Context:
Current modelling technologies, with the support of modelling frameworks, are in the base of the current adoption of Model-Driven Software development - MDD - and
supporting Software Engineering phases.
Problem:
The focus of these tools are solely on graphical support and visual models. In fact, the chosen modelling language’s concrete syntax is either graphical or textual or both. This approach is discarding the use of other senses for modelling purposes, and, for instance, the possibility of blind software engineers to take advantage of modelling and deal with the abstractions captured by those. It is necessary to improve the productivity of people with limitations or disabilities while modelling.They should not be excluded from the modelling
activity. This situation of accessibility barriers starts already at
education of Modelling.
Method: Model-By-Voice is currently a prototype of a tool that aims to take advantage of current voice recognition and speech synthesis to edit models in diverse modelling languages. The elegance of this work is the fact that, not only it is meant to make MDD accessible to a broader spectrum of practitioners, but also it is developed with an MDD approach.
Results:
This tool is not bound to a particular modelling language, as long as it is meta-modelled. ModelByVoice is the base for a new tool that will enable MDD highlighting the relevant human factor of accessibility via voice and audio to models. Ultimately, it aims at bringing accessibility for blind people to deal with MDD and Domain Specific (Modelling) Languages - DS(M)Ls - the same way it is already done with diagrammatic languages with the current Modelling workbenches.
