Hi Charles!
Thank you for all your hard work over the years. It sounds like you are
making faster progress now. I'm happy for you and I'm getting excited about
the relative nearness of completion. I'm glad many of the obstacles you
have faced along the way are behind you. The optacon is such a great
invention, and I hope I can use it to read the computer screen when speech
is lost for whatever reason, or to help me through a program that has too
graphical a screen for a screen reader to handle. I have never cared a
whole lot for Eloquence speech, so thank you for offering something better.
I have heard both packages, and they are quite good. I have Acapella on my
old netbook, and enjoy the Heather voice.
Keep up the great work.
Debby
At 09:40 PM 11/25/2016, C. Pond wrote
The next step is to see if the small camera can double as a mouse to
examin screens and images in memory, without having need for a separate
mouse and a camera. People are working on it here; not sure of what will
result, or is this a wild goose chase. Iâm not worried about the
display; some improvements: tuflon vs teflon, finally solving the
replaceable finger plage albeit the ragged edge of science and
manufacturing are the norm here. Still looking to further reduce power
requirements.
I have also developed refreshable braille display technology which does
not use motorized comb to move dots. One can use several technologies
developed here to make even a full-page display for a mere few hundred;
the display is not subject to debris; it is inexpensive; reliable; works
as fast or faster than the bimorph braille display, and it is as quiet.
Still having neutral assistance using ORCad and something less than Solid
Works; although useful, Solid Works is not a good fit for these very
narrow, smaller projects. The excellent Solid Works program suite is more
for companies and teams of engineers and technicians. The Optacon III can
be easily built into a 32-cell braille notetaker, with its slightly larger
tactile display between dots 1 and 4, making it still smaller than an R1D
optacon, but with many more features, and of course the original optacon
mode is the default and well-preserved default. I just donât think a
new optacon would sell without something in addition to an upgraded combo
of the best of the R1D and the II. Iâm look at integrating either
Loquendo speech or Acapela; both sound much better than the usual Eloquence.
Still trying to know from several magnet companies if they have used
tuflon rather than teflon, and their results. So, far, they have shown
eager interest, but I have no data.
A few more evolutions, but even if I die tonight, the display technology
is sound, and even if it does never improve until something flat a solid
state comes along, the display technology for both the slightly larger and
more roomy optacon display (its finger plate is not that different from
the R1D save by a few millimeters here and there)), and the banks of
4-cells each stop development here, which they should not, better,
brighter, faster, sealed, user washable and inexpensive braille display
technology has been done here. Reducing power consumption is the main
focus. There has been a military/transportation power generator on which
I have worked which could literally change the very paradigm of power
generation in both large and very small requirements, and I will see if
one of these tiny, tricky generators can beb installed into an Optacon
III. The main reason for a 32-cell display is that I cannot see how an
Optacon III can sell as a souped up combo of the best of the R1X an
d II, and the optacon module is crudely removable. The addition of a
braille notetaking device, plus computer functioning where wished, can
expand the capabilities of the device.
I am reluctantly vague on the braille displayâs technology because
Iâve learned the hard way that altruism has little place in this kind of
thing. I have looked at various braille display designs, their weaknesses
and strength, and I believe we have something here which accounts for all
of them as much as a slick, well-designed, smooth running, user washable
display, and inexpensive can do until something better comes along. The
response speed of the display is certainly equal to or faster than the
best bimorph-based display. Knocking off a eighth of an inch in its
height/thickness wonât significantly alter its usefulness.
If there were more people in Ottawa who knew ORCad and other simular
packages, much time could be saved in refining designs and simutaneously
producing the related documents.
So, until further note: that is the status quo. I have been out of the
province, and I must respond to some of the kind e-mails off list.
Let it be said again: I am not worried about the display technology save
for a few improvements which would not be true game changers, just make
things more efficient.
I can now say that I was easily able to do an optacon on the Arduino board
with Arrays and Counters and a few minor Boolian Logic circuits. However,
Iâm switching to a portable on-the-fly and true motherboard, without
burdening our mobile reading devices with an unnecessary mobile O/S
platform. No value in one as far as I can see.
USB ports have an eventual fail rate built into them, and so I do not
trust them. Nevertheless, I did find a higher grade USB (micro actually)
which just might work.
So, that is the status quo at this point.
Charles
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