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Tactile Interactive Multimedia Computer games for visually imparied children

Obiettivo

TIM is intended to conceive computer games usable by young blind children in an autonomous way, without assistance of a sighted person. TIM games can be used by children of various levels of psychomotor development who cannot use the keyboard (young children or children with multiple disabilities). The software has a ludic and educational role. For children with additional disabilities, like cognitive troubles, it can have a therapeutic role. TIM allows to adapt existing commercial computer games (reusing rich audio resources, with coherent educational and ludic contents) and to develop specific contents (fitting special needs of young blind children). The European dimension allows to reach the critical mass necessary to consider a realistic commercialisation, allowing TIM games to access end users: children. In that way the software is made to develop the games simultaneously in several languages.

DESCRIPTION OF WORK
The project will be achieved in 3 phases: During the first phase a Users Needs Report, based upon data collected during an inquiry and a workshop assembling researchers and professionals working with visually impaired children; a script language allowing to describe the scenario of games will be specified; and a software will be developed including several independent components dedicated to each kind of device (tactile boards, sound displays, speech synthesisers, Braille displays), an interpreter for the TIM language, multilingual features. The second phase will start by a semiotic analysis of existing games. Then several sets of games will be developed, corresponding to different kinds of children, according to the Users Needs Report. It will include the study of the different kinds of technologies usable to make the tactile adaptation sheets for TouchPads. Then reports about the adaptability and the methodology of adaptation will be written to be part of the final TIM software package. An educator who will visit the children in the major validation sites and play with them and the local professionals. He will report the game sessions and make videos. He will also have to broadcast a second inquiry, oriented to the preparation of the commercialisation. In parallel the Intellectual Property Rights issues will be studied out in order to prepare models of co-operation conventions and models of user licences for the games developed with the Adapting software. In the third phase the material built with the children (use reports and videos), will be the basis for the evaluation and study of cognitive process and educational potential, focussing 3 main issues: educative, therapeutically and learning. The different components will be assembled to produce the complete ""TIM software"" package, which will be a pre-commercial prototype including software, reports and juridical models. In parallel an exploitation plan will be proposed.

MILESTONES
The basis for this project is a complete study of Users Needs. The expected result is a complete package including:
- software (adapting tool) allowing to use audio/tactile features (tactile board, sounds, speech synthesisers, Braille displays
- reports about adaptability and methodology
- models of conventions This will be completed by reports about educational potential, therapeutically potential and learning potential. Additionally several game packages will be provided.

Invito a presentare proposte

Data not available

Meccanismo di finanziamento

CSC - Cost-sharing contracts

Coordinatore

UNIVERSITE PARIS VI PIERRE ET MARIE CURIE
Contributo UE
Nessun dato
Indirizzo
TOUR CENTRALE 21EME ETAGE - 4 PL JUSSIEU
75252 PARIS CEDEX 05
Francia

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Costo totale
Nessun dato

Partecipanti (7)