MyVox—Device for the communication between people: blind, deaf, deaf-blind and unimpaired

Abstract

Humans are social creatures. We learn by connecting with those around us, through communication. While people with hearing or visual impairments alone can find a way to share their thoughts with others and understand them, deaf-blind people face a much more difficult communication task. Here, appropriate technology can play a decisive role. The small size and low power consumption of ARM-based computers, such as the Raspberry Pi, have opened the door for many embedded applications, including a heart monitoring method and an assistive navigation system for the blind. Some estimates place the number of deaf-blind people in the U.S. at around 40,000 individuals. While a commercial view considers this a small market, thus making communication devices not commercially viable; from a humanitarian view, this is a significant number of people who would greatly benefit from a technological means of communication. This paper presents the design, prototype and testing of a portable keyboard and speaker device with a braille refreshable display for the communication between two people (either being deaf-blind) that has both, a comparatively low cost, and many possibilities for further development on the ARM-based computer system.