Assistive technology and devices

snorlax

i thought i would make this thread a sticky in light of the previous thread.

• if you or anyone you know is in need of assistive technology please contact the relevant health professional before purchasing anything. You may get a referral through your GP or by contacting the relevant community/ health centre in your area if a blanket referral is in operation. you may also be referred on to see a community Occupational therapist by the OT in an acute hospital setting.
• it is the community OT that assesses and provides you with most of the relevant equipment.

why go through an OT?

they are specifically trained to assess the client and provide the relevant equipment. they are trained in everything from Anatomy, Applied anatomy and biomechanics, physiology, Medicine and Orthopaedics, Assitive technology to psychology, applied psychology and psychiatry. Most OTs you will be working with will be senior grades (will have trained for 3years plus in a given area, community OT is only one area we work in, and most basic grades will have supervision from a senior grade and standard operating procedures to follow set by their workplace and local health board).

for health and safety reasons a person may have to be properly measured to make sure the equipment is suitable for them. Lots of factors such as suitability, cost, medical condition of the person must be taken into consideration. also whether the person is actually likely to use it or not, eg their preferences should always be taken into account as they are the primary consumers.
most AT can be gotten for free if you have a medical card or are over 70 or a long term illness card. also the county council has a system of providing grants (20,000) to contribute towards house improvements, clients are put on a waiting list according to the urgency of their case. the Irish Wheelchair Association often can help out with the provision of AT and sometimes it can provide Homehelp. Other voluntary organisations include meals in wheels (for older people who need regular hot meals). also check with voluntary organisations to see what they provide, aswell as statutory entitlements.

once you are assessed it can take anything from a week to 2months to get your AT depending in the area your living, how busy the department, budgets and what priority the equipment is (p1,2 or 3). for example you will get a hoist or pressure cushion almost immediately, may have to wait a week or two or even a month for a raised toilet seat and possibly longer for all p3 equipment such as modified cutlery (unless it is in storage in the OT department and doesn’t need to be purchased immediately).

i have to mention again if you want to purchase something for someone else make sure they are actively involved in the process as attitudes and preferences are vital in whether it's actually going to be used or not.

i will try to add to this and modify as often as i can but i thought this information would be useful to share.

snorlax

enable ireland have a good section on how to get funding/ and on AT in general

http://www.enableireland.ie/at/index.html

and another addition (pretty comprehensive list of equipment)

http://www.assistireland.ie/

please bear in mind health and safety before purchasing anything. and bear in mind some items require an assessment first - wheelchairs/ hoists/ pressure cushions etc, some can be be gotten free through your health board/ medical card/ OT.

cathy01

Hi I am looking for info on a Nano pad.Nuro pad.Its like the Alpha pad only better???
thanks,
Cathy

petamour.com

snorlax wrote:

enable ireland have a good section on how to get funding/ and on AT in general

http://www.enableireland.ie/at/index.html

Nore on AT -

This crowd are linked to Enable

http://www.gateway2at.org/

Mental Mickey

Hope this is in the right section??

I'm looking for an underseat carrier bag for carrying large files/paperwork while pushing my chair.

I recently injured my hand(only slightly)when I was trying to open a door, carry a folder, and push my chair at the same time!!!??

Any advice/useful links would be welcome.

Cheers.

snorlax

try assist ireland (meant to put this link in before but am on placement at the mo!)

http://www.assistireland.ie/

cathy01

Hi I have used
Kurtaweil 10o0 and 3000 and find both excellent eap the 1000 for visual impaired, even though I am not.Its very helpful to those with dyslexia, I so love trying to spell that word...............
Cathy

Mental Mickey

Hi.

I am looking for advice/suggestions to modify a front door to enable me to open close it by myself. Myself and my father are currently discussing getting a ramp put at our front door - yeah I know it should've been done years ago - and we would need to modify the door handle to enable me to open/close it. I have thought about putting an extra door handle near to the hinge side of the door to enable me to grab it from the outside??

Any suggestions would be helpful.

I'm going to have a look at www.assistireland.ie as well.

If you can suggest anything, e-mail me at wheelz97@hotmail.com.

Mental Mickey

Hi Guys

Can anyone suggest where I would be able to buy absorbent underwear(briefs/boxer shorts)???

Cheers

MM

cathy01

their a chemist on Talbot street in Co.Dublin, they deliever and take credit card.
HTH,
Cathy

digitaldarragh

A resource that allows you to try assistive technology was released some time ago. Visit www.try-it.ie. This was set up in colaberation with a lot of the major organizations in Ireland. I've written about it once or twice on my own site www.digitaldarragh.com. That's not a plug, it may help some of you who use assistive technology for the visually impaired. Yesterday, I reviewed the new Jaws Tandem feature for example.

atheist

There's a VAT61a form available to reclaimm vat on equipment you've paid for yourself. You're asked about the percentage disablement awarded.

That_Guy

Hi I'm visually impaired myself and I'm currently working with trainees in the NCBI and though I don't need it myself some of the software for computers is very good.

They use programs like Jaws, Supernova, Callview (telephony system) and Talking Typing Tutor.

Jaws is a vocal piece of software for computers that allow the user to hear what they are typing/clicking etc on a computer. I'm not exactly sure how much this costs but I know there's a free trial which can be downloaded on their website. The direct link is here ftp://ftp.freedomscientific.com/users/hj/private/WebFiles/JAWS/J10.0.1142.exe

The voice is pretty good however in the NCBI it's a fairly outdated version and with this latest one you can change the voice to what seems better to you.

Supernova is a magnification tool like Zoom Text except a bit easier to use in my opinion. It also comes with a voice but it's a little difficult to understand and can be slightly irritating. A free trial is available on their website.
The direct link is here http://www.yourdolphin.com/tryit.asp?id=1

Callview is a telephony system that they also use. It appears to be the only telephony system that will also successfully work with Jaws.

www.ncbi.ie will have plenty more information on services/assistive technology that is available for visually impaired people.

cathy01

Great info, thanks for that.
Cathy

That_Guy

cathy01 wrote: »

Great info, thanks for that.
Cathy

I aim to please.

Johnboy1951

Are there any applications like those available for operating systems other than Windows?
Are they available for MAC or Linux for instance?

That_Guy

Johnboy1951 wrote: »

Are there any applications like those available for operating systems other than Windows?
Are they available for MAC or Linux for instance?

http://www.afb.org/message_board_replies.asp?TopicID=3387&FolderID=7


JAWS doesn't run on the mac operating system. The mac does have a screen reader built in, though. It's called Voiceover. I have tried it only briefly-- I can say from experience that the learning curve is quite steep. Before your friend dives into a whole new operating system, he/she should do a couple of things-- read the 2005 AccessWorld review of Voiceover
www.afb.org/afbpress/pub.asp?DocID=aw060505
and listen to the much more recent Dueling Operating System presentation from CSUN last month
http://dcnightout.com/?p=137

Hope this can help you.

Johnboy1951

Thanks for the info .... appreciate it .... and the link.

What about voice to text?

Is there anything in that area?

Thanks again.

That_Guy

Johnboy1951 wrote: »

Thanks for the info .... appreciate it .... and the link.

What about voice to text?

Is there anything in that area?

Thanks again.

You might have to be a little bit clearer on this one.

Johnboy1951

That_Guy wrote: »

You might have to be a little bit clearer on this one.

Sorry.

Most all of what I have come across are "readers"

I am wondering about any software that accepts voice input and enters text into a word processor => speech to text.

Thanks.

That_Guy

Johnboy1951 wrote: »

Sorry.

Most all of what I have come across are "readers"

I am wondering about any software that accepts voice input and enters text into a word processor => speech to text.

Thanks.

I've been looking and I can only find text to speech software.

I did find this though from the microsoft website.

http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/using/setup/expert/moskowitz_02september23.mspx

I briefly read it and I think this might be what you're looking for. I'm not entirely sure about software for MAC. If I find anything though for MAC users I'll be sure to post it up.

In the meantime I hope that article is what you're looking for mate. Seems to be a lot in it and I'll have a proper read through it later on when I get the chance.

Johnboy1951

Thanks for the link. It made interesting reading ... up to a point.
It appears that things have not progressed at all, in general computer terms, in the last nine years - see quote and date below.

I do not use any MS branded product at all. Currently I use Linux as my OS on my desktop machine. I was hoping to find, amongst the multiple of expected 'hits' from a search, a few open source projects that might give some hope. Unfortunately there are very few informative 'hits' and none with any info about an application that will run on Linux -- that I have found anyway.

Thanks again for your help with this.

Regards,

JohnBoy

Final Thoughts
Now that solid speech recognition technology is available in Windows XP, I predict that we'll see more third-party programs take advantage of the hooks that Windows XP provides. By setting up speech recognition now, training the SRE, and getting used to the interface, you'll be ready to enjoy it when the next wave of integrated software arrives.

Speech Recognition with Windows XP
Published: September 23, 2003
By Jeremy Moskowitz, Windows XP Expert Zone Community Columnist

Johnboy1951

Something that looks promising ..... needs further investigation

http://ivr.tmcnet.com/topics/ivr-voicexml/articles/56240-open-source-speech-recognition-platform-simon-unveiled.htm

That_Guy

Johnboy1951 wrote: »

Something that looks promising ..... needs further investigation

http://ivr.tmcnet.com/topics/ivr-voicexml/articles/56240-open-source-speech-recognition-platform-simon-unveiled.htm

That's interesting. Like I said before I'm in the NCBI on a regular basis and the training centre manager there often goes to technology conferences etc and I'll be sure to tell him of this and see if there's any further developments regarding it etc.

In the meantime I'll ask around for Linux voice recognition software. I'll see what I can find out.

Johnboy1951

That_Guy wrote: »

That's interesting. Like I said before I'm in the NCBI on a regular basis and the training centre manager there often goes to technology conferences etc and I'll be sure to tell him of this and see if there's any further developments regarding it etc.

In the meantime I'll ask around for Linux voice recognition software. I'll see what I can find out.

Appreciate any info you post, thanks.

I saw a demo of the app I linked to above and it is shown opening, closing etc browsers and such but I saw no indication of speech to text ...... not saying it is not there; just I did not see it.

Besides the obvious benefit to people with disabilities, a speech to text application would allow everybody to dictate their letters/memos etc without having to maybe two-finger type.

It is surprising to me that there has not been more progress in this area.

Regards,

John

That_Guy

Johnboy1951 wrote: »

Appreciate any info you post, thanks.

I saw a demo of the app I linked to above and it is shown opening, closing etc browsers and such but I saw no indication of speech to text ...... not saying it is not there; just I did not see it.

Besides the obvious benefit to people with disabilities, a speech to text application would allow everybody to dictate their letters/memos etc without having to maybe two-finger type.

It is surprising to me that there has not been more progress in this area.

Regards,

John

I'm sure there's something out there but it seems near impossible to find. I'm sure it'd cost a bit I'd say.

That_Guy

Think I might have found something.

http://www.nuance.com/naturallyspeaking/

And here's something about using it on Linux.

http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=168711

Johnboy1951

That_Guy wrote: »

Think I might have found something.

http://www.nuance.com/naturallyspeaking/

And here's something about using it on Linux.

http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=168711

Thank you for the links. You weren't joking when you said it would cost! I saw prices up to £220 .... whatever that is in euros!
In addition, to 'fudge' running it in Linux one requires a valid WinXP licence ..... another 100 euros or so I am told.

If I had copies of both here, otherwise unused, I would probably try to get it running in Wine on Linux, but not only can I not afford such an outlay I really would prefer not to have to purchase anything from the MS stable.

In fact if I had a valid XP licence and a copy of DNS that could be used I would most likely set them up as a dual boot or in a VM or such ...... but in all honesty I think I would prefer to do without than to go down that road.

I don't wish to appear ungrateful for your efforts in sourcing something like this -- indeed I am grateful for your help -- but having moved away from MS some five years ago, I do not wish to go back.

I guess I will have to put up with the situation as is for now, and hope that someone produces something useable in the near future for Linux.

I will keep a watch on that Simon project ...... maybe it will develop into something that can be very usefull.

Best regards,

John

That_Guy

Johnboy1951 wrote: »

Thank you for the links. You weren't joking when you said it would cost! I saw prices up to £220 .... whatever that is in euros!
In addition, to 'fudge' running it in Linux one requires a valid WinXP licence ..... another 100 euros or so I am told.

If I had copies of both here, otherwise unused, I would probably try to get it running in Wine on Linux, but not only can I not afford such an outlay I really would prefer not to have to purchase anything from the MS stable.

In fact if I had a valid XP licence and a copy of DNS that could be used I would most likely set them up as a dual boot or in a VM or such ...... but in all honesty I think I would prefer to do without than to go down that road.

I don't wish to appear ungrateful for your efforts in sourcing something like this -- indeed I am grateful for your help -- but having moved away from MS some five years ago, I do not wish to go back.

I guess I will have to put up with the situation as is for now, and hope that someone produces something useable in the near future for Linux.

I will keep a watch on that Simon project ...... maybe it will develop into something that can be very usefull.

Best regards,

John

It's very costly alright.

Unfortunately the majority of people use MS and so developers will always make software for MS first before everything else which is a bit discriminatory.

If I can find anything else I will obviously let you know but this is the best (and unfortunately most expensive) thing I could find.

I'll ask around again though for what I can find for Linux users that won't cost you an arm and a leg.

That_Guy

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linux_speech_recognition_software

I just typed in "speech recognition software for Linux users" into Google and this seemed to be the most informative thing I read.

You had to be awkward and have Linux.

Johnboy1951

That_Guy wrote: »

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linux_speech_recognition_software

I just typed in "speech recognition software for Linux users" into Google and this seemed to be the most informative thing I read.

You had to be awkward and have Linux.

:D

Call me cheapskate!

:D

cavedave

There is a make night in the science gallery on Thursday 11th of Feb in the Science Gallery (6-8pm). the science gallery is near Pearse street dart station.

A make night is where people get together and make stuff. Stop go animations, paper balloons, electronics things like that.

There will be Sugru there. Sugru is like putty but it can set hard so you can use it for making toothbrush holders, pen grips things like that.

I am also bringing the parts to make tactile rubiks cubes.

So if you want to do a bit of making come along and give it a go.

CiDeRmAn

Not sure if this has come up here before and I have an interest as I am a CNM2 in an ID service here in north county dublin.
I have come across a program called xpadder for the pc, it is a simple little piece of software and it allows any joystick setup to be orientated for the PC.
It means that a large, easy to manage digital joystick can be used as a mouse, moving the pointer, and the mouse button functions can be translated to the buttons on the stick.
I have a large arcade style stick and was repurposing it for a arcade project with my laptop when I came across xpadder.

Working with people with varying degrees of ID and, at times, an associated motor difficulty, using a mouse can be quite challenging, and purpose built alternative solutions very costly.

This systems beauty is that a robust joystick setup need not cost too much, it can be setup with xpadder in 5 minutes and allow complete control of all windows functions.

If the stick has a multitude of buttons these can be set to register as key presses or multiple key presses at once, allowing for more flexibility and control.

Here's a link in case this interests...
http://www.xpadder.com/

I think I might be using this in work soon, I can see it allowing my clients accessibility to the web and pc applications and also being cheap enough to not impact on the unit budget.

Johnboy1951

Text to Speech .....

It seems that Google are getting into this .......

Google’s desktop web browser Chrome 11 is now in beta stage. It now includes a unique feature that is not found in other web browsers i.e it now has speech-to-text capabilities.

http://www.maggadget.com/chrome-beta-11-now-includes-speech-to-text-feature-and-a-new-icon/

I also read that it is likely to be available through Google Apps ..... at last, it seems, a platform independent means of Speech to Text will become available.

Mental Mickey

Does anyone know where I could get pressure relieving socks? I don't wear any shoes, and would need some protection for the soles of my feet?

Thanks.

suziwalsh

want to recommend www.helponhand.ie

Mental Mickey

Has anyone ever used these guys for buying clothes???


www.rollimoden.com

Their clothes seem nice, if expensive. They manufacture clothes specifically for disabled people. I would like to try them, but am unsure about getting clothes from them, as they are based abroad.

Any opinions welcome. I got an email from them saying that their trousers/jeans are of a standard length of 100cm. My legs are no way near as long as this, so I don't know how I would get around wearing their products.......? What i currently do is buy a regular pair of trousers, and cut the legs to my desired length.........

The rep I spoke to(by email)said that I would be credited for any clothes that I returned to them.........?

Mental Mickey

Mental Mickey wrote: »

Has anyone ever used these guys for buying clothes???


www.rollimoden.com

Their clothes seem nice, if expensive. They manufacture clothes specifically for disabled people. I would like to try them, but am unsure about getting clothes from them, as they are based abroad.

Any opinions welcome. I got an email from them saying that their trousers/jeans are of a standard length of 100cm. My legs are no way near as long as this, so I don't know how I would get around wearing their products.......? What i currently do is buy a regular pair of trousers, and cut the legs to my desired length.........

The rep I spoke to(by email)said that I would be credited for any clothes that I returned to them.........?

Following on from this post, does anyone know of a company in Ireland who would manufacture/fit shoes for disabled people??

Johnboy1951

I would suggest a local cobbler ...... if there is an actual cobbler in your area.

Mental Mickey

Johnboy1951 wrote: »

I would suggest a local cobbler ...... if there is an actual cobbler in your area.

Don't think there is....? Anyhoo, I have arranged an appointment with the Footwear Department of the Spina Bifida Association in Clondalkin.

Mental Mickey

Mental Mickey wrote: »

Don't think there is....? Anyhoo, I have arranged an appointment with the Footwear Department of the Spina Bifida Association in Clondalkin.

Had my fitting done today. They made a mould of both my feet. :eek:

sports_

Mental Mickey wrote: »

Mental Mickey wrote: »

Don't think there is....? Anyhoo, I have arranged an appointment with the Footwear Department of the Spina Bifida Association in Clondalkin.

Had my fitting done today. They made a mould of both my feet. :eek:

i also did

Johnboy1951

CiDeRmAn wrote: »

Not sure if this has come up here before and I have an interest as I am a CNM2 in an ID service here in north county dublin.
I have come across a program called xpadder for the pc, it is a simple little piece of software and it allows any joystick setup to be orientated for the PC.
It means that a large, easy to manage digital joystick can be used as a mouse, moving the pointer, and the mouse button functions can be translated to the buttons on the stick.
I have a large arcade style stick and was repurposing it for a arcade project with my laptop when I came across xpadder.

Working with people with varying degrees of ID and, at times, an associated motor difficulty, using a mouse can be quite challenging, and purpose built alternative solutions very costly.

This systems beauty is that a robust joystick setup need not cost too much, it can be setup with xpadder in 5 minutes and allow complete control of all windows functions.

If the stick has a multitude of buttons these can be set to register as key presses or multiple key presses at once, allowing for more flexibility and control.

Here's a link in case this interests...
http://www.xpadder.com/

I think I might be using this in work soon, I can see it allowing my clients accessibility to the web and pc applications and also being cheap enough to not impact on the unit budget.

I forgot to post that qjoypad in Linux should do the same thing for those who use that OS.

Mental Mickey

sports_ wrote: »

i also did

on the same day........?

Stillorganboy

You might be able to get VAT off your equipment, you'll need a letter off your doctor to say such equipment would improve your life. No harm in trying. If you don't try you will never get anything

Mental Mickey

digitaldarragh wrote: »

A resource that allows you to try assistive technology was released some time ago. Visit www.try-it.ie. This was set up in colaberation with a lot of the major organizations in Ireland. I've written about it once or twice on my own site www.digitaldarragh.com. That's not a plug, it may help some of you who use assistive technology for the visually impaired. Yesterday, I reviewed the new Jaws Tandem feature for example.

Your first link doesn't work??

Johnboy1951

Mental Mickey wrote: »

Your first link doesn't work??

Seems to be a fault on the site side ......

Is this of any interest?

http://www.assistireland.ie/eng/Information/Service_Providers/Electronic_Assistive_Technology_Library_www_try-it_ie_.html

Mental Mickey

Where can I get one of those personal alarms that you wear around your neck??

atheist

Mental Mickey wrote: »

Where can I get one of those personal alarms that you wear around your neck??

Try
Murray Medical Equipment
20 Talbot Street
Dublin 1
(0800) 540530
http://www.murrays.ie
Hours:
Mon-Fri 9:00 - 18:00
Sat 9:00 - 17:30

The quality of one I bought there was low but they replaced it without argument

Mental Mickey

Hi

Does anyone know where I can get a completely flat toilet seat that has a smaller opening than the regular ones?

I need one of these as I find myself slipping through the hole in the toilet. I have been told that i need to get someone to measure me from hip to hip in order to get the correct size of the opening that I would require?

Is this correct?

RainyDay

Mental Mickey wrote: »

Hi

Does anyone know where I can get a completely flat toilet seat that has a smaller opening than the regular ones?

I need one of these as I find myself slipping through the hole in the toilet. I have been told that i need to get someone to measure me from hip to hip in order to get the correct size of the opening that I would require?

Is this correct?

Have you had a look around http://www.assistireland.ie/eng/