RE: Initial Planning & Coordination

Project Description & Merits

   The purpose of our project is to create educational mobile applications for the visually impaired using the Senseg platform. This tablet allows something called haptic feedback, which allows the user to feel the screen when touching it. We hope to create apps based on haptic feedback and TalkBack (Android's version of the VoiceOver) that would eventually benefit both visually impaired and other users, but that would facilitate learning for visually impaired. 

   The potential contributions in education for the visually impaired are the learning of geometry -since visually impaired kids can't distinguish shapes visually- and geography -since visually impaired people do not know geographical boundaries/maps.  

Group/Team Communication

Our group consists of Kate Slate, Gabriela Wahba, Lola Roberts and Leslie Landis. In order to split up research tasks, we will be working in two subcategories as well. Gabi and Lola will act as partners. Kate and Leslie will act as partners. We will be communicating via Facebook. We have created a group chat where all concerns, discussions and work outside of the classroom will be met. Our written documents will be created via Google Docs and shared with one another, in order to collaborate on all assignments. From Google Docs, we will transfer our work to the blog site.

Prior Work/Resource Inventory

For resources, we have all the information gathered from last year in the second dimension blog. There are also free tutorials online on how to use Xcode/Swift and Android Studio/Java. We will continue to post achievements both on this blog and on the Second Dimension blog.

Technology Analysis

This project requires knowledge on how to use the Senseg technology and how it can be used to create mobile apps. This project also requires programming and coding to create the base of the mobile apps. Over the summer, our team has been and will continue watching tutorials and learning the fundamentals of working with the technology at hand. We will need extensive knowledge of Java language -which we are not familiar with-, Android Studio -which we started learning last year- and the Senseg API -which will probably be the most challenging one.

Competence

Android Studio - Gabriela has some knowledge

Programming - Lola has this knowledge which she learned from her robotics classes 

• Be more specific in your competence such that you can list the missing ones. The missing ones will become part of your plan to pick them up.
• Lola didn't learn Java in robotics class since it's not part of the curriculum.

Safety

Generally, there are no safety issues. However, the Senseg tablet works with high voltage, and can present danger if not handled with caution.

Equipment, materials, budget

We need computers with the Android Studio and Sesnseg SDK softwares installed in and the Senseg tablet. As of now, our budget is $0. However, if conflict arises between our team and Team 9, we might have to think about purchasing another tablet. Senseg does not have more development kits at the moment, but they are working on an update which will have a better screen. I have already emailed them about the update and am waiting for a response.

• Do you know what the "better screen" means?

Schedule - we will use the Gantt chart to update our schedule