Device helps stroke victims communicate.

• Position: Technology

Students in an upper-level computer software engineering class at the University of Buffalo (N.Y.) are helping to solve a real-world problem--and restore a sense of independence to persons with speech and motor disabilities--by designing augmentation communication devices. The students have produced UB Talker, a laptop computer with a touch-screen interface and synthetic voice that helps its users communicate--and is available in models for both adults and children.

The project began in March, 2002, when senior students were asked by Kris Schindler and Michael Buckley, lecturers in the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, to design a speech-enhanced, computer aid that would allow David, a 43-year-old nursing home resident who had suffered a stroke 20 years earlier, to communicate. "David can't speak; he's in a wheelchair and has very limited motor skills," says Schindler. "Mentally, he's no different than you or I--it's just very hard for him to communicate. He has a sheet of paper and communicates by pointing out letters and letter groups. It's frustrating and very time consuming."

Unlike typical commercial products, the UB Talker features phrase prediction--frequently used words and phrases stored in the computer--and it is time sensitive. If David wants to go to lunch and begins typing that, a list of phrases appears on the screen before he even has completed the task, and he can finish the thought with one or two clicks or touches. Entire phrases are stored in the computer according to the time of day they are most likely to be used, eliminating tedious and repetitious typing. "If you're talking about food at eight in the morning, it knows you're talking about...