Orion TI-84 Plus Talking Graphing Calculator

Client: American Printing House for the Blind
Date: February through February 2015
Services: Consulting Hours, Physical Prototyping, Spot Checks, Emerging Technologies
A close-up of someone with light skin tone operating a black Texas Instruments TI-84 Plus talking graphing calculator. The calculator is held in one hand while the other hand presses buttons near the directional pad. Its screen displays a graph with axes and plotted data or a function. It has many labeled buttons, including number keys, math functions, arrow controls, and graphing options. The scene appears to be on a wooden tabletop.

PAC helped the American Printing House for the Blind advance the Orion TI-84 Plus Talking Graphing Calculator by testing its accessible calculator experience and advising on graph sonification, speech translation of calculator interfaces, and haptic support for exploring graphs and datasets.

The back of a vertically oriented, dark navy and black Talking Graphing Calculator with rounded sides and ends. The surface displays the APH logo near the top, the text "ORION TI-84 PLUS TALKING GRAPHING CALCULATOR" in the middle, and an Orbit Research logo near the bottom. Four small black screw or rubber feet are visible near the corners, and the device has glossy black side rails against a plain white background.
A black Texas Instruments TI-84 Plus talking graphing calculator being held in one hand with light skin against a plain white background. The calculator's screen displays a graph with plotted curves and coordinate values. It has many labeled buttons, including number keys, math functions, arrow controls, and graphing options. A dark attachment or sleeve is fitted around the top of the calculator, featuring extra buttons and labels, including "ORION TI-84 PLUS," "APH," and "Orbit Research."

Project Description

The TI-84 Plus is a powerful graphing calculator, but its visual interface creates significant barriers for students and professionals who cannot rely on the screen. Orbit Research and the American Printing House for the Blind set out to address that gap through the Orion TI-84 Plus Talking Graphing Calculator, an accessible adaptation of the TI-84 Plus.

Orion adds speech, audio cues, vibration, and dedicated navigation controls to support nonvisual access to graphing calculator functions. PAC was pleased to contribute to the Orion project by helping test the accessible calculator and advising on approaches for sonifying graphs, translating field-based calculator interfaces into speech, and using haptics to support the exploration of graphs and datasets.