit vehicles, telecommunications equipment, and for
electronic and information technology.

* Providing technical assistance and training on these guidelines and
standards.

* Enforcing accessibility standards for federally funded facilities.

The Access Board is currently reviewing public comments to its proposed
changes to the guidelines. It is expected to finalize changes late this
summer.

The Department of Justice (DOJ)

The DOJ is the government agency that is responsible for adopting the ADA
regulations (which include the Access Board's guidelines) and for
implementing and enforcing the ADA. The DOJ will not act on the proposed
changes to the regulation until the Access Board finalizes changes to the
guidelines.

The Blind Industry Groups

There are three major blind advocacy organizations that have been
involved in the process of commenting on and shaping the proposed
changes. They include:

* The National Federation of the Blind.

* The American Council for the Blind.

* The American Federation of the Blind.

Each of these groups has its own set of ideas on the proposed changes,
which are sometimes not in complete alignment. In general, though, they
each advocate greater accessibility to ATMs for the blind. These groups
generally employ legal counsel to represent their interests and goals.

The Industry Group

An informal group organized by the American Bankers Association
representing the ATM industry has formed to provide representation to the

Access Board for the ATM industry. The Industry Group's mission is to
ensure that whatever guidelines are adopted by the government are not
only reasonable, practical and fair, but also useful to disabled people.
This group is made up of the following types of organizations:

* ATM manufacturers (all inclusive)

* NCR

* Diebold

* Fujitsu

* Triton

* Banks (not all inclusive)

* Bank of America

* Bank One

* PNC

* Fleet Bank

* Several other large and a few small banks

* Independent service organization's (all inclusive)

* E*Trade

* Processors (all inclusive)

* Concord EFS

* Software vendors (all inclusive)

* ACI

* Industry trade group

* American Banker's Association (ABA)

Each of the group members represents their particular area of interest.

The ABA, with the able guidance of Nessa Feddis, has been responsible for
putting the Industry Group together and coordinating meetings with blind
advocacy groups, educational organizations involved in accessibility and
even the DOJ.

The Industry Group chair is Bill Raymond, Senior Vice President for Bank
of America.

While some of the members of this group are competitors, they have
managed to work together for the good of the industry. All members do not
see eye-to-eye on all issues but agree that without input from the
industry, the new guidelines could be quite onerous and expensive.

The Timeline for the New Guidelines

This section is a forecast of what is generally agreed to be the timeline
for implementation of the new ADA changes. These are estimates.

Step 1: The Access Board will privately approve and submit its final
guidelines sometime in April of 2002, although the final proposal may not
be publicly available until midsummer. Some minor changes in the current
proposal are expected.

Step 2: The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) will review the
proposal to ensure it does not place an undue financial burden on any
organization as a whole. Generally, the review does not take into account
the burden, real or not, on individuals. The OMB should receive the
Access Board proposal in March of 2002. The OMB has 60 (or possibly 90)
days to review it.

Step 3: The Department of Justice should receive the proposed guidelines
with OMB comments in mid-2002. The DOJ can accept the Board's
recommendations or modify them, but it is unlikely that it would modify
them as it is on the Access Board. The DOJ will then put out for public
comment its proposed changes to the regulation, along with the guidelines
adopted by the Access Board, and will probably allow 60 to 90 days for
comment. Once the review is completed, the DOJ will finalize the
regulation. The DOJ activity on ADA changes has been scaled back due to
the terrorist attacks of September 2001.

Step 4: At the time of adoption, the DOJ can specify the phase-in time
for the new regulations. The DOJ may allow as much as two years for
manufacturers to comply with the talking requirements of the new rules.
The regulation will address if, how, and when the changes apply to
existing ATMs.

The Installed Base

The proposed rule changes will certainly affect all new ATMs installed
after some as-yet undetermined cut-in date. However, it is not clear how
the changes will apply to the installed base of equipment, estimated to
reach in excess of 325,000 terminals by the end of 2001. The Department
of Justice will make that determination.

There has been much talk in the industry about upgrades. Many large banks
are expecting to be required to upgrade and have already started the
process. Their belief is centered on the idea that the current law could
be interpreted to require some form of speech. Bank of America has openly
committed to upgrading 7,000 of its ATMs by 2005. Bank of America has
already upgraded several hundred existing terminals.

While some banks are already pursuing upgrades, others are blissfully
unaware of the impending changes and the spate of lawsuits. Most small,
retail ATM owners are only just now learning of the ADA's impact on ATMs.
Large retail owners are probably in the best position today. Some of
these owners are already taking action, requiring their new installations
to be speech-capable.

As the new ADA guidelines are put into effect, it will take some time to
determine what will happen with regard to the installed base. The
expectation is that some of the existing terminals will have to be
upgraded. Which ones will be affected is unclear. A large bank with
presence in multiple states may have to upgrade at least one ATM in each
location to talk, while some small convenience store owner with only one
or two ATMs may not be affected. The life span of the ATM terminal also
may play a role in the upgrade plan. If a terminal's design life is five
years, it may be replaced before an upgrade will ever be required. If the
design life is 20 years, however, then it may be affected.

The Technology of Talking ATMs

ATMs can be classified into two general categories of technology:

* Terminals that have a personal computer as the central controller and
run a commercially supported operating system, such as OS/2 or Windows,
represent the high end of the market.

* Terminals that do not have a PC as the main controller represent the
low end of the market. These are most commonly referred to as embedded
systems, which feature proprietary electronics and software that have
been purpose-built for the product. These systems are typically less
expensive than the PC-based terminals.

Making an ATM talk is a task that can range from trivial to extremely
difficult. On a high-end PC-based terminal, speech capability can be
accomplished in two basic ways. Each method has advantages and
disadvantages.

The first and most commonly used method is to employ .WAV files. This is
a specific file type supported by OS/2 or Windows that is the digital
equivalent of a tape recording. When a .WAV file is "played" on the PC,
it sounds like a pre-recorded voice.

The advantages of .WAV files include:

* They can be played on low-end PC's.

* The quality of speech is very good. It can sound just like the human
voice.

* They can be played through the PC speaker and do not usually require a
sound card.

The disadvantages of .WAV files include:

* .WAV files must be pre-recorded, most often from a human voice. This
can prove challenging when changes are needed, adding difficulty to
maintaining consistency in voice recording.

* It is impractical to record all possible words or phrases that are
needed to support the program.

The second technology employed by high-end terminals is text-to-speech
synthesis software, which turns text into speech.

With text-to-speech software, the following advantages exist:

* The software can translate and deliver verbally any word or phrase that
can be put into text form, providing all of the flexibility needed to
complete any type of self-service transaction.

* There is no human talent required to record phrases.

There are several disadvantages of text-to-speech synthesis software,
which include:

* It requires a much more powerful PC than .WAV files. Generally, a fast
Pentium II or better processor is needed to adequately run the speech
software without degrading the rest of the ATM application.

* The synthetic voice does not sound human, although most people easily
understand it.

Many ATMs currently installed do not have the processing power to run
text-to-speech synthesis software. For these, .WAV files are the only
practical option. Only the newest generations of PC-based terminals from
the major manufacturers have the processing power to run text-to-speech
software.

It is currently not practical to comply completely with the proposed ADA
changes with .WAV files. Many banks offer the ability to "name" secondary
accounts, such as "Vacation Account." Banks and their ATM systems that
support Open Account Relationship (OAR), where users have access to all
of their accounts, cannot anticipate all possible names for user
accounts. With text-to-speech synthesis software, this is not a problem.
The name of the account is simply fed into the software and it is spoken.

For embedded system-ATMs, there are fewer choices. Typically, these
systems cannot play .WAV files, nor do they have the ability to run
text-to-speech synthesis software. To support speech capabilities, these
devices must rely on additional hardware capabilities that can play
prerecorded phrases of dedicated micro controller systems that are
designed to convert text-into-speech. This approach can add greatly to
the cost of these systems, which are typically designed for the low end
of the marketplace.

Web Sites of Interest

Government

* The Access Board www.access-board.gov

* The Department of Justice www.usdoj.gov

Blind Organizations

* The National Federation of the Blind (NFB) www.nfb.org

* The American Council for the Blind (ACB) www.acb.org

Industry

* The American Federation of the Blind (AFB) www.afb.org

Industry

* The American Bankers Association (ABA) www.aba.com

Appendix A

This section contains the complete text of the 1990 ADA regulations
pertaining to ATMs.

4.34 Automated Teller Machines.

4.34.1 General. Each machine required to be accessible by 4.1.3 shall be
on an accessible route and shall comply with 4.34.

4.34.2 Clear Floor Space. The automated teller machine shall be located
so that clear floor space complying with 4.2.4 is provided to allow a
person using a wheelchair to make a forward approach, a parallel
approach, or both, to the machine.

4.34.3 Reach Ranges.

(1) Forward Approach Only. If only a forward approach is possible,
operable parts of all controls shall be placed within the forward reach
range specified in 4.2.5.

(2) Parallel Approach Only. If only a parallel approach is possible,
operable parts of controls shall be placed as follows:

(a) Reach Depth Not More Than 10 in (255 mm). Where the reach depth to
the operable parts of all controls as measured from the vertical plane
perpendicular to the edge of the unobstructed clear floor space at the
farthest protrusion of the automated teller machine or surround is not
more than 10 in (255 mm), the maximum height above the finished floor or
grade shall be 54 in (1370 mm).

b) Reach Depth More Than 10 in (255 mm). Where the reach depth to the
operable parts of any control as measured from the vertical plane
perpendicular to the edge of the unobstructed clear floor space at the
farthest protrusion of the automated teller machine or surround is more
than 10 in (255 mm), the maximum height above the finished floor or grade
shall be as follows:

Reach Depth

Table with 2 columns and 10 rows

inches millimeters

10 255

11 280

12 305

13 330

14 355

15 380

16 405 table end

Table with 2 columns and 8 rows

17 430

18 455

19 485

20 510

21 535

22 560

23 585

24 610 table end

Maximum Height

Table with 2 columns and 10 rows

inches millimeters

54 1370

53 1/2 1360

53 1345

52 1/2 1335

51 1/2 1310

51 1295

50 1/2 1285 table end

Table with 2 columns and 8 rows

50 1270

49 1/2 1255

49 1245

48 1/2 1230

47 1/2 1205

47 1195

46 1/2 1180

46 1170 table end

(3) Forward and Parallel Approach. If both a forward and parallel
approach are possible, operable parts of controls shall be placed within
at least one of the reach ranges in paragraphs (1) or (2) of this
section.

(4) Bins. Where bins are provided for envelopes, waste paper, or other
purposes, at least one of each type provided shall comply with the
applicable reach ranges in paragraph (1), (2), or (3) of this section.

EXCEPTION: Where a function can be performed in a substantially
equivalent manner by using an alternate control, only one of the controls
needed to perform that function is required to comply with this section.
If the controls are identified by tactile markings, such markings shall
be provided on both controls.

4.34.4 Controls. Controls for user activation shall comply with 4.27.4.

4.34.5 Equipment for Persons with Vision Impairments. Instructions and
all information for use shall be made accessible to and independently
usable by persons with vision impairments.


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