Evaluation of Tooth-Click Triggering and Speech Recognition in Assistive Technology for Computer Access
By Simpson, Tyler; Gauthier, Michel; Prochazka, Arthur; Neurorehabilitation and Neural Repair, Vol. 24, No. 2, pp. 188-194Publication Date: February 2010
Study compared the efficacy of tooth clicks (TCs) to speech recognition (SR), and that of an optical head mouse (OHM) to a gyrometer head mouse (GHM), for cursor and mouse button control of a computer. The TC detector used in the study consisted of a lightweight device with a contoured arm that wraps around the ear and features an accelerometer sensor detecting the jaw vibrations elicited during TCs. A software program run by the device’s onboard microprocessor differentiates TCs from speech and movement related transients. Detected TCs are translated into wireless signals to a remote receiver connected via a universal serial bus to a host computer. SR software used was Dragon NaturallySpeaking 9.5, while the OHM selected was the TrackIR operated via an infrared camera, and he GHM employed was derived from an instrument intended for use as a presentation pointer. Nine participants, 6 without disabilities and 3 with tetraplegia, used the devices described to produce cursor movements and mouse clicks in response to a series of prompts displayed on a computer. The time taken to move to and click on each target was recorded. Results showed that the use of TCs in combination of either an OHM or a GHM could provide hands free cursor movement and mouse button control at a speed of up to 22 percent of that of a standard mouse. TCs were significantly faster at generating mouse button clicks than SR when paired with either type of head mouse device.
Assistive Products Discussed: DRAGON NATURALLYSPEAKING
NATURALPOINT TRACKIR
Published by: Sage Publications (Website:http://www.sagepub.com)
American Society of Neurorehabilitation (Web Site: http://www.asnr.com )
This publication is included in the library of the National Rehabilitation Information Center (NARIC), accession number J58252
