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Assistive Technology Products

rich100 — Wed, 11 Jun 2008 13:32:43 +0000

Telecare is a particular sort of assistive technology that uses electronic sensors connected to an alarm system to help caregivers manage risk and help vulnerable people stay independent at home longer. An example would be the systems being put in place for senior people such as fall detectors, thermometers (for hypothermia risk), flooding and unlit gas sensors (for people with mild dementia). Notably, these alerts can be customized to the particular person’s risks. When the alert is triggered, a message is sent to a career or contact center who can respond appropriately. Technology similar to Telecare can also be used to act within a person’s home rather than just to respond to a detected crisis. Using one of the examples above, unlit gas sensors for people with dementia can be used to trigger a device that turns off the gas and tells someone what has happened.
Designing for people with dementia is a good example of how the design of the interface of a piece of AT is critical to its usefulness. People with dementia or any other identified user group must be involved in the design process to make sure that the design is accessible and usable. In the example above, a voice message could be used to remind the person with dementia to turn off the gas himself, but whose voice should be used, and what should the message say? Questions like these must be answered through user consultation, involvement and evaluation. [Edit] Accessible computer input Sitting at a desk with a QWERTY keyboard and a mouse remains the dominant way of interacting with a personal computer. Some AT reduces the strain of this way of work through ergonomic accessories with height-adjustable furniture, footrests, wrist rests, and arm supports to ensure correct posture. Key guards fits over the keyboard to help prevent unintentional key presses. Alternatively AT may attempt to improve the ergonomics of the devices themselves: Ergonomic keyboards reduce the discomfort and strain of typing.
Chorded keyboards have a handful of keys (one per digit by hand) to type by ‘chords’ which produce different letters and keys. Expanded keyboards with larger, more widely-spaced keys. Compact and miniature keyboards. Dvorak and other alternative layouts, which offer more ergonomic layouts of the keys [citation needed]. There are also variants of Dvorak in which the most common keys are located at either the left or right side of the keyboard. Input devices may be modified to make them easier to see and understand:
Keyboards with lowercase Keys Keyboard with big keys. Large print keyboard with high contrast colors (such as white on black, black on white, and black on ivory). Large print keyboard adhesive stickers in high contrast colors (such as white on black, white on black, and black on yellow). Embossed locator dots help find the ‘home’ keys, F and J, on the keyboard. Scroll wheels on mice remove the need to locate the scrolling interface on the computer screen. Foot Mouse – Foot operated mice. More ambitiously, and quite crucially when keyboard or mouse prove unusable, AT can also replace the keyboard and mouse with alternative devices: trackballs, joysticks, graphics tablets, touch pads, touch screens, foot mice, a microphone with speech recognition software, sip-and – puff input, and switch access. Software can also make input devices easier to use: Keyboard shortcuts and mouse keys allow the user to substitute for keyboarding mouse actions. Macro recorders can greatly extend the range and sophistication of keyboard shortcuts. Sticky keys allows characters or commands to be typed without having to hold down a modifier key (Shift, Ctrl, Alt) while pressing a second key. Similarly, Click Lock is a Microsoft Windows features that remembers a mouse button is down so that items can be highlighted or dragged without holding the mouse button down throughout. Customization of mouse or mouse alternatives’ responsiveness to movement, double-clicking, and so forth.
Toggle Keys is a feature of Microsoft Windows 95 onwards. A high sound is heard when the CAPS LOCK, SCROLL LOCK, or NUM LOCK key is switched on and a low sound is heard when any of those keys are switched off Customization of pointer appearance, such as size, color and shape. Predictive Text Spell checkers and grammar checkers
[Edit] Durable Medical Equipment (DME) Seating products that assist people to sit comfortably and safely (seating systems, cushions, therapeutic seats). Standing products to support people with disabilities in the standing position while maintaining / improving their health (standing frame, standing wheelchair, active stand). Walking products to aid people with disabilities who are able to walk or stand with assistance (canes, crutches, walkers, gait trainers). Wheeled mobility products that enable people with mobility disabilities to move freely indoors and outdoors (wheelchairs, scooters) [Edit] Learning difficulties Age appropriate software Cause and effect software [2] Hand-eye co-ordination skills software Diagnostic Assessment Software Mind Mapping Software
Study Skills Software Icon-based software [3] Text-to-Speech Touch Typing Software
[Edit] Visual Impairment Choice of appropriate hardware and software will depend on the user’s level of functional vision. RIAS (Remote Infrared Audible Signage) has the potential to help both low vision and the blind navigate outside and indoors. [Edit] Hardware
Large monitors. Adjustable task lamp, using a fluorescent bulb, shines directly onto the paper and can be adjusted to suit. Copy Holder holds printed material in near vertical position for easier reading and can adjusted to suit. Closed circuit television (CCTV) or video magnifier. Printed materials and objects are placed under a camera and the magnified image is displayed onto a screen. Modified cassette recorder. To record a lecture, own thoughts, ideas, notes, etc. Desktop compact cassette dictation system to allow audiocassette playback with the aid of a foot pedal. Fusers produce tactile materials, for example diagrams and maps, by applying heat to swell special paper. Scanner. A device used in conjunction with OCR software. The printed document is scanned and converted into electronic text, which can then be displayed on screen as recognizable text.
Standalone reading aids are integrate a scanner, optical character recognition (OCR) software and speech software in a single machine, working without a separate PC. [4]
Refresh reading Braille display. An electronic tactile device which is placed under the computer keyboard. A line of cells, that move up and down to represent a line of text on the computer screen, enables the user to read the contents of the computer screen in Braille. Electronic note taker. A portable computer with a Braille or QWERTY keyboard and synthetic speech. Some models have an integrated Braille display. Braille embosser. Embosses Braille output from a computer by punching dots onto paper. It connects to a computer in the same way as a text printer. Perkins Braille. To emboss manually Grade 1 or 2 Braille. [Edit] Software Customization of graphical user interfaces to alter the colors and size of desktops, short-cut icons, menu bars and scroll bars. Screen magnifiers
Screen readers Self-voicing Applications Optical Character Recognition. Converts the printed word into text, via a scanner. Braille translation. Converts the printed word into Braille, which can then be embossed via a Braille embosser. Text-to-speech and speech-to-text Spell Checker and Grammar checkers [Edit] Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) Augmentative and alternative communication is a well defined specialty within AT. AAC devices vary widely with respect to their technological sophistication: Low-Tech Systems. Simple paper or object based systems, i.e. do not require a battery. Light-Tech Systems. typically consisting of a digitized speech recorder with a touch sensitive display pad and sometimes switch access. Lite-tech systems require a battery. High-tech system. Computerized VOCAs that vary from single purpose appliance-like systems to multipurpose computer-based communication aids. Typically high-tech systems require training and ongoing support to operate the devices. [Edit]
Deafness and Hearing Loss Audiometer Paging Fire Alarm System Loop system (portable and fixed) Radio AIDS Telecommunications device for the deaf Tele text Video cassette recorders that can read and record subtitles (closed captioning). Vibrating alarm fire placed under pillow when asleep. Doorbell Lighting System [Edit] Others Wakamaru provides companionship, reminds users to take medicine and calls for help if something is wrong. CARE (Call Reassurance) community based program that calls seniors at home ensuring their well-being [1]. Cosmobot is part of a play therapy system designed to motivate children to participate in therapy.

Assertive Technology and Universal Accessibility

rich100 — Wed, 11 Jun 2008 13:14:05 +0000

Universal (or broadened) accessibility, or universal design means greater usability, particularly for people with disabilities. But universally accessible technology yields great rewards to the typical user as well; good accessible design is universal design. One example is the “curb cuts” (or dropped curbs) in the sidewalk at street crossings. While these curb cuts enable pedestrians with mobility impairments to cross the street, these also aid parents with carriages and strollers, shoppers with carts, and travelers and workers with pull-type bags. As an example, the modern telephone is inaccessible to people who are deaf or hard of hearing. Combined with a text telephone (also known as a TDD Telecommunications device for the deaf and in the USA generally called a TTY [Teletypewriter]), which converts typed characters into tones that may be sent over the telephone line, a deaf person is able to communicate immediately at a distance. Together with “relay” services, in which an operator reads what the deaf person types and types what a hearing person says, the deaf person is then given access to everyone’s telephone, not just those of people who possess text telephones. Many telephones now have volume controls, which are primarily intended for the benefit of people who are hard of hearing, but can be useful for users at all times and places where there is significant background noise. Some have larger well-spaced keys to facilitate accurate dialing. Also, a person with a mobility impairment can have difficulty using calculators. Speech recognition software could recognize short commands and make use of calculators easier. People suffering from learning disabilities like dyslexia or dysgraphia are using text-to-speech (TTS) software for reading and spelling programs for assistance in writing texts. Thus, computers with their peripheral devices, editing, spell checking and speech synthesis software are becoming the core of the stones assertive technologies coming for relief to the people with learning disabilities and to the people with visual impairments. The spelling programs and assisting voice facilities are bringing better and more convenient text reading and writing experience to the general public, when helping with foreign language texts. Toys, which have been adapted to be used by children with disabilities, may have advantages for “typical” children as well. The Lekotek movement assists parents by lending toys and assertive technology expertise to families.

The EU valid assistance of 99 million for Quaero

rich100 — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 14:19:28 +0000

The European Commission has authorized the payment by France, an aid of 99 million euros in the project Quaero ( “I seek” in latin), led by top 23 companies in which we find the Thomson group. This research and development project which will benefit a total investment of 199 million euros over five years, aims to develop technologies of automatic processing of speech, language, music, image and the Video “. Achieving an Internet search engine to compete with American giants in the sector such as Google, is one of the main components of the project.” We are confident that the positive contribution of the programmed for European research will be higher than the distortion of competition induced by the aid,” said Neelie Kroes, European Commissioner for Competition, in a statement. In July last year, Germany had received the green light from Brussels to inject 120 million euros in a similar project, These us.
Germany and France were originally working on a joint technological research on the Internet, but differences were eventually lead to the separation between the two partners. The French, led by Thomson, had then chosen to focus on technologies for recognition of image and video within the Quaero project, while the Germans, led by Employs (entity Bertelsmann), SAP and Semens, have decided to focus on research semantics with These us.

Pyhsical Disability – Defination & The Impact Of Technical Assistance

rich100 — Wed, 28 May 2008 11:23:54 +0000

The field of technical assistance (Wheelchair) should be considered first of a purely technical point of view, but also in a broader approach, called holistic approach (we try to accommodate all points of view), where be human and social prospects / cultural activities are included. The human attitudes, beliefs and ways of living play an important role in the acceptance and use of technical assistance .
Professionals & specialists defines technical assistance for Pyhsical Disability in the following way: “All proceeds, instrument, strategy, service and practice used by persons with disabilities and older-specially manufactured for sale or free – to prevent, offset, alleviate or remove the disability or disability, and improve the autonomy and quality of life of individuals “.

This definition shows that the concept of technical assistance contains concrete aid techniques and strategies (such as rules or political intentions, local or personal), services (for example the system of service delivery) and practice ( such as methods that professionals use to evaluate and provide information). The development, evaluation and training aid, made in a holistic approach, are very important factors to increase the potential of the user. This gives it a general culture of technical assistance.
THE IMPACT OF TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE
The evolution of technical assistance available on the market has an impact socially and personally. It allows disabled people to choose their own lifestyle and to pursue their personal goals.
Technical assistance may also have a subconscious impact on the user, the environment and society. This impact is a consequence of the general attitude of society towards disability and disabled people.

Attitudes towards the technical assistance
The presence of persons with disabilities in the media, especially on television, increases. The materials (wheelchair , cane, frame walk) are often used as a symbol to represent a person weak and dependent. In this case, technical assistance becomes a stigma to characterize a person.
Television can include people with disabilities in a dramatic context or associate with a happy little comment. It can also avoid the show because their view is scary. On the other hand, the media can describe people with disabilities as happy people, who fight and keep “head high” despite the handicap. The descriptions made by the media show the general attitude of society towards disability and assistive devices. This attitude is, of course, felt by people with disabilities. The stage which makes a person a user of technical aids and tipped like wheelchair & other in another world, is a difficult step to live. It also happens that advisers to aid techniques have negative attitudes.

Impact of technical assistance on the personal life
The way in which the disabled person and his design and accept disability influence, of course, the impact of technical assistance on self-esteem, self-confidence, resourcefulness in activities with his family and other social relations. Some people with disabilities trying to take control of their lives hands maximum use of opportunities offered by technical assistance, others do not and are dependent on others for psychological aid, technical and financial.

The arrival of technical assistance in a family request personal changes from the other family members. It may also require changes in the organization of personal assistance and therefore a change of habits and attitudes on the part of PDAs. The family and other people can support the lifestyle changes caused by the arrival of technical support or reject them. So the family can have an influence on the independence and freedom of the user. It may happen that technical assistance is well accepted by the individual but not by the family, even when technical aids & wheelchair to relieve the family rather than the person with a disability.

You can also find this “common position” on disability in local communities. A disabled person who develops a positive and active attitude may be confronted with prejudices. His travels around the city attract the attention of people from his all-time friend at home and develop a sense of malaise, weakness and misfortune .Not everyone feels uncomfortable when a public role to play. The disabled person may feel alone and uncomfortable in this “public role unwanted”, it has to play in the community. This discomfort can lead to the disabled person no longer wish to take part in the life of society. In communities that have negative attitudes towards people with disabilities can be expected that users of technical assistance will never walk alone and that community members are embarrassed when they meet. They do not know how to behave and think that aid can be made only by professionals. Conversely, a community in which the image of disability is provide a positive environment for encouraging any initiative that the disabled person wants to take to solve its problems. Thus, people expect to encounter people with disabilities with technical aids in the street and can possibly offer them Wheelchair assistance if necessary. Each passing is pleased to offer assistance. Leaving his place in the bus to an elderly person or helping a disabled colleague to eat or go to the toilet are attitudes that tend to be regarded in some communities, as civilized behavior that can be expected of any person polished. It is important that people with disabilities include what are the social expectations in order to prepare for difficult situations or foreign. As it has done for his family, the disabled person can act as an educator of the community and promote the changes caused by its expectations.