Design Problem and Motivation

Over the summer, I cared for a young girl with cerebral palsy. As a symptom of this, she and many other children also have severe dysarthria, a condition that makes speech nearly unintelligible. Luckily, there are many solutions available for non-verbal children, most notably talkers, which she regularly used with a speech therapist. Because she's too young to be able to type out what she'd like to say using a keyboard, these devices offer arrays of pictures for her to click on. Other talking devices available to her are available as apps on a tablet, such as Let Me Talk or SymboTalk.

Talker Talker

The layout of the apps that currently exist seem to work well, and conversations I had with a speech therapist gave me some insights into why they are laid out the way they are, and which layouts tend to be the most effective with young children and other people who can’t read. The current software uses a combination of colour coding, simple graphics, and written words to help users navigate the different words and phrases programmed into them. They also conjugate the verbs in a way that makes sentence fragments more easily understandable for those trying to communicate with the users. The main problem is with the devices these apps operate on.

 

People with poor fine motor control often have problems using touchscreen devices because of the precision required to touch the pad of the finger to the correct spot with little to no tactile feedback. Even pressing play on a paused Netflix show can be a frustrating ordeal, especially considering that pointing isn’t always an option depending on the user. While Windows has released an eye-controlled tablet, the technology is still new and relatively inaccessible. Additionally, many people with cerebral palsy have trouble focusing both of their eyes on the same spot.

 

For this reason, I propose a device that provides the same services as a talker app, but runs on a device that makes use of more tactile controls such as buttons and switches. With controls modeled after those used by her wheelchair. While there is a screen with visual components, the main control is an easily accessed joystick, rotatable depending on the grip the user can most easily accomplish. There are also a few large raised buttons and a wheel that can be turned to control speed. The joystick pictured below isn’t the same model she has, but it is relatively similar in its general layout.

Joystick

Image Credits:

  • Apps for Communication from maximizeyourtouch.pbworks.com
  • QuickTalker Freestyle from ablenetc.com
  • Bodypoint U-Shaped Handle from https://permobilus.com