China team helps improve education for the blind

Braille translation
The basic concept of the project is to facilitate blind people in understanding information on online portals and encyclopedias, and help them in learning Braille. Since blind people acquire information through Braille and speech, they had to design specialized human-computer interface (HCI) devices to enable Braille input and output, speech recognition, speech output and shortcut key operations. It was also imperative to design the project so as to make it affordable to ensure viability.

One of the major challenges the team faced was the translation between Braille and normal characters. Since a word can have several meanings, they had to be more careful in translating the context to reduce coding and decoding errors. A special algorithm solved this problem. Another issue was the realization of a low-cost but robust refreshable Braille display. They achieved this with continuous modification in structure, materials and control method.

The whole system is developed based on the unique reading and writing habits of the visually impaired people. Specialized HCI devices are designed and integrated, including refreshable Braille display, assistant keyboard, speech synthesizer and innovative handwritten Braille recognition module, which enables blind users to "read" displayed Braille texts like reading Braille printings, "listen" to synthesized speech like listening to people, and "write" Braille directly like writing on paper daily.

The system aims to help blind people learn Braille, enable the user to set study schedules, learn new words, take tests, and receive feedback. Besides, the system can help the user acquire information.

China's iSee team designed specialized HCI devices to enable Braille input and output, speech recognition, speech output and shortcut key operations.

?? 1???2