In 1988 the National institute on disability and rehabilitation research, NIDRR, awarded Gaulladet University a grant for the project "Robotic finger spelling hand for communication and access to text by deaf-blind persons".
ɪn nˈaɪntiːnhˈʌndɹɪd ˈeɪɾi ˈeɪt ðə nˈæʃənəl ˈɪnstɪtˌuːt ˌɔn dˌɪsɐbˈɪləɾi ænd ɹᵻhˌæbɪlɪtˈeɪʃən ɹᵻsˈɜːtʃ, nˈɪdɚ, ɐwˈɔːɹdᵻd ɡˈɔːlædɪt jˌuːnɪvˈɜːsᵻɾi ɐ ɡɹˈænt fɚðə pɹˈɑːdʒɛkt "ɹoʊbˈɑːɾɪk fˈɪŋɡɚ spˈɛlɪŋ hˈænd fɔːɹ kəmjˌuːnɪkˈeɪʃən ænd ˈæksɛs tə tˈɛkst baɪ dˈɛfblˈaɪnd pˈɜːsənz".