14 DAY TRIAL // Georgia Tech researchers have built an iPhone app that aims to be a complete solution for texting without the need to look at the screen.
BrailleTouch is an open-source app that incorporates the Braille writing system. It aims to address the limitations of soft keyboards, which do not provide tactile feedback.
It’s designed to compete even with physical keyboards, “which often use small and numerous fixed buttons,” say the inventors.
BrailleTouch uses a six-finger chording process that replicates the traditional Braille keyboard. It’s the only iPhone app of its kind in existence.
A gesture-based solution turns the iPhone's touchscreen into a soft-touch keyboard programmed for Braille. It requires only six keys.
Mario Romero, Postdoctoral Fellow in the School of Interactive Computing (IC) and the project's principal investigator, explains:
“Research has shown that chorded, or gesture-based, texting is a viable solution for eyes-free written communication in the future, making obsolete the need for users to look at their devices while inputting text on them.”
"BrailleTouch is an out-of-the-box solution that will work with smartphones and tablets and allow users to start learning the Braille alphabet in a few minutes," added Romero. "It also reduces the need for expensive proprietary Braille keyboard devices, which typically cost thousands of dollars."
Studies carried out with visually impaired participants who were proficient in Braille typing have revealed that BrailleTouch allows people to input at least six times the number of words per minute when compared to other research prototypes for eyes-free texting on a touch screen.
Participants reached up to 32 words per minute with 92 percent accuracy with the prototype app, said the inventors.
"We are currently designing a study to formally evaluate BrailleTouch through both quantitative and qualitative methods," said Caleb Southern, an IC graduate student. "We will measure the typing speed and accuracy of visually impaired users and capture the feedback from study participants in areas such as comfort, ease of use and perceived value."
The BrailleTouch iOS app for iPhone and iPad will be demonstrated at the Abilities Expo-Atlanta 2012, Feb. 17-19 at the Georgia World Congress Center.
