Exercise 7.2 New devices, aged care and people with disabilities
Exercise 7.2 New devices, aged care and people with disabilities
New devices come into being due to market competition. Do a WebQuest research exercise on how features such as voice commands, large letters etc provide access to others or how smart devices connected via bluetooth or WiFi to the Internet improve the nature of caring or improve the lifestyle for those with disabilities or in need of aged care. Here are some examples from my research interests in aged care informatics:
- World’s Smallest LCD Screen is 0.27 Inches in Diameter
- Smart toilets:
- that monitor sugar levels for diabetics;
- with toilet seat equipped with electrodes that sends a mild electric charge through the user’s buttocks, yielding a digital measurement of body-fat ratio;
- swarm robotics and nanotechnology;
- robot lawn mowers
- smart homes
Report your key findings. [250 words]
My Findings
There are many new devices continually being devised to improve the lifestyle of those with disabilities and that make caring for others easier these include voice recognition systems, safety alarms, screens that control devices around the home, remote controls, electronic purses, health monitoring systems and much more. The following describes only some of the devices I discovered after carrying out research on the internet.
Vibrating Touch Screen
In Finland researchers are developing a vibrating touch screen device that enables users to read Braille. It uses a single vibrating pulse to display a raised dot and a longer vibrating pulse to display a missing dot. This device is still being developed but so far volunteers have been able to read letters in 1.25 seconds.
( http://www.engadget.com/2009/03/31/researchers-develop-braille-for-vibrating-touchscreen/ )
Jitterbug Cell Phone
A company called GreatCall Inc have created a simple to use mobile phone specifically designed for the elderly. They have two versions one is a touch screen one and one uses keys for dialling. They describe the features of the phone which they have named the Jitterbug as follows:
Jitterbug Dial
- A soft ear cushion and powerful speaker make the sound loud and clear
- Bright screen with large text for easy viewing
- Simple “yes” and “no” action buttons – no confusing icons
- Large, backlit and bright easy to see buttons
- Dial “0″ to reach a live Jitterbug operator
Jitterbug One Touch
- A soft ear cushion and powerful speaker make the sound loud and clear
- Bright screen with large text for easy viewing
- Press Operator button to reach a live 24-hr Jitterbug operator
- A middle direct dial button personalized for you
- One touch access to 911 service
Information retrieved from: http://www.etoengineering.com/elderly.htm
Making Life Easier
( http://www.tiresias.org/cost219ter/making_life_easier/making_life_easier.htm )
This website lists a many devices and services that help people with disabilities. They are described in simple language and provide a variety of examples of where they can be used. For example:
- For people with speech and hearing problems who want to speak to someone who doesn’t know sign language there is a service that enables their call to be redirected to a video relay service that acts as an intermediary. For those that do speak sign language the person can use a video camera broadband link.
- For those with vision impairments who cannot read the labels on bottles and packaging, a scanned image can be sent to a help centre where the information is read for the person with the vision impairment.
- For people with medical problems such as high blood pressure who are caring for themselves at home but live in remote areas there are services that enable them to send their blood pressure details to a doctor who will advice them on their medical care.
There are many more devices but it is beyond the scope of this exercise to go into them in detail. The tricky exercise is to trawl your way through the many websites that describe these devices
