CIC (or Completely-In-the-ear-Canal) are one of the smallest styles.
They can be nearly invisible but some people with severe hearing losses or with very small ear canals may not be able to use them.

ITC (or In–the-canal) are somewhat larger than the CICs and fill a little more of the ear canal.
They may be a little easier for some people to manipulate, though they are still small.

RITE (or Receiver-in-the-ear) is an elegant, invisible, anatomic and discreet Behind-The-Ear solution.
The speaker unit is sitting right in your ear canal and provides very clear and natural sound.

Micro BTE is a tiny instruments sit behind your ear, and they are small-sized.
The sound tube between the instrument and the earpiece is very thin and transparent.
Micro BTEs are discreet and almost invisible.

BTE sit behind-the-ear. A separate piece called an earmold is custom made to fit the contours of your ear and to guide the sound into the ear canal.
Although BTE instruments may appear larger than the other types, they can often be hidden by the hair and they can incorporate more power and features than may be possible with smaller styles.

Bone Conduction Hearing Instruments
Bone Conduction with Headband
* if conventional hearing instrument styles as BTE and ITE cannot be used
          o Atresia, microtia, discharging ears
* Inner Ear function should be normal
* BC changes the electric signal coming from a microphone into mechanical vibrations
          o Vibrations are transmitted via bone to the Inner Ear
 * Headband suitable for children & adults 

Bone Conduction Eyeglass
* if conventional hearing instrument styles as BTE and ITE cannot be used
          o Atresia, microtia, discharging ears
* Inner Ear function should be normal
          o BC changes the electric signal coming from a microphone into mechanical vibrations
    * Vibrations are transmitted via bone to the Inner Ear
          o Bone Conductor(s) is/are integrated into the temples
    * More comfortable to wear than headband
          o More cosmetic than headband
          o Not suitable for children
 

sumber: www.discoverbetterhearing.com

Nokia  N82 is the first smartphone designed for the blind or disabled persons with an incorporated text recognition technology, which enables text to be converted into speech. The gadget is the result of a partnership between the National Federation of the Blind and Kurzweil Technologies and Nokia, whose product was based on the K-NFB Reading Technology.

The phone will not only have the functions of a regular cell phone, but it will also use the same principle as the KNFB reader device, which means the Nokia N82 can also be used to scan various documents. The device aims not only at blind persons, but also at people who need assistance in reading and children with learning disabilities, especially dyslexics.

The purpose of developing such a device is to incorporate all the functions other products available on the market today have, in a compact, simple and productive way. And the best thing about it is that the visually impaired or people with learning disabilities will no longer need to carry a bunch of devices with them, instead, the Nokia N82 will perfectly fit in their pocket.

Ray Kurzwell first developed the technology that converted text into speech in the 1970s, and over the next 30 years it became clear that people needed such products. The 10 million visually impaired in the United States are said to triple their number in the next 30 years, and the devices need to be constantly updated to meet the needs of the consumers.

Nokia N82 is just the first step in an attempt to create more compact and useful gadgets to assist blind persons. “The KNFB Reader Mobile will allow the blind unprecedented access to the printed word, affording a level of flexibility and capability never before available,” Dr. Marc Maurer, President of the National Federation of the Blind, said in a statement. “This Reader will substantially improve the quality of life for the growing number of blind people and people who are losing vision, including senior.”

The phone will cost approximately $500 dollars, but the text-recognizing technology itself will cost around $1,500, but all in all, less than any previous reading device on the market. Taking that into consideration, the sales are likely to be a success and top the sales of other reading devices for blinds. 

What is the UltraCane? www.ultracane.com

It’s an electronic primary aid, modelled on the traditional white cane, but with some important differences:

§         It uses ultrasonic echoes to find out what objects are in the vicinity.  This includes objects at head height, like wing mirrors on lorries.

§         It gives tactile feedback, not audible which could interfere with other hazard information.  Different buttons indicate the direction of the object.  The intensity of the vibration lets you know how far away the object is.

§         This type of feedback accesses the mapping area of your brain, enabling you to form an immediate awareness of the layout of your surroundings.

Advanced technology, simple to use 

The UltraCane needs surprisingly little practice.  73% of users feel confident within just a week.  That’s one reason why the UltraCane has won the Tomorrow’s World Health Innovation and European Electronics Design Application Awards.

Designed with the Vision Impaired in mind

The UltraCane has been six years in the making.  It was originally nicknamed the Batcane because it was inspired by the way bats get around in the dark.

We took the basic idea and spoke to hundreds of vision impaired people, incorporating their ideas to make sure that you end up with a product you can use with ease.
The user friendly UltraCane

Our testers told us they needed a primary aid that would make their lives easier.  Their ideas have resulted in a user friendly product that:

·        detects multiple objects in the vicinity

·        has an overhead sensor, and much greater preview than an ordinary white cane

·        is intuitive, just switch it on and go

·        is ergonomic, reducing the risk of RSI

·        builds on existing skills from using an ordinary white cane

·        is rugged, hard wearing and easy to maintain

·        is a carbon graphite collapsible cane, so is lightweight

·        works on two rechargeable AA batteries, so its running costs are low

·        meets the quality standard BSEN ISO9001

·        is attractive and utilises up to date technology.

All this, from six years of design and development, for just £399 plus delivery.

(That’s about US$720, 600 Euros or

AUS$1025).  This includes 12 months

warranty as standard.  If you would like

the peace of mind of an extended

warranty, contact us for details.

              Enjoy a order now for delivery from November 2004.

              www.UltraCane.com

              Or call:      44 (0) 1226 201 666

              Or Email: info@soundforesight.co.uk

              Or write: Sound Foresight Ltd
              BBIC
              Innovation Way
              Barnsley  S75 1JL
              United Kingdom
 

§         You can choose from seven different lengths:  115cm (45in), 120cm (47in), 125cm (49in), 130cm (51in), 135cm(53in), 140cm (55in), 145cm (57in).  Additional lengths on request.

§         You can choose your preferred tip, from pencil, roller or large roller.

Don’t take our word for it – here are some comments from our vision impaired testers:

“When using the cane, people thought I was faking being blind, because I would tell them where things were and go around them and navigate well in different places without a lot of help. I amazed myself sometimes!”

“If I go out without it, which I don’t do,

I’m very well aware that I’ve left something behind like my left or right hand.”

“By being able to literally feel the environment around me I was able to use more skills in travelling. It leads to more freedom.”

And the professionals like it too:

“Many engineers have an image of what they think blind people want, but here the developers have taken the time to ask blind people, and to involve them in trials.  I’m convinced it’s going to be a real benefit to its blind and partially sighted users.”

Alan Brooks, New Initiatives Manager

The Guide Dogs for the Blind Association

Introduction

This factsheet contains details about mobile phones that are accessible to visually impaired people – especially those that can be operated by people who cannot use the screen display.
While it is important to choose the right phone and tariff, customers should also check that bills and instructions are available in accessible formats.

Low vision

There is no “Big Button” style mobile phone currently available.  However, the displays on some phones are easier to see than others.  For example, some partially sighted users find the font size adjustment facility on the Sony Ericsson T68i and T300 mobile phones enables them to usefully enlarge the text on the screen. 
The best advice is to try out several models in a mobile phone retailer and decide what you think of the accessibility of the handsets on offer for yourself.

 
Blindness

Many people with no useful vision use standard mobile phones for the purposes of making calls with few problems.  Even if screen-based facilities such as menus and text messaging are not available via synthetic speech it needn’t stop the phone being used to make and receive calls.
It is often possible to set up speed dialling or voice-activated dialling although this usually requires sighted assistance. 
Orange offer an automated personal assistant service controlled by voice recognition.  This can be used to store and retrieve numbers, and as a personal organiser.  It has been withdrawn from general use but is still available to blind and partially sighted customers. 

Phones that ‘speak’

Alva Mobile Phone Organiser (product code: HM01), £2795.00

This product is a new personal organiser. It has a Braille display as well as synthetic speech and has Braille input keys.
The device has functionality that one would expect of a basic organiser – calendar/diary/clock, basic word processing, calculator, to do list, contact list, etc. It also has a mobile phone on-board – using it in hands-free mode or with the headset, one can make and receive mobile phone calls, send and receive texts, and have access to all standard available mobile services.
This is the first product of its type and it has been built to accommodate future software upgrades that will begin to emerge over the next six months.
Other pricing models will become available through mobile service operators.

Owasys 22C

This phone will be available from RNIB, the expected launch date is January 2005.
The Owasys 22C is a ‘talking mobile phone’. All basic functions are spoken using synthetic speech built in to the phone. The phone has no visual display, but has well spaced easy to find buttons.
The functions include text messaging reading and writing, call diversion and general handling, ringing tone selection, hands-free option (through the loud speaker). The battery lasts for around 280 hours on standby.
This is the first in a line of products from Owasys that are aimed at visually impaired people and people who cannot use (or don’t wish to use) a standard visual display. It has been designed to be simple to use whilst having the same functionality as any regular mobile phone.
The estimated price will be in the order of £300 on a pay-as-you-go option and we would like you to register your interest with us so we can better estimate customer demand. Just email technews@rnib.org.uk with your name and contact number to register interest.
If you have any questions concerning the Owasys 22C Please email ict@rnib.org.uk
Information will be distributed at launch through the usual channels.

Talks

Talks is synthetic speech software that has been developed for incorporation into mobile devices. The operating platform on which this system works is either Simbian 60 or Simbian 80. This is a relatively new platform that a great number of mobile manufacturers are adopting including Nokia, Ericsson, Siemens, etc.

Talks was first made available on the Nokia 9210i product – a communicator that includes a phone, along with a range of other items like word processing, calendar and diary, mp3 player, present IT (a PowerPoint-type option) and much more. It is a relatively complex piece of equipment, which comprises two distinct parts – the phone and the organiser. The phone is a regular Nokia design which forms the front of the unit; the front can be opened – on a hinge – which reveals a small qwerty keyboard with function keys – it is this part of the product that is accessible. The phone communicates with the organiser and the organiser communicates back so all phone operations can largely be conducted from the accessible organiser.

Talks will work on any of the series 60 or 80 Simbian operating system phones. However, not all Simbian based phones are appropriate for loading Talks software since many have inaccessible button layouts or very difficult ones, touchscreen access to functions, and so on.

You can get Talks from Computer Room Services (telephone 01438 742286), as an upgrade to an existing or on a pay as you go phone. You can download and install a demo (note: several of the current models need bluetooth or infra-red to do this), and have then have it upgrade to a full version by obtaining and entering a code from Computer Room Services that's based on the IMEI number for your particular handset. Alternatively, Computer Room Services will do the installation for you, this may carry a small additional charge. The charge for Talks is £150

Talks software will work on the following mobile phones: Nokia 6600, 6260, 7610 and Ngage; and the Siemens SX1.

There are also three other good access products around now: Mobile Accessibility from Rammland (telephone 07801 734722), which works with the same phones as Talks but simplifies the menus and presents just the main features users may want; and Mobile Speak and Mobile Magnifier, again for same phones and doing what their names imply, from Tieman (telephone 0115 939 1391).

Further information and contact details

For an article in AccessWorld, July 2004, “Three Cell Phones with Speech Output” follow this link.

RNIB Hi-Tech: 0207 391 2280

RNIB Customer Services

PO Box 173

Peterborough

PE2 6WS

0845 766 9999

Email: cservices@rnib.org.uk

RNIB HELPLINE: 08457 66 99 99 (Textphone: 0800 085 3210)

For information, support and advice for anyone with a serious sight problem, we can:

· Put you in touch with specialist advice services

· Send you free information and leaflets

· Give you details of support groups and services in your area.

Call Monday to Friday 9.00am-5.00pm. All calls treated in confidence

Orange: 0800 801080

Carphone Warehouse: 0808 100 9250

Computer Room Services: 01438 742286

Rammland: 07801 734722

Tieman: 0115 939 1391

November 2005

Royal National Institute of the Blind

Registered charity number: 226227