Virtual Keyboard to Support the Communication of Children with Motor Disability

ABSTRACT
This article presents a proposal technology to help children with motor disabilities. This is a virtual keyboard (TEVI), whose graphical interface was designed relying on visual and listened elements, it shows tools as a virtual keyboard on screen and a panel of pictograms for actions to be taken. The system also incorporates moreover features predictive text and natural language processing, with the end to faster the communication in the children who cannot articulate words because their disability. The methodology used to design the first prototype is based on a survey of ten special education teachers. The prototype was built under a technology of open source and with a data base light. TEVI was evaluated empirically with 75 children of different age in two special education schools. Finally, a qualitative analysis allowed to collect events and commentaries from teachers which signed that the tools of this technological solution, significantly improved the communication in the children, with the panel of pictograms which did faster the communication and interaction in front of virtual keyboard of the system.

KEYWORDS
Virtual Keyboard, motor disabilities, augmented and alternative communication.

Leave a Reply