Since the 3rd newsletter, the first phase of development of the application has finished as well as the first round of data acquisition.
TU Wien has created the web-based examples for the upcoming user interface app including pictograms and Text-to-speech output.
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| Figure 1: Mockup of the mobile applicaiton |
Following the web-based version, feedback from end-user partners EvoAid has developed the APH-ALARM pictogram application, which can be run directly on smartphones and tablets, and the second phase of agile evaluation has begun. All end-user partners participated in the evaluation. Testing was done primarily in person, in some cases online (using the Zoom application). For testing, participants used equipment (phones and tablets) procured from the project. In Hungary (as of the date of this newsletter) 19 people with aphasia, in Austria and Portugal 12 speech therapists and researchers participated in the testing.
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| Figure 2 (a, b): testing the mobile application | Figure 3 (a, b): Mobile application in detail | ||
The results of the tests are being evaluated. The consortium leader EvoAid Kft. has also created the cloud-based application for secondary users (target group) receiving the emergency message, see and the application for bed sensor detecting epilepsy. The application connects to sensor via Bluetooth.:
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| Figure 4: Bed sensor |
The University of Aveiro implemented a first prototype of a system (Figure 5) that allows two-way communication between a person with Aphasia (PwA), while lying in bed, and another person (e.g., caregiver) who is outside the bedroom or even the home. The PwA can use pre-defined gestures to send simple messages to the caregiver’s smartphone (top of Figure 6). The caregiver (shown at the bottom of Figure 6) can then send back a confirmation or a Yes/No question, which is played to the PwA through speakers installed in the bedroom next to the bed. The questions can be answered using also gestures. The gestures are recognized based on data provided by a smartwatch worn by the PwA.
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Figure 5: Overview of the system for communication support |
Figure 6: Demonstration of the system’s prototype being used by a person representing a person with Aphasia and a person representing a caregiver |
As part of this development, two MSc theses supervised by researchers involved in the project were defended at the end of December 2021, at University of Aveiro:
- “BedFeeling: sensing technologies for assistive communication in bed scenarios” (http://hdl.handle.net/10773/33877)
- “Exploring radar sensing for gesture recognition” (http://hdl.handle.net/10773/33726)
Furthermore, market research is being continued as well in the countries of the project’s partners.