Braille Teaching Aids Based on the combination of Push Button and Voicing with Voice Chip aP89341

Abstract

This research was aimed at developing an aid for teaching Braille letters by using Atmega 8535 microcontroller and voice chip aP89341 and the combination of Push Button Switch into the combination of Braille letters. The research method employed was Research and Development with combinations of vowels-consonants  and punctuations of Braille  letters  in  Bahasa  Indonesia processed  into voices  by a  microcontroller  and  a  voice  chip.  This aid  was validated  by five  teachers in the Yaketunis School for  the Blind  to  test  its feasibility  as a teaching aid.  The aid was tested on five blind subjects. The performance of the system showed that the aid could produce voicing for 254 combinations of Braille letters consisting of the introduction on the use of the aid, combination of Braille numbers from 0 to 99, combinations of Braille letters from a to z, combinations of Braille vowels and consonants from ba-bi-bu-be-bo to za-zi-zu-ze-zo and their combinations, combinations of Braille punctuations and several additional voicings. The experts'  validations were: effectiveness = 81%, user friendliness = 78%, consistency = 78%, media organisation = 80%, and  significance  = 70%.  The percentage of the feasibility test was 77%, categorized as veryfeasible.

Keywords: braille teaching aids, push button, voicing, voice chip