2010 International Conference on Science and Social Research (CSSR 2010), December 5 - 7, 2010, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
A Novel Development of Electronic Braille
Al-Quran Teaching Aid
N. A. Abdul Khoni, A. Robason, Y. Abdullah, A. R. Musa, M. Z. Md Zain, M. S.Yaacob and M.
Hussein
Faculty of Mechanical Engineering
Universiti Teknologi Malaysia
UTM Skudai, Johor Darul Ta’zim, Malaysia
aini.utm@gmail.com, myunus@fkm.utm.my
Abstract - This paper describes the development of a
portable electronic panel that helps in teaching the visually
impaired to learn and read Al-Quran; named Electronic
Braille (eBraille) Al-Quran Teaching Aid. The eBraille
Panel comprises of an outer case, Braille cell, jacks, Perkin
keys, functionality keys, navigation keys and sound keys.
The panel has an ergonomic characteristic that gives
comfort to the user while using the panel. The panel is
portable and it can be connected to a computer and the
teaching process can be done by controlling on the computer
or the panel itself. As the teacher types the character, it will
be displayed to the student’s panel via wireless connection.
The main advantage of this research is to allow teaching the
visually impaired in more effective ways. The delivery of
lesson will be more efficient and the teaching and learning
process can be done in just a short time.
Keyword - Electronic Braille Al-Quran Panel
I. INTRODUCTION
Braille generally consists of cells of six raised dots
arranged in a grid of two dots horizontally by three dots
vertically. The dots are conventionally numbered 1, 2 and
3 from the top of the left column and 4, 5 and 6 from the
top of the right column as shown in Figure 1. The
visually impaired frequently use Braille as a means of
writing and reading text. Learning Al-Quran Braille is not
an easy task to be done. The visually impaired have to
memorize all characters in order to help them to read the
Al-Quran. During the learning process, their teachers
have difficulties to teach quickly because they have to
make sure each individual understands what they are
trying to teach. Teaching a number of visually impaired
students at the same time is not easy as teaching normal
persons. This is because a normal person can see what the
teacher writes. For the visually impaired, the teacher has
to personally teach every single student just to make sure
that they really understand and recognize the characters.
This situation will lead to the slow learning process.
978-1-4244-8986-2/10/$26.00
Authorized ©2010
licensed use limited to: UNIVERSITY TENAGA IEEE Downloaded
NASIONAL. 560 on June 08,2022 at 06:23:07 UTC from IEEE Xplore. Restrictions apply.
Figure 1. Braille code and its numbering system [1]
Nowadays, in the learning process, the visually
impaired still have to touch the character embossed on the
paper to recognize and memorize it. When they try to
memorize the Braille characters, they tend to touch it
many times. This caused the characters on the paper
flattened and creates difficulties in identifying Braille
character.
A complete set of the paper embossed Al-Quran
Braille has a vast amount of characters which causes it to
be too thick and needs to be printed in several volumes.
The visually impaired have difficulties to read Al-Quran
because it consists of bindings which are heavy to carry
and the embossed character on the paper are easily
flattened after repeated use [2]. Because of that,
Electronic Braille Al-Quran Teaching Aid is produced to
solve this problem.
Electronic Braille Al-Quran Teaching Aid is a device
that is used to teach, learn and read Al-Quran. This panel
comprises of two modes which are Teaching Mode and
Reading Mode. For Teaching Mode, the eBraille Panel
can be used independently or can be connected to a
computer. An attached keyboard or the Perkins keys on
panel can be used to type the Braille character and
distribute it to the student’s panel via wireless connection.
The Perkins keys are the keys corresponding to each of
the six dots of the Braille codes. By simultaneously
pressing different combinations of the six keys, users can
create any of the characters in the Braille code.
Casing or panel can be described as something that
gives protection to its components [3]. Besides, with
ergonomics characteristic and its unique shape, a case
plays a huge role in giving comfort and satisfactory to the
user. In this case, a panel is designed based on the ability
of the visually impaired to use it easily. Besides, all the
electrical components inside it must be fully protected to
avoid any damage.
 Based on previous research, there are many types of
Braille panels in the market. All the panels have different
shapes and functions which commonly used for reading,
writing and surfing the internet. The panels are provided
with some common features as stated in Table 1.
Figure 2. Sample of colours
TABLE 1. COMPARISON OF THE ELECTRONIC BRAILLE
PANEL IN THE MARKET
In this case, ergonomics is a very important element
which relates to all factors; including shape, size, colour
and arrangements. Ergonomics must be considered in
order to give full of satisfaction and comfort to all users.
Figure 3 shows the examples of ergonomics consideration
that can relate in producing the eBraille Panel.

II. DESIGN CONSIDERATION Figure 3. Proper writing position of hands and fingers [10]

Design consideration is a very important element in Referring to Figure 3, it is important to design panels
producing a design. A good design can be produced if the that can reduce fatigue while using it. Figure 4 shows
designer follows the design consideration and therefore different sizes of hands which are considered from
fulfil the requirements of a product [9]. For this project, human’s type. Based from Figure 4, a design should be
the design considerations are based on the factors as suitable for all ages. This is because the eBraille panel is
below: designed for different ages of visually impaired to use it
i. Outer and inner size of the panel learn Al-Quran. The panel must have suitable shape, size
ii. Shape and design of the panel and the ergonomics factor must be considered to obtain
iii. The places and arrangements of the buttons and comfort for all users [11].
keys
iv. Shape and height of the button
v. The colour of the panel
vi. Ergonomic

Based from the above factors, a design of Electronic

Braille Al-Quran Teaching Aid has been produced and all
information needed to produce the design is taken from
the observation and discussion done with the visually
impaired. Each development process has been referred to
the visually impaired community to be tested to make
sure that the panel meets their requirements. For visually
impaired community, there are some which have critical
dim or half blind who are really sensitive to the colours.
So that, the colour chose must be suitable and not too
bright and not too dark because that community can only
see in the distance of 50 mm. If the colour is too bright, it
may hurt their eyes and if the colour is too dark, that may
cause difficulties for them to see. Based on Figure 2, the
colours that are marked with (9) are classified as the
suitable colour for the visually impaired and the colours
that are marked with (X) are unsuitable to be used.
Figure 4. Different size of hands for three different types of people
[12]

561 on June 08,2022 at 06:23:07 UTC from IEEE Xplore. Restrictions apply.
Authorized licensed use limited to: UNIVERSITY TENAGA NASIONAL. Downloaded
 III. DESIGN CONCEPT friendly and that is the most important criteria in
designing a product.
Design concept is important in identifying the suitable
shapes of the panel. It can helps in giving clearer
explanation about the concept and design of the panel that
will be produced. Having a different way of thinking with
a normal person who usually judges a product by its
appearance, the visually impaired likes the product based
on its usability and functionality [3]. The touch of their
hands can express many things and based on that, the
panel should have such characteristics to obtain
satisfaction to the visually impaired. Below is the list of
features that will be included in the design concept of the
eBraille Panel [9].

i. Perkins keys which is a set of keys for typing

including Spacebar and Backspace key.
ii. Navigation key which includes Escape, Enter,
Back and Next key.
iii. Functionality key which is On/Off and Mode
Selection button.
iv. Sound key which includes Volume controller,
Play/Pause and Stop key.
v. Jacks, which are for Power, Audio, Learning
Module and Universal Serial Bus (USB). Figure 5. Different concepts of Electronic Braille Al-Quran Teaching
Aid
Based on Figure 5, it shows the implementation
IV. DESIGN FEATURE
process of the eBraille Panel. The panel is designed with
few concepts and the best concept is selected as the
Design feature explains about the characteristics of the
proposed final design. The proposed final design is
panels, which includes the details of all buttons and keys.
selected based on the observation and discussion done
This section briefly describes about the shape and
with the visually impaired community. As we can see in
arrangement of all buttons and keys, also shows the
Figure 5, the design for the first concept is simple, which
significant of the design.
it is designed in curved shaped to follow the shape of the
Referring to Figure 6, there is shown the selected
hand. The Perkins keys are design also in curved shaped
panel with various shapes of keys and buttons. The panel
to follow the arrangement of the fingers when using the
contains Escape, Perkins, Spacebar, Backspace,
panel. This is done to give comfort to users while typing
Play/Pause, Next, Back and Stop keys, also volume
even though that activity is done in period of time.
controller button. The panel has a unique shape, in which
For the second and third concept, they were designed
it has the curved shape at the back of the panel. The
in inclined position which is lower in front and higher at
heights of the back and front of the panel are different,
the back. The inclined position can give more space to the
which is lower in front and higher at the back. It is
hand and fingers while operating the panel. Besides, the
designed by considering the ergonomic factor to give
inclined position can reduce fatigue to the hand and
comfort to the user while using the panel.
therefore give comfort to users while using the panel. For
those concepts, the Perkins keys are arranged straight as
to maintain the position of Perkins keys on the Braille
typewriter and Braille keyboards like the visually
impaired always used. This is so because they might be
comfortable with the arrangement of the existing panel
and may be uncomfortable if the arrangement is changed
and will takes time to be used to it. The different between
those panels are based on its keys’ design and placement
of the buttons and keys.
Based on the three different concepts that have been
designed, Concept 3 is selected as the proposed final
design. Concept 3 is selected based on the observation
and discussion done with the visually impaired. The Figure 6. Proposed design of the eBraille Panel
visually impaired feel comfort while using the panel and
the arrangement and placement of all buttons are easily to The components of the eBraille panel can be divided
achieve. This makes the panel of Concept 3 is user into several groups which are keys for typing, navigation

562 on June 08,2022 at 06:23:07 UTC from IEEE Xplore. Restrictions apply.
Authorized licensed use limited to: UNIVERSITY TENAGA NASIONAL. Downloaded
keys, sound keys, functionality keys, jacks and case.
Keys for typing include Perkins, Backspace and Spacebar
key while navigation keys are Escape, Enter, Next and
Back key. Functional keys consist of On/Off and Mode
Selection button while the sound keys are Play/Pause,
Stop and Volume Controller key. Besides, there are
several jacks on the left and right side of the panel which
are Audio, Universal Serial Bus (USB), Learning Module
and Power jack. Each key, button and jack is placed as in
the figure after considering the effectiveness of the
placement of all features for visually impaired.
The Perkins keys are arranged straight as to maintain
the comfortable position while typing on the panel. The
distance of each key is measured by doing some
discussion with the visually impaired and takes the
measurement of distance of each finger while using the
Perkins keys. The distance of each finger is measured by
putting the visually impaired’ hand on the plain panel and
acting like they are using the Perkins keys. The
measurement is taken to make sure that the distance of
each Perkins key is suitable and can give comfort to users
while using it. The suitable arrangement and distance of
Perkins keys can lead to faster typing and learning
process.
The position of Braille actuator is following the shape
of the outer panel where it is put in inclined position to
reduce fatigue to the hand and give full satisfaction to
users while using the panel. Braille display is placed on
the top, above the Perkin keys. This is so because when a
person uses the Perkins and other keys for typing, it will
not affect the Braille cell. So, the typing process will be
smooth and fast.
The navigation and functional keys are arranged at the
side and below the Perkin keys. These arrangements are
made to allow users to rapidly and accurately select the
desired keys without having to move their hands from the
panel. All the keys are easy to touch and the reading
process will be effective because the functional keys are
placed exactly where the thumbs are placed. This way, all
fingers will be used without having to move their hands
to push the buttons and keys.
The positioning of each function key enables a user to
quickly locate and depress a desired function key without
having to remove the hands from the eBraille panel. More
particularly, a user operates the keys with all their fingers.
All fingers are working and this will lead to the effective
use of time. Advantageously, the functional and sound
keys are quite long compared to the other keys. This is
done to make sure that the visually impaired can use the
keys without having to guess the position and its location.
The long key makes it easily touched when they move
their thumb.
Each key is structured with a rectangular shape to give
extra satisfaction to user. This is because the rectangular
shape is bigger in dimensions compared to round shape.
The rectangular shape is easy to touch compared to the
round shape because its surface area is higher and the
keys will easily be touched even at the corner of the key.
Moreover, enough space is provided between each
associated key. The left hand typing keys are aligned
563 on June 08,2022 at 06:23:07 UTC from IEEE Xplore. Restrictions apply.
Authorized licensed use limited to: UNIVERSITY TENAGA NASIONAL. Downloaded
substantially in side by side relation to one another in a
single row on the left, and the right hand typing keys are
also aligned substantially in side by side relation to one
another in a single row on the right. The left row and
right row are with side by side alignment with one
another. Navigation keys are positioned between the left
hand and right hand with sound keys in the same row. In
this way, navigation keys are equally accessible by user’s
fingers; there is no need for a user to reach above or
below to gain access to the keys.
From the right hand side of the panel, there is a
ventilation system for stability of the air flow inside the
panel. With the ventilation system, the electronic
components are more protected and not easily
overheated. The colour of the panel is selected by
considering on the low vision people. The colour chose is
not too bright and not too dark, where it combines that
type of colour. The body of the panel is dark and the
buttons is brighter to make sure that the low vision people
easily recognize each buttons.
Referring to Figure 6, the dimension of the panel is
340 mm length, L and 140 mm width, W. The dimension
is obtained by considering on the length of the Braille
actuator and space needed to put the electronic
components, other than comfortable factors to users.
Since the shape of the panel is not the same at the front
and back, it influences the height of the panel. The
maximum height, H1 of the panel is 49 mm and its
minimum height, H2 is 34 mm with inclined position of
45 degree. The panel is designed in inclined position
which higher at the back to support the hand and reduce
fatigue while using that panel.
V. CONCLUSION
It is important to design a panel that can give
satisfaction to the visually impaired. Furthermore, the
suitable arrangements of all buttons can make the use of
the panel more efficient and the target people will happy
to use the panel. Based on the observation and discussion
done with the visually impaired community, a final
design of the panel is selected. The final design is
considered as it meets the requirement for the visually
impaired because they have tested the panel themselves
and the panel is improved based on their suggestion and
recommendation.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
We greatly thank Intelligent Control and Automation
(iCA), Persatuan Orang-orang Cacat Penglihatan Islam
Malaysia (PERTIS), Ministry Of Science, Technology
and Innovation (MOSTI) and Research Management
Centre (RMC) for their help and support in this research
work.
REFERENCES
[1] Braille: Deciphering the Code -
http://www.afb.org/braillebug/braille_deciphering.asp
[2] F. Razaly et. al., ‘Dedicated Graphical User Interface System
for the Visually Impaired Users in Learning Al-Quran’, in 9th
WSEAS International Conference on Applications of Computer
Engineering, 2010, pp.210 – 213.
[3] Pradeep Manohar and Aparajit Parthasarathy, ‘An Innovative
Braille System Keyboard for the Visually Impaired’, in 11th
International Conference on Computer Modelling and
Simulation, 2009, pp.559-562.
[4] C. Moore and I. Murray, ‘An Electronic Design of a Low Cost
Braille Typewriter’, in Seventh Australian and New Zealand
Intelligent Information SystemsConference, 2001, pp.153 – 157.
[5] ALVA Braille Controller -
http://www.optelec.com/en_GB/product/braille-computer-
access/alva-braille-controller
[6] Humanware - http://www.humanware.com/en-
usa/products/blindness/braillenotes/_details/id_158/braillenote_a
pex_bt_32.html
[7] BrailleConnect 12, 24, 32, 40 Cell Displays -
http://www.specialneedscomputers.ca/index.php?l=product_detai
l&p=542
[8] Rotating text-to-Braille converter -
http://www.engadget.com/2004/06/08/rotating-text-to-braille-
converter/
[9] Y. Matsuda et.al., ‘Finger Braille Teaching System for People
who Communicate with Deafblind People’, in 2007 IEEE
International Conference on Mechatronics and Automation,
2007, pp.3202-3207.
[10] Ergonomics for Power Computer Users -
http://www.amaltas.org/show/ergonomics-power-computer-
users.html
[11] Martin Helander (2006). “A Guide to Human Factors and
Ergonomics.” Second Edition. U.S.A : Taylor & Francis Group.
4-6.

564 on June 08,2022 at 06:23:07 UTC from IEEE Xplore. Restrictions apply.
Authorized licensed use limited to: UNIVERSITY TENAGA NASIONAL. Downloaded