Today is a new era in technology that will help anyone that is suffering from ALS, for instance, Professor Stephen Hawking's speech tech released by Intel, as stated in a previous report by bbc.com. This speech tech will enable the interpretation of the visual signals and translates them into words, which are then "spoken" by a machine, as reported by bbc.com.
It has been 20 years since Intel started making the speech technology to offer assistance to Stephen Hawking so that he could converse with the world. Currently, Intel is making the same software that the world-renowned physicist uses to write books, give speeches, and talk to everybody for free, as reported by engadget.com.
Indeed a new era of better communication is utilized by Intel to bring a significant message to the world. According to a past report by engadget.com, "It's called the Assistive Context-Aware Toolkit (ACAT), and it's the very same software Intel baked Swiftkey into for Hawkings early last year."
Among the plans of Intel is to release it as an open source software. It will help and aid the engineers, developers and researchers as a groundwork they can use to create technology that improves the lives of patients with motor neuron disease, as well as other conditions that make using typical computer interfaces impossible, as reported by engadget.com.
Currently, ACAT utilizes the webcam-based user recognition. However, Intel provided ways for the developers to augment it with custom inputs and it still would function pretty well, as stated in a report by engadget.com.
The software can now be accessed and that is the good thing about it. The base software is available for free on Github, and Intel is hosting a separate site with documentation, videos on features and compatible sensors, and a detailed manual to help users get started, as reported by engadget.com.
This clearly shows how technology can change the course of communication and overcome the hurdles that hinders better communication. All in all, the project's public release is a great step forward to achieving Professor Hawking's dream of making connected wheelchair and assistive computer technology to every person that needs it, as stated in a report by engadget.com.
