An advance in terms of speech synthesis aimed at patients with Cerebral Palsy and similar diseases has been developed by the University of Virginia. While in the past speech synthesis devices for the disabled have been somewhat erratic in operation and produced a harsh "metallic' voice, the research at the University of Virginia has improved on these. The new envisaged device is specifically designed "... To electronically reproduce sounds of the human voice and allow speech-impaired people to speak with fluidity and inflection" (Thomasson L.).
This device operates in relation to an individual's range of movement. These movements are 'tracked' on a computer by a programmer or a trained therapist and "...Once the movement, such as swinging the arm or wiggling the foot, is recorded, it is overlaid onto a sound grid. The vowel and consonant sounds are produced as the user moves a tracking device through the grid" (Thomasson L.). The device is also capable of producing any romance language, and will, according to...
The only negative aspect of this device is that it does require a fairly lengthy learning period in which the patient has to coordinate movement and the production of sounds. However the benefits of this device will mean that disabled people who in the past could not communicate can now interact and converse with others without any sense of embarrassment or loss of self-confidence.
References
Jones P.E. Computer-Assisted Remote Control for the User with Motor
Impairment. Retrieved June 4, 2007, at http://people.csse.uwa.edu.au/peterj/personal/PDFs/HCI97-paper.pdf.
Communication. Retrieved June 7, 2007, at http://www.computers-technology-cerebralpalsy.com/cerebral-palsy-communication.html
Thomasson L. Speech Device Could Assist Palsy Victims. Retrieved June 7, 2007 at http://www.cs.virginia.edu/csnews/show.php?artID=217
