Chat Box: Two-way Schemed Communication Device for Speech and Hearing Impairment

Distress caused by a verbal barrier which hinders the subjects from being able to communicate freely and easily to sign language incapable individuals and vice-versa is the focal point of concern this project aims to resolve. This communication device consists of two major parts: (1) a surface consists of two Bare Conductive Touch Boards preloaded with the twelve phrases and words with its corresponding display of hand sign images converted to its English translation and (2) two TFT Touch Shields mounted in Arduino Mega 2560 Rev3 respectively, preloaded with the standard English alphabet and American Sign Language symbols. The impaired subjects have two options either to tap the desired electrode pads on the Touch Board or to communicate using the TFT Touch Shield like a multi-touch texting option. On the other hand, the normal user communicates only via TFT Touch Shield. Chat Box is a communication device that bridges the language gap of a deaf, mute and deaf-mute, sign language capable individuals to those of normal, non-sign language people. The Chat Box indeed is an innovative piece of technology that has a potential of altering the inconvenient manner of conversing with the speech and hearing impaired community. The third-party programs and software proved the authenticity of the device by verifying its accuracy, consistency, speed (timing and delay) and responsiveness in terms of transmitting data from one LCD shield to the other, as well as the rate of the instantaneous audio produced once the electrode pads were tapped.