[NAGDU] Apple gives us a sneak peak at new accessibility emoji, including this incredibly cute guide dog

[Ginger Kutsch]

Apple gives us a sneak peak at new accessibility emoji, including this
incredibly cute guide dog

By Chris Mills 

March 23rd, 2018 

URL:
http://bgr.com/2018/03/23/new-iphone-emoji-apple-guide-dog-accessbility/

 

Apple has proposed a set of new emoji to the official world arbiters of tiny
pictures, the Unicode Consortium. The new emoji are focused on
accessibility, and include things like a guide dog, people in wheelchairs,
and prosthetic limbs.

 

In its proposal to the Unicode Consortium, spotted by Emojipedia, Apple says
that it "is requesting the addition of emoji to better represent individuals
with disabilities. Currently, emoji provide a wide range of options, but may
not represent the experiences of those with disabilities."

 

 

 

 

 

There are 45 new emoji when considering all possible skin tones and genders
in the proposal. There are two different guide dogs, including one with a
vest and one with a harness for a seeing-eye dog (pictured above). There are
men and women in both manual and powered wheelchairs, men and women with
canes, an ear with a hearing aid, the universal deaf sign, and prosthetic
arms and legs.

 

Apple said that the proposals were developed in collaboration with
"internationally respected community organizations" such as American Council
of the Blind, the Cerebral Palsy Foundation, and the National Association of
the Deaf. However, it also went to pains to point out that the proposal is
not "meant to be a comprehensive list of all possible depictions of
disabilities, but to provide an initial starting point for greater
representation for diversity within the emoji universe."

 

The full set of images of new emoji are available over at Emojipedia. The
Unicode Consortium will have to accept any new emoji proposals before
including them in the next round of releases, and software makers will have
to create imagery before releasing to the public. On that timeline, we might
see the new accessibility emoji sometime next year.