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Tactica: An Android-Based Low-Cost Assistive Tactile Device on Basic Braille Notation Reading for Visually Impaired Students in SPED Centers with IoT Technology

Dennis A. Martillano, Iyan Oliver A. Alvarez, Mark Isaiah O. Cataquian, Gabriel Jose S. Santiago, and Ken Michael M. Sevilla
Malayan Colleges Laguna, Pulo Diezmo, Cabuyao City Laguna 4025, Philippines

Abstract—Providing proper education for visually impaired students has been a challenge considering the scarcity in terms of resources provided. One of the reasons for the lack of resources is the prohibitive prices of available assistive technology for visually impaired students. Assistive technologies mainly for beginners are also limited as most products are for intermediate learners which can cause discouragement of Braille learning for students who have no prior knowledge to Braille. Also, technology that can provide basic learning in Braille for visually impaired people who are not school-based is limited. This study aims to improve the assistive technology for Braille notation reading by developing and designing an android-based improvised tactile braille device coined as TACTICA. TACTICA is a low-cost and portable assistive technology that can be used as a supplementary tool by teachers and visually impaired students who are beginners in braille notation. With the use of the Modified Nurun Based Methodology intended for IoT based projects based on the study [1], quantitative techniques were used for the analysis of the requirements, the iterative processes in the development of the device and the tests that will be performed for the whole system. The study focused on the used of improvised, low-cost and recyclable materials in creating the 3-character braille cells. The braille device was infused with microcontroller and IoT Technology that allows communication to a developed mobile application intended for Special Education (SPED) Teachers


Index Terms—Assistive technologies, braille, internet of things

Cite: Dennis A. Martillano, Iyan Oliver A. Alvarez, Mark Isaiah O. Cataquian, Gabriel Jose S. Santiago, and Ken Michael M. Sevilla, "Tactica: An Android-Based Low-Cost Assistive Tactile Device on Basic Braille Notation Reading for Visually Impaired Students in SPED Centers with IoT Technology," Journal of Communications, vol. 14, no. 7, pp. 593-600, 2019. Doi: 10.12720/jcm.14.7.593-600