Last week I learned about MyVoice TalkRocket Go, an app for iOS and Android that gives a voice to people with speech disabilities. It is another example of augmentative and alternate communication (AAC).
What makes the app particularly interesting to me is its contextual and geolocation awareness.
To speak, someone with a speech disability can select a ‘button’ on the mobile tablet (or smartphone) and then have the selected word or typically phrase spoken by the tablet. Obviously the list of options is limited by the screen size. TalkRocket gets around this by intelligently selecting the available options based on context – either what has already been said, what has been pre-saved or where the user is located.
For example, if the user enters a coffee shop, the GPS function of the tablet identifies this and ordering options are presented. These are referred to as placed-based vocabularies or “locabularies.”
What makes the app particularly interesting to me is its contextual and geolocation awareness.
To speak, someone with a speech disability can select a ‘button’ on the mobile tablet (or smartphone) and then have the selected word or typically phrase spoken by the tablet. Obviously the list of options is limited by the screen size. TalkRocket gets around this by intelligently selecting the available options based on context – either what has already been said, what has been pre-saved or where the user is located.
For example, if the user enters a coffee shop, the GPS function of the tablet identifies this and ordering options are presented. These are referred to as placed-based vocabularies or “locabularies.”
TalkRocket potentially replaces dedicated speech-augmentation devices that are also less capable since they do not have the general power and flexibility of smartphones and tablets, or the additional features such as GPS.
Earlier I reviewed a similar app, Mozzaz Talk TILES.
Here is an 11 minute overview video if you would like to learn more about TalkR:
Here is an 11 minute overview video if you would like to learn more about TalkR:
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