Smartphones and mobile devices are diving deeply in our lives and make a lot of things much easier than before. So, having a smartphone or a mobile device became one of life’s necessities for everybody. But unfortunately, there is still a big challenge for people with limited use of their arms to use and benefit from these devices.
A group of developers tried to help these people and increase their accessibility to the smartphones through “LipSync”. It is an Arduino-based assistive device which aims to increase the ability to use touchscreen devices through a mouth-operated joystick with sip and puff controls.
The developers team, as they mentioned in the project page, focused on creating a robust and easy to build device, designing a device housing which can be 3D printed, and making it flexible for a variety of wheelchairs.
LipSync is based on Arduino Micro, a microcontroller board based on the ATmega32U4 equipped with a Bluetooth module for connecting with the smartphone and send the appropriate instructions.
Two main sensors were used in this project. An Analog 2-axis Thumb Joystick used to manipulate a cursor on the device screen, and a Pressure Sensor to catch sip and puf controls and simulate the actions of “tap” and hitting the back button, respectively.
For more detail: LipSync – An Assistive Device For Smartphone Use