acm-header
Sign In

Communications of the ACM

ACM TechNews

New App Will Help Make Sign Language Communication More Accessible


View as: Print Mobile App Share:
MobileSign

Credit: University of Bristol

Hearing and deaf sign language users should be able to communicate more effectively using an app designed by researchers at the University of Bristol.

MobileSign offers a searchable database of more than 4,000 signs. The British Sign Language lexicon app uses a predictive word search, and automatically shows lists of possible words for the user to choose from. Once the user selects the word, a video of a person signing the word appears on-screen. MobileSign enables the user to keep a list of their recently viewed signs for later access. Experts from Bristol's Center for Deaf Studies have designed the app to be viewed online or stored on a mobile device.

MobileSign is available for free, and can be used on iPhone, iPad, and Android devices. The researchers say the tool offers the largest free sign language lexicon available from the App Store or Google Play. "We believe that just because you can charge for content does not mean that you automatically should; it is our wish to see British Sign Language use grow through free sign language learning resources such as MobileSign," says Bristol's Christopher John.

From Bristol University 
View Full Article

Abstracts Copyright © 2012 Information Inc., Bethesda, Maryland, USA 


 

No entries found

Sign In for Full Access
» Forgot Password? » Create an ACM Web Account