Voice Output Communication Aids

An activity-based vocabulary for Voice Output Communication Aids (VOCAs) was designed and evaluated through a user-centred, iterative design process, using expressions from the Gothenburg Spoken Language Corpus as well as other recorded, natural conversations. The growth and development of the vocabulary, called Phrases, was closely linked to its evaluation. The iterative design process included prototyping, collaboration with users, and modifications to the different versions of Phrases. The aims of the thesis were to investigate and visualise what goes on in interactions involving VOCAs, investigate the utility of a spoken language corpus in constructing AAC vocabulary, to evaluate the usability of Phrases, and to compare the effectiveness and efficiency of phrase creation to that of phrase selection. Four young adults with cerebral palsy, who used Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC), took part in the evaluation, as did sixty adults without speech impairments. The Phrases vocabulary was primarily built around pre-stored expressions for shop interactions and general quickfire expressions, including greetings, acknowledgements, feedback and expressions for communication management. It was tested in real and role-played shopping activities, and in a