CAREER: Using Haptically Augmented Tactile Communication Methods to Foster the Inclusion of the Visually Impaired in STEM Professions

1151147克里斯蒂安，斯瓦茨美国社区调查报告称，美国有超过350万处于工作年龄的非住院个人失明或视力受损(BVI)。在这群人中，有技术上有才华的人，他们有可能为我们的经济做出非常大的贡献，但由于他们的残疾，他们面临着障碍。如果他们不能充分参与，就会产生巨大的机会成本。由于盲文的普及，很大比例的英属维尔京群岛人能够有效地进入劳动力的许多领域；然而，英属维尔京群岛社区的许多人才无法进入STEM(科学、技术、工程和数学)相关领域，因为在STEM教育和专业实践中使用盲文存在巨大障碍。使用现有的盲文方法表达科学图形(例如，化学或生物循环、流程图)、数学公式和通用数据图可能非常麻烦，如果不是不可能的话。这些工具在任何STEM领域都是必不可少的。迫切需要在教育和专业实践中加强盲文在传播与STEM有关的信息方面的作用，使英属维尔京群岛个人能够更充分地参与。这项工作将研究如何使用盲文文本中集成的“二次”触觉提示(触觉)，将盲文转变为一种更有用的STEM信息交流方法。这项工作的基本假设是，触觉属性(例如，拓扑元素、温度、刺痛/模糊、滑移/粘连)可以合并到盲文文本中，以显著改善相同页面空间内的信息内容。三个项目目标是调查：1.在标准盲文文本内集成拓扑/纹理元素(TE)以了解涉及TE增强的心理物理关系，并确定其对整体盲文信息密度的贡献；2.在盲文内集成非拓扑性触觉元素(刺/毛、滑/棒、温度)以了解这些增强的感知能力并确定其对整体盲文信息密度的贡献；以及3.如何在基于项目的学习环境中使用基于触觉的辅助技术的设计以教育工程师有效地满足BVI社区的需求，并吸引英属维尔京群岛的学生考虑在STEM领域的大学职业。这项工作将涉及广泛的实验方法，包括人类对各种盲文增强的触觉反应的感官评估，以确定其有效性。还将开发研究拓扑和非拓扑性触觉敏感性的新平台，作为确定心理物理关系和它们增加有用信息密度的程度的手段。所有研究任务将被整合到一个针对本科生、研究生和英属维尔京群岛预科学生的教育计划中。PI拥有皮肤摩擦学和工程教育方面的专业知识，特别适合成功完成这项工作，这将有助于现有的研究领域以及培育新的领域。预期结果有可能加强和改造盲文系统，而不是取代盲文系统。结果将立即用于触觉交流领域的其他人，包括那些为英属维尔京群岛社区设计其他类型的辅助技术的人。将表面拓扑与触觉敏感性联系起来的定量心理物理模型也将对用户界面的设计者有用，无论这些用户界面是消费、医疗还是军事应用。这些结果将对理解如何加强盲文以促进英属维尔京群岛人参与STEM密集型活动产生深远影响。这项工作还将作为一个教学平台，让学生接触到融入英属维尔京群岛社区独特需求的设计体验。结果将被整合到PI的摩擦学研究生课程中，而基于问题的教学方法enVISIBLE将包括德克萨斯农工大学本科顶石设计课程中工程设计团队的英属维尔京群岛大学预科学生。

1151147Christian, SwartzThe American Community Survey reports that there are more than 3.5 million non-institutionalized individuals in the U.S. of working age that are blind or visually impaired (BVI). Within this population are technically talented individuals who have the potential to contribute very substantially to our economy, but face obstacles because of their disability. There is a substantial opportunity cost of their inability to fully participate. A large percentage of BVI individuals are able to effectively enter many areas of the workforce due to the prevalence of Braille; however, many talented people in the BVI community are not able to enter STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) related fields because of the substantial hurdles is using Braille in STEM education and professional practice. Scientific graphics (e.g., chemical or biological cycles, flowcharts), mathematical formulas, and common data plots can be extremely cumbersome, if not impossible, to express using existing Braille methods. These tools are essential in any STEM field. A critical need exists to enhance the usefulness of Braille in communicating STEM-related information both in education and in professional practice to allow BVI individuals to participate more fully. This work will investigate the use of 'secondary' tactile cues (haptics) integrated within Braille text, to transform Braille into a more usable communication method for STEM information. The fundamental hypothesis of the work is that haptic attributes (e.g., topological elements, temperature, prickle/fuzziness, slip/stick) can be incorporated within Braille text to dramatically improve information content within the same page space. The three project objectives are to investigate: 1. Integration of topological/textural elements (TE) within standard Braille text to understand psychophysical relationships involving TE enhancement, and to determine its contribution to overall Braille information density, 2. Integration of non-topological haptic elements (prickle/fuzziness, slip/stick, temperature) within Braille to understand perceptibility of these enhancements and determine their contribution to overall Braille information density, and 3. How the design of haptic-based assistive technology can be used within a project-based learning environment to educate engineers to effectively address the needs of the BVI community, and attract BVI students to consider college careers in STEM fields.This work will involve an extensive experimental approach including human sensory assessment of the tactile response of various Braille enhancements in order to determine their effectiveness. Novel platforms for investigation of topological and non-topological haptic sensitivity will be developed as well, as a means of determining psychophysical relationships and the extent that they increase useful information density. All research tasks will be integrated into an educational plan targeting undergraduates, graduate students, and pre-college BVI students.Intellectual Merit. The PI, with expertise in skin tribology and engineering education, is uniquely suited to successfully complete this work which will contribute to existing research fields as well as foster new fields. The anticipated results have the potential to enhance and transform, rather than replace, the Braille system. Results will be of immediate use to others in the field of tactile communication, including those who design other types of assistive technology for the BVI community. The quantitative psychophysical models that relate surface topology to tactile sensitivity will also be useful to designers of user interfaces whether they be consumer, medical, or military applications.Broader Impacts. These results will have far-reaching impact on the understanding of how to enhance Braille to foster inclusion of BVI individuals in STEM-intensive activities. The work will also serve as an instructional platform to expose students to design experiences that incorporate the unique needs of the BVI community. Results will be integrated into the PI's graduate tribology course, while a problem-based pedagogical approach, enVISIBLE, will include pre-college BVI students on engineering design teams in the undergraduate capstone design course at Texas A&M University.