Now that is a great idea. I can see this type of application having other uses as well. For those who are not technologically savvy, this would help them too. It could also be used for product demos.
Another application I considered was on the controls of e.g. a crane, so that the operator did not have to take his eyes off the load while finding which button or lever he needed. This would be more useful in training, as an experienced operator probably wouldn't need the voice prompt anymore.
I found in testing that once folk learned the layout of a new device using the audio tags, the voice then became annoying. So you need an 'off' switch!
In that case MattO, it could be standard issue on cell phones too. Since people refuse to stop using them when they are driving - they could keep their eyes on the road when dialing.
This is really cool. As a large part of the population (Boomers) continues to age, it will be needed.
Considering how many people I saw staring at the solar eclipse yesterday without proper eyewear, it may be needed by younger generations sooner than later!
That's funny NadineJ. I was out there trying not to look at the sun yesterday. It was hard to resist. I couldn't see much. I tried the hole in the paper, but that wasn't very exciting. Finally I went to the CNN site to get a good view.
Great to see that the Blind are now able to use Android too. Here at Industries for the Blind, all our people use iPhones because iOS has always had this capability built into the system. Our blind workers are able to navigate their iPhones faster than I can. They just go into Settings > General > Accessibility > and turn 'Voice Over' ON.
What a cool and beneficial device to aid the blind in using Consumer Electronic products. The Arduino is a great electronics hardware platform to use in developing all types of innovative consumer and industrial products. In terms of Smartphone applications, I'm developing a robot controller device using a Motorola DroidX smartphone, a LEGO NXT, and an Arduino. By touching the DroidX screen, I can control motors, LEDs, or high current devices with an Arduino being the primary control driver using Bluetooth tech. This controls application project is being develop for an Arduino book I'm currently writing for Apress books.
Thanks for your interest in the device. The electronics is so cheap to implement that I hope that manufacturers will implement it in their products as a routine, to help folk who can't see the controls easily.
Now the next thing that it needs is a way to announce the control function before the control is activated. That would be useful in that it would be able to avoid pushing the wrong button, not just telling someone what they did. Not needed so much on a phone, but certainly valuable on a crane, or driving a car, both places where a wrong command can be very inconvenient. Of course, most cranes don't use touch controls simply because they are both non-determinant and too subject to erronious actuation. In addition, a crane operator does have the time to make sure they have the correct control in hand.
This is exactly what the device does already. The touch sensors activate before the control is pushed, allowing the user to select the correct control before operating it. I make this clear at the start of the video.
I would have seen that in the video, except that for whatever reason I could not get the video to play. Sorry about that.
Announcing the button before it is pressed is indeed a very good invention. That should be a benefit to a large segment of uor populace. You have a game changing winner in hand now.
William K -- as for getting the video to work, I've often found that switching to a different browser can make all the difference. Seems like a lame solution, but it works on a lot of instances.
Thanks for sharing your invention. As it was stated this can be used in so many other applications. I could see it being used in learning toys for children. Ardunio seems to be the duck tape of electronics. Lol. My class uses them for various types of labs, they are great.
Coupling sound tags to touch sensors is nothing new - what I aimed to do here was present an implementation using easily available off the shelf boards and an Android phone. Prior to this I have had to spin my own boards to produce multi-channel touch sensors.
Ross Tsukashima and Ha Le Cao wrote an article for the June 2006 edition of Circuit Cellar which coupled toys to touch sensors and a speech board to help teach children language.
My Arduino and Android code can be downloaded from here:
I stated in the video that the XKitz boards use the mTouch technology for their touch sensing. This isn't the case. Custom firmware written by XKitz is used instead.
I have indeed found that using eplorer will allow me to play some of those videos, but after the last explorer upgrade it does not work any more. I have not looked into just why because mostly Chrome is OK for what I do.
From Dell / Intel® New Paradigms in Design Work Scott Hamilton, vertical market strategist for Dell Precision workstations, 5/2/2013 3
Early in my career, I worked as a draftsman and remember the days of drawing on vellum with numbered pencils and Mylar with plastic lead. This was a fun experience in the sense that I ...
I've been using workstations for more than 10 years and love finding ways to get more performance from my system. With demanding professional applications that require more power each ...
A lasting memory from my first job as an engineer in an auto assembly plant is standing on hard concrete at six in the morning, vending-machine coffee clutched in hand, listening to ...
A quick look into the merger of two powerhouse 3D printing OEMs and the new leader in rapid prototyping solutions, Stratasys. The industrial revolution is now led by 3D printing and engineers are given the opportunity to fully maximize their design capabilities, reduce their time-to-market and functionally test prototypes cheaper, faster and easier. Bruce Bradshaw, Director of Marketing in North America, will explore the large product offering and variety of materials that will help CAD designers articulate their product design with actual, physical prototypes. This broadcast will dive deep into technical information including application specific stories from real world customers and their experiences with 3D printing. 3D Printing is
To save this item to your list of favorite Design News content so you can find it later in your Profile page, click the "Save It" button next to the item.
If you found this interesting or useful, please use the links to the services below to share it with other readers. You will need a free account with each service to share an item via that service.
Tweet This
10 
