SBIR Phase I: Development of a Nemeth Math to Latex Backtranslator System

这个小企业创新研究第一阶段项目将进行研究，以开发一个商业质量的基于PC的系统，用于自动将Nemeth数学盲文符号编码的数学翻译为LATEX。 该系统将极大地促进视障学生、科学家和工程师与他们的视力教师和同事的交流。 它也将大大有助于促进小学，初中和高中学生的数学学习。 将Nemeth Math盲文翻译成LATEX是一个很难的问题。 Logical Software Solutions（LSS）在早期研究中使用指称语义和逻辑编程的新方法，开发了一种概念验证系统，可以将包含Nemeth Math和文学盲文文本的完整数学文档反向翻译为LATEX。 然而，开发的原型系统是有限的。 它不处理所有空间布局的数学（矩阵和小学算术和代数加/减问题）。 在这个项目中，LSS将进行研究，以扩展原型系统，使空间布局的数学可以完全处理。 研究应该取得良好的进展，朝着一个完整的软件环境接近商业质量。 应该指出的是，直到最近，由于Nemeth盲文数学的语言复杂性，回译问题被广泛认为是无法解决的。所提供的回译系统将可用于一个独立的软件系统，可以将Nemeth代码编码的数学文档转换为LATEX。 该系统有可能在课堂环境中产生重大影响，因为大学和社区学院的数学，科学和工程专业的盲人学生将能够用Nemeth数学符号编写家庭作业和考试问题的答案，并将其自动转换为LATEX，由视力良好的教师进行评分。 初中和高中的盲人学生也将受到严重影响。 根据全国盲人联合会的数据，仅在美国就有93，600名盲童上学。 同样，美国的1，166所社区学院和417所大学的入学人数超过10，000人，为数万名视障学生提供服务。 该公司的市场调查表明，这些教育机构（学区、社区学院和大学）将是潜在的客户。

This Small Business Innovation Research Phase I project will conduct research to develop a commercial quality PC-based system for automatically back-translating mathematics encoded in Nemeth Math Braille notation to LATEX. The system will greatly facilitate communication of visually impaired students, scientists, and engineers with their sighted instructors and colleagues. It will also greatly help in facilitating learning of mathematics by elementary, middle and high school students. Translation of Nemeth Math Braille to LATEX is known to be a hard problem. Using novel approaches of denotational semantics and logic programming in earlier research, Logical Software Solutions (LSS) developed a proof-of-concept system that can back-translate complete mathematical documents containing both Nemeth Math and literary Braille text to LATEX. The prototype system developed, however, is limited. It does not handle all the spatially laid out Mathematics (matrices and grade school arithmetic and algebraic addition/subtraction problems.). In this project, LSS will conduct research to extend the prototype system so that spatially laid out mathematics can be fully handled. The research should make good progress toward a complete software environment approach commercial quality. It should be noted that until recently the back translation problem was widely believed to be unsolvable due to the language-complexity of Nemeth Braille Math.The proffered back-translation system will be usable a stand-alone software system that can convert math documents coded in Nemeth code to LATEX. The system has the potential to have a significant impact in the classroom environment, as blind students of mathematics, science and engineering at universities and community colleges will be able to write answers to homework and exam questions in Nemeth Math notation and have them automatically converted to LATEX for grading by a sighted instructor. Blind students at middle schools and high schools will also be significantly affected. According to the National Federation of the Blind, there are 93,600 blind children attending school in the U.S. alone. Likewise, the 1,166 community colleges in the U.S. and 417 universities with enrollments of more than 10.000 students serve tens of thousands of visually impaired students. The firm's market survey indicates that these institutions of learning (school districts, community colleges and universities will be potential customers.