Accessible Map Tools in ExB

zbeat — Thu, 09 May 2024 23:10:26 GMT

I came to ArcGIS Experience Builder assuming there were pre-built controls for the most common types of map navigation, including zoom (➕/➖), pan (⬅️➡️⬆️⬇️), and rotate (↩️↪️). However, I'm somewhat surprised this is not the case (other than zoom).

Am I missing something? Here's a snapshot of the available Tools:

The context here is accessibility (WCAG compliance), in particular on mobile devices that are used with a touchscreen.

For map panning, the relevant guideline is WCAG 2.2: Dragging Movements (Level AA):

All functionality that uses a dragging movement for operation can be achieved by a single pointer without dragging.

Example of compliance:

A map allows users to drag the view of the map around, and the map has up/down/left/right buttons to move the view as well.

Let's put the rotate control aside, as we would be fine with disabling map rotation for all users. That would get rid of any accessibility gap, as there would no longer be functionality that requires multi-point gestures.

For map zoom and map rotate, the relevant guideline is WCAG 2.1: Pointer Gestures (Level A):

All functionality that uses multipoint or path-based gestures for operation can be operated with a single pointer without a path-based gesture

Example of compliance:

A web site includes a map view that supports the pinch gesture to zoom into the map content. User interface controls offer the operation using plus and minus buttons to zoom in and out.

Summary:

ExB does have an explicit map zoom control/widget. ✅
- This provides an accessible alternative to touchscreen pinching gestures.
ExB does not have an explicit map rotate control/widget. ❌
- However, an alternative would be an option to disable map rotation. That would ensure WCAG compliance, by removing functionality that requires a touchscreen pinching gesture. In fact, this would be acceptable for us, as we don't have a compelling need to allow map rotation.
ExB does not have an explicit map pan control/widget. ❌
- This is my primary interest, and a hard requirement for our mapping applications.

Re: Accessible Map Tools in ExB

TonghuiMing — Fri, 10 May 2024 08:00:26 GMT

Hi @zbeat

Thanks for bringing this up.

Even though we do not have an explicit widget on the widget as a tool (might not be considered at this time), the map API has provided various keyboard shortcuts for navigation. When you tab and focus on the map itself, you can:

- Press "+"/"-" key to zoom

- Press the arrow keys to pan

- Press the A/D key to rotate the map

You can refer to more shortcuts here:

https://doc.arcgis.com/en/allsource/latest/visualization/keyboard-shortcuts-for-navigation.htm

Hope it helps with your case.

topic Accessible Map Tools in ExB in ArcGIS Experience Builder Questions

Accessible Map Tools in ExB

Re: Accessible Map Tools in ExB