P-CUBE: Block Type Tool Supporting Programming Education for Visually Impaired

Abstract

This paper describes system structure of programming tool “P-CUBE” which supports the programming education for visually impaired, and report programming workshop using P-CUBE. Elementary school and junior high school students have recently begun to learn programming using PCs. Students who are taught how to create programs are often required to use an interface of a personal computer. This method keeps visually impaired and younger children from learning programming because they are presented only visual information from a PC. In an attempt to address these problems, we have developed P-CUBE, which is a new programming education tool without using PCs. P-CUBE consists of a number of wooden cubic blocks “programming block” with RFID tags and a program mat which has tiny RFID readers. RFID tags are attached in the programming blocks has information of the mobile robot's action. Users can create the program of the mobile robot intuitively by laying out program blocks on the program mat based on algorithm structure. Programming blocks has convex tactile information in order to enable the system to be used by visually impaired individuals. Since the blocks contain no complicated electronic devices, they are difficult to damage. This is also beneficial with regard to younger users.