Design & Architecture of a Multimodal Interactive Quran Application for Disabled Users

Abstract

Recently, notable interest and attention has been given to the need for developing useable IT products and applications for disabled users of various types. As such, a number of conferences and research efforts have emerged worldwide with the aim of developing usable and flexible products for disabled users. Such a requirement also presents an important factor in the need to develop useable applications and products for disabled users wishing to read or learn Quran and other Islamic content in an easy manner. This paper reviews the literature on Quran and Islamic applications tailored to disabled users, and presents a flexible design, which overcomes some of the drawbacks found in previous techniques. Essentially, the proposed design is based on smart-devices and accesses multiple hardware sensors to provide users with multiple modes of interaction in order to achieve enhanced usability and flexibility, whilst avoiding many of the drawbacks found in other approaches. Some of the hardware sensors used within the multimodal application design includes; voice-interaction, head-motion interaction, device directional-movement interaction and touchscreen interaction. Finally, another notable advantage of our approach is evident in the potential scope and impact of our application for more general use with other learning content and courseware aimed at disabled users.