Design and development of interactive modules for language therapy rehabilitation

Language therapy utilizes assisted rehabilitation techniques that function based on high-cost devices, hard to obtain by the Venezuelan health centers, personnel and patients that require them. This paper presents the design and development of three modules used in the area of language therapy and augmented communication. These microprocessor-based modules employ low-cost, low-power solid state technologies. They are: a reaction-time meter, a random light sequence generator, and a digital karaoke machine. The reaction time meter allows for the measurement of the patient's concentration ability, his ability to discriminate colors and his hand-eye coordination. The random sequence generator is used to work on the Feldman categories, based on Piaget, while also addressing the belated semantic reactions, such as association, conceptualization, opposite analogies, hypothetical problems, additive and/or visual absurdities, riddles. The digital karaoke machine has a digital audio recorder/player and an intensity display. Its function is to make the language rehabilitation therapy more interactive, allowing for the recording of the patient's voice and its later reproduction for evaluation by the therapist. Some of the pathologies that can be treated in this manner are: aphasias, stuttering, phoneme pronunciation problems and respiratory coordination. It is also possible to use them in the rehabilitation of patients with alterations in the vocal cords, treatment of disartries, improvement of the speech rhythm, children with attention and comprehension deficits, as well as patients with limited vision. These devices, used and evaluated in the "Centro Nacional de Rehabilitacion" have proved to be a low-cost solution, accessible for the treatment of patients with language disabilities, besides bringing a novel approach to the tre