Better access to math for visually impaired

Abstract

We propose, "MathReader", a tool to enable visually impaired students to independently and comfortably study and practice mathematics and science any time, any where. MathReader can automatically read aloud the equations and formulae with mathematical symbols in Thai. MathReader was initially designed to perform the speech generation in four main modules: Phrase Identification, Thai Text Reader, MathEx Reader, and Math Reader. Phrase Identification segments the input string into ordinary Thai text and mathematical expression parts since reading ordinary text is different from reading math. Thai text utilizes a four-level system with consonants, vowels and tone markers. Math expression is a multi-level system with alphabets, symbols and operators. Thai Text Reader generates the speech for the text part while Math-Ex Reader generates the speech for the math expression part. Math Reader combines all separated parts to form a corresponding speech of the original input. In this paper, the initial design of "MathReader" is discussed followed by some illustrative examples. ©2009 IEEE.