control a cable TV box with voice commands

I have a friend who takes care of an elderly woman. The women is now having trouble using the remote control for her cable TV. Her eyesight is very low so my friend asked me if there was anything I could build which would allow voice commands to control the cable box. Before I do the research, has anyone built such a device or know of one in existence?
If this is not the forum to discuss this, please let me know which is the correct one.

Depending on the Cable TV Carrier they may have a model of remote control with large buttons or features to help with handicaps. Also, my local Time Warner Cable company provides an Android application for remote control, and their IR codes are published. So she may be able to use one of the off-she-shelf solutions. Check with her Carrier to see what they can do for her.