Gadgets For The Disabled

How does a blind person find a public toilet when he needs to answer the call of nature? Actually, with a lot of difficulty unless somebody leads him to it.

 

Blind people also find it hard to locate bus stops, vending machines and buildings – efforts that come easily to those who can see.

 

For the hearing and speech – impaired, their difficulty is communicating with people who do not understand sign language.

 

Realising the plight of these disabled groups, students of the Universiti Teknologi Malaysia here have come with gadgets to help the disabled to move about with ease in public places.

 

Four UTM students have invented a device they called View in Black (VIB) that enables the visually impaired user to know his location, such as crossroads, nearby landmarks and public amenities.

 

Team leader Bong Khong Lee explained that the device used the radio frequency identification (RFID) reader to guidethe blind.

 

"RFID tags would be planted in the ground while the blind person would have his VIB device at this waist, which will have an RFID reader and a database processor.

 

"When he walks, the user retrieves data from the planted RFID tag, which provides basic information to help him, for instance, cross a road.

 

"The device, through earphones, will tell the user what road is behind or in front of him and the roads at both his sides.

 

"On top of that, the RFID tag will able to give details of surrounding landmarks and facilities, such as vending machinesand the nearest bus stop, "he said.Bong and teammates Boo Yan Jiong, Lee Sin Loong and Lee Poh Peng said they talked to many blind people beforestarting on their invention and found that the most important thing for the blind when they were in the streets was to locate the public toilet.

 

"This device will not only be able to help the blind but also help the Government save expenses on the current guiding blocks for the visually impaired, "said Bong, whose team would be competing in the upcoming Philips Young Inventors'Challenge in Kuala Lumpur.Another group, comprising Tan Ping Hua, Tan Zee Yean, Heap Yee Sim and Ricky Yap, has invented what they namedHello! – a micro-controller gadget and voice processing system to improve communication between hearing and speechimpaired people and those who do not understand sign language.

 

"This system analyses and interprets finger movements and it then converts the movements to voice."For example, when the disabled person uses sign language to say "hello," the movement will be converted into audio andthe person he is talking to will be able to understand what they are trying to say," said team leader Ping Hua.He said with the device, the audio impaired could "speak" like a normal person and would be able to lead a more normaland independent life.

 

The two groups are among 15 others vying to be in the finals of the competition to nurture and groom young Malaysian Inventors. Organised by Philips Malaysia Sdn. Bhd, it will be held on March 14.The teams that reach the finals will be given RM3,000 each to help them build and complete their prototypes, which must use the company's semiconductors and chips.

 

The winning team stands to receive RM10,000 in cash and a five-day, four-night education trip abroad.

 

Source : The Star ( Friday, 10 March 2006 )

Wheelchair Maintenance Tips

Hello to all my readers,

As a disabled person, I depend on my wheelchair to move around the house or going to somewhre else, go to shopping or hospital. Taking good care of the wheelchair will save some cash and prolong the performance of it. Here is an article on how to take a good care of your wheelchair:

Maintaining Your Wheelchair

Your wheelchair allows you to be mobile and active. If your equipment breaks down, it can be an inconvenience, a hardship, and may even put you in danger. You can help keep your chair operating and maintained by being knowledgeable about your wheelchair, taking care of problems before they put you out of commission, and having a handy list of providers that you can rely on for repairs, parts, and maintenance.

Take charge of the care of your own wheelchair.

As the owner and operator of your wheelchair, you will usually be the first person to notice when your chair is not functioning properly. You may not be able to perform the basic daily and weekly cleaning and upkeep yourself, but you can set up a routine that can be followed by your caregivers, family members or others to monitor your chair for problems. To keep your equipment running smoothly you will need to take care of minor problems, as well as having your service dealer take care of major repairs.

Wheelchairs are very much like any other vehicle in that they need to have regular maintenance to extend their lives. Sometimes this maintenance has to be done by outside experts, but there are some things that can be done at home that can prolong the usefulness of the chair and reduce the overall repair costs.

One of the most important things to do is read the owner's manual very carefully after the purchase of the wheelchair. This can be a critical source for information on the assembly of the chair, how to take care of the wheelchair, and the extent of any warrantee that comes with the chair. The manual should be kept in a safe place for future reference.

Some of the basic maintenance requires the use of several different kinds of tools. Some of the essential items are: an adjustable wrench, a spoke wrench, a set of Allen wrenches, a flat and Phillips head screwdriver, and a tire repair kit. It is a good idea to carry these essentials in a container that can accompany the wheelchair in case of an emergency.

There are many factors that determine how often your maintenance routine should be performed. Wheelchair type, climate, environment, and the demand put on the wheelchair will all dictate how often the chair needs service. What follows is a list of suggested maintenance that can be done at home. Though this list can help to maintain your child's wheelchair, it is still highly recommended that the chair be taken periodically to an authorized service center for a routine check-up.

Daily

• Wipe the chair down with a damp cloth.

Weekly

• Check the tire pressure.

• Check that wheel locks/brakes are easy to activate and secured tightly to the frame.

• Check the axle housings for any debris.

• Inspect the wheels to ensure spokes from the axle to the rim are secure and the rims are not bent.

• Check front casters for any wobbling, alignment, or excessive play.

Monthly

• Check for loose nuts and bolts. If any need replacing, only replace with the same size, grade, and strength rating.

• Check for any cracks in the frame.

• Check that any removable parts, such as leg rests or backrests, can be easily removed and replaced.

• Check the wheel alignment.

• Thoroughly clean the chair and use a car wax on the frame to make the next cleaning easier.

Annually

• If you have a folding chair, check that the chair opens and closes easily and lubricate the folding mechanism if necessary.

• Lubricate all pivot points and ball bearings. (This may have to be done by an authorized expert.)

For Electric Wheelchairs

• The above suggestions should also be followed. It is more important to keep a motorized wheelchair cleaner that a manual chair. Some of the maintenance procedures can be more difficult because of the connections to batteries, gears, and motors. If in doubt, call local wheelchair repair service.

• Check all electrical systems. Check battery connections on a regular basis. Cables and terminals may need to be cleaned with a wire brush if corrosion appears. Check batteries on a weekly or monthly basis.

• Check joystick controls to make sure they respond appropriately and are intact.

Author: Darlene Sekerak, PT, PhD

Malaysia police fire on opposition rioters (Sun Sep 9, 2007 8:05AM EDT)

KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters) - Malaysian police fired live rounds to quell a riot in Malaysia's Muslim heartland, wounding two men, after trying to break up an opposition rally with water cannon and tear gas, local media said on Sunday.

Local police declined to comment to Reuters on the riot, which broke out late on Saturday night in the northeastern state of Terengganu after a group of opposition parties, including the main Islamist party, held an illegal rally, the reports said.

State news agency Bernama quoted Terengganu's police chief, Ayub Yaakob, as saying that a policemen had fired two shots from a pistol, injuring one man in the shoulder and another in the neck, after he was set upon during the riot.

An eyewitness told Reuters by phone the crowd of about 500 had attacked police with stones after they set up road blocks around the rally and then moved in to break it up. The two groups fought each other until the early hours of Sunday.

In Malaysia, opposition parties must get police approval to stage rallies.

"It was police who attacked the civilians," said Kamarudin Jaffar, a leader of Islamist party Parti Islam SeMalaysia (PAS), saying the rally had been staged by PAS, other parties and non-government bodies to call for free and fair elections.

"It was a peaceful rally... Police set up all the road blocks around the area with water cannons. Then suddenly in the middle of the night they started using water cannons on people."

Malaysia's prime minister is widely expected to call for an early general election late this year or early next year.

State news agency Bernama said on Sunday that 23 people had been detained and that seven, including four policemen, were injured. Bernama said the protesters had also hurled pieces of metal and wood and a molotov cocktail at police.

The riot is another sign of rising social tensions in Malaysia as the nation moves into election mode.

The country is governed by a multi-racial coalition which is dominated by Muslim ethnic Malays and includes parties aligned with large minorities of ethnic Chinese and ethnic Indians.

Many Malay Muslims feel the coalition gives too much ground to the other races, while many ethnic Chinese and Indians feel the government discriminates against them through a decades-old affirmative-action agenda aimed at helping Malays.

Opposition parties are split along racial lines but are united in complaining that the electoral system is rigged against them and that the mainstream media pay them little attention.

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My comments: Opposition parties should use multimedia platform on the internet to broadcast their campaign. People now can buy refurbished computer set for RM280 and watch video of campaign by opposition leader, via YouTube.com or other platforms.

This way can avoid police action and the people can watch the televised show in the comfort of their homes, no need to ask for permits or licences.