iPad for AAC: Pallavi Damera's Portfolio

Project details

This study examined the use of Augmentative and Assistive Communication (AAC) technology by people with both speech and motor impairments to learn if lower-cost, multi-purpose devices such as the iPod Touch and iPad could serve as alternatives to more expensive single purpose hardware. We examined the uses of these devices in the context of one of the most popular AAC applications: Prologquo2go, a speech-synthesizing software, through four qualitative case studies. Furthermore, we explored whether the larger screen of the iPad made it more accessible than the smaller iPod Touch. We also examined how the participants defined their communication needs and their use of current AAC technology. Though the participants had a wide range of ability levels, all found the combination of iPad and Proloquo2go to be a compelling alternative (or supplement) to their current devices. The iPad was preferred by all participants and was more usable than the iPod Touch. However, both devices lacked some features that would make them much more useful to those with motor and speech impairments. Design recommendations are discussed.

Left screenshots below show the different input entry button sizes on Proloquo2go, one of the popular iPad and iPhone AAC app. The right side table shows the varying abilities of the participants in this study.