TSE ISO/IEC TR 19766

TSE ISO/IEC TR 19766 is a technical report focused on designing icons and symbols so they are easier to understand for a broad audience, including older users and persons with disabilities. Its subject is not the visual style alone, but the way graphic signs support access to information in interfaces and documentation. The document offers recommendations for accessible icon design and addresses how the same symbol may be perceived by different users.

In general technical context, icons can reduce reading effort, speed up navigation, and convey functions in limited screen space. Their effectiveness depends on recognizability, simplicity, visual distinction, and the likelihood of cultural misreading. In accessible design, a good icon remains identifiable at small sizes, is clearly distinguishable from similar symbols, and maintains a strong relationship between form and meaning.

What accessible icon guidance is trying to achieve

• Reduce ambiguity and support meaning through clear graphical form
• Improve perceptibility for older users and persons with disabilities
• Broaden understanding across different contexts and user groups
• Treat icons and text labels as complementary parts of the interface

This TSE record presents the Turkish edition of ISO/IEC TR 19766:2007, a technical report that provides recommendations rather than a prescriptive rule set. Because technical reports are guidance-oriented, practical implementation depends on the product context, display size, user profile, and how often the symbols are encountered. That makes the document relevant not only to specialized accessibility cases, but also to interface design more generally.