This document provides information on low-cost assistive technology and adaptations. It discusses: 1) Low-tech hardware adaptations like grips and mounts to improve ergonomics, as well as electronic devices designed for specific needs. Customization is often needed through software or soldering. 2) The importance of considering the person using the technology and ensuring it meets their needs and is easy for them to use before considering cost or other factors. 3) Various low-cost options for communication aids, environmental control, software customizations, and more. DIY approaches using tools like the registry editor and AutoHotkey are presented.

1. AT on a shoestring
Low cost AAC & AT

2. Firstly..
• Assistive Technology encompasses lots!
• Lowtech hardware for better ergonomic usage (e.g. A grip on a
tool, a piece of mounting equipment). This tech requires
manual hacking to adapt it.
• Technology specifically designed for a need to make
something better e.g. Electronic aids from battery devices to
mains and bigger battery devices (Lion) to aid communication.
This tech often allows for adaption through software or
soldering ... Or not!
• If you can get what you need off a shelf and only a small
amount of adaption then do..

3. .. A word of caution...
• Free is rarely best. Neither is paid for. Custom
generally is.
• Remember your role and those involved - how
hard is it for them to use the equipment? What
needs to be done to make it failsafe? Don’t
think of the technology then the person. Think
of the problem or the need first then find the
best technology. Define what you mean by
best

4. a quick comment on today..
Plan: Communication, Access, DIY Software
adaptions, Environmental Control. PLAY!
•Our ideas! Maybe not everybody elses! The aim
is to give some current tidbits and a flavour of the
kinds of things you can do..
•If you can learn how to do it.. All the better!
•The good thing about lowcost methods is that
you aren‘t the only one.. Others need the same
solution and get stuck too! Get online :)

5. Sourcing Solutions
• Newsgroups/Lists: SENIT, CM, Access
group, Assistech
• OATSoft: But note only strictly opensource!
• AbilityNet Database but can be out of date
• And AT Search
• ...For real customised solutions: MERU or
Remap
• Realisepotential.org

6. Communication
• Some reminders:
– Multi-modal methods of
communication are best. Don’t
rely on one thing.
– Remember low-tech options
should be tried first - and often
continued along higher-tech
methods
– Communication is complex.
Ask for advice!

7. Low-tech
• Many forms of presentation
• Books, charts, flash cards,
Talking Mats, Keyrings,
etc..
• Either use photos or
symbols..
• But photos can be tricky to
print..

8. Printing Photos
Remember Polaroid?
Prints: 5cm x 7.5cm with sticky Printer: £20-40, wireless
back, pack of 70: £10 Camera: ?

9. Laminating
• Self-laminating sheets cost around
£30 for a pack of 100. But do look
out if they are matt or gloss
• Inclusive sell poly-paper, 100
sheets for £29. If you want to buy
quite a bit more than one pack and
want a discount - try Inclusive.
Also called Zecom paper and
called “Ruff n Tuff” paper in the
states but not a lot cheaper

10. Symbols
• Printing symbols..
• You may be “fixed” to a symbol • PCS (Boardmaker)
system either due to a cost
investment already made or a • Widgit (WLS) (Aware of
whole school approach (e.g. Symbolworld?)
timetabling)
• Makaton
• Important to individualise each
students personal language • Symbolstix

11. SymbolStix
• Developed by
News2You
• Either available
regular - with
your software
or online $99/yr
• Can request a
symbol

12. Open symbol systems
Open = Open source.
• Picto; 4769 symbols. VI friendly. Multiple choices.
“Denoting software for http://www.sclera.be/index.php?taal=ENG
which the original source
code is made freely • Mulberry http://straight-street.com/
available and may be
redistributed with or • ARASAAC http://www.catedu.es/arasaac/
without modification.”
• Augmentativa http://www.aumentativa.net/
Different licences but
essentially free! • Ask for one! http://talksense.weebly.com/symbols.html

13. Making Charts
• Do you do any of the dynamic stuff with Boardmaker? Do you or your parents need all the dynamic stuff?!
• Is it for just printing out charts and the odd symbol?
• Consider Matrix Maker: £49 for home use, £129 otherwise
• EdWord (& EdWeb)
• AEGIS Concept Coding Framework - in Open Office

14. Grid communication
• In-TIC (In-ICT) is one of
numerous open source
projects developed by Orange
Foundation, iMedia group &
University of Corona
• Can be hard to translate(!) but
worth a play
• Recently available on Android
• 2 Options - with ARASAAC
and one with ARASAAC &
Augmentativa

15. Grid Communication
• Maavis
• Designed originally
as a starting
application for those
wanting simple
computer access
• Can do many things
other than just linking
to applications. E.g.
Run Skype, Picture
galleries etc

16. Light tech communication
• BigPoint: 30 second messages £7
• Sound Shuffle (Step by step and
randomiser) £19
• Talking Postcards (A5-A4) £7+
• Talking tins £14 for 3
• Low cost bundle £80

17. High-tech Communication
• Apple’s iDevices (iPod touch, iPad & iPhone) allow the cost of a
handheld AAC aid to be purchased for around £200-£450 (compared
with approx £2k). 133 AAC apps. Some things are locked down
though: for example keyboard layout. Apps are rigorously tested and
relatively bug free.
• Lots of free-£0.59 apps for cause & effect type activities
• Android devices are easier/free to develop on. As such a number of
keyboard designs are available with prediction. With a TTS system =
An AAC aid. Easier right now to add in external hardware - for
example switches and keyboards with Tekla. Apps aren‘t tested and
are (often) a bit more hit or miss.
• Speechbubble & Appsforaac

18. High-tech Communication
• Windows Platform devices
• Powerbox 7 = A Sahara Tablet PC (£999), a Backbox
(£139-550 with GEWA) and a customised
shell/housing (???) = £5000
• If you don’t need the housing, extra battery or
speakers consider buying the tablet - but do think
about its usage. You also get support remember! (and
v1 tablet PC’s do have a tendency to break!)

19. Before we continue..
• Linux!
• Not really
covering
today but it
is certainly
low-cost
• Ubuntu is
the most
popular and
easiest to
use distro
• Read the
accessibility
guide,

20. BREAK! But feel free to play

21. ACCESS
• Consider adaptions before alternatives
• Physical adaptions to equipment
– SuGru £6.50 for 6
– Polymorph/Polycaprolactone £3/100g
– Foam, Velcro, Craft shops!
• Software adaptions
• E.g, Mouse

22. E.g Mouse
• Look at standard mice first
• Physical adaptions
– Cover up buttons build up a shape for a mouse using
foam, surgu etc
– Consider a tray for a mouse to help develop an area for
using the mouse
• Software adaptions
– Accessibility features, Button control, cursor control etc

23. Pointer control Adaptions
• Accessibility options
• Change of cursors (ACE Centre Cursors,
Enormouse)
• TouchFreeze
• SteadyMouse

24. Alternatives to a mouse
• Joysticks, Traxys Roller Plus £285, Traxys roller
Joystick £179, Pointit, EasiTrax £127, Optima £169.
Pointit!
• Standard SEN focused devices have functions
e.g. Scroll button, drag lock buttons. Do
students require these?

25. Mouse button
Control
• A drag lock feature
you may be paying
£300 for.
• Mouser, Plus switch
latching box for drag
lock
• Point n click
• Autohotkey

26. Regular Joysticks
• Can use a range of regular joysticks
(although not many available!).
Joy2mouse software available to convert
it to a mouse. Available from keytools £70
or download a free clone (or make one!
Using autohotkey)

27. Developing Access Skills
• Cheap ways to develop your skills
• Failsafe activities
• E.g. Pointer control Mouseskills £12
• HelpKizLearn, TuxPaint, Cbeebies, Flash
Games

28. Scratch
• Want the more dynamic boardmaker type
things?
• Scratch is a visual programming language
designed to help teach programming to
young children
• Developed and supported by MIT lifelong
learning lab

30. Scratch Demo
• Demos/Scratch/1. Monkey
Dress up
• Click the green flag
• Click on each of the clothes
• Change the monkey to a
person
• Add some clothes
• Take a look at my (poor)
attempts at a switch story

31. Keyboard
• Regular keyboards are aplenty
• Look carefully at the features of the keys that are needed (size,
separation, travel, feedback)
• Adapt as necessary
• Hardware: Stickers, Keyguards, Wedge,
• Software: Accessibility options, Onscreen keyboards (Click-N-Type)
• Developing skills: Keyboard Shortcuts, Word & Abbreviation
Expansion, Mouseless browsing, Launchy
• LetMeType for Word Prediction (but look for some dictionaries)

32. Switches
• Ablenet (Specs- £27) vs Inclusive
(Smoothie - £25) switches
• Hard to find cheap options!
• Do consider the switch features needed
• Maxess wedges = foam, perspex..
• Use velcro directly to tray table or use
dycem (gorilla grip from £1 shops!)

33. Switch access adaptions
• Many Battery operated toys (PRI, Inclusive)
• Look for toys that can be started and then restarted to from the
same point. Can be difficult to find however..
– Toy control box.
• It control box: allows wireless control with it switches. £65.
(Pro: 2 toys, £119)
• Ablenet switch latch timer. £75-85.
– Battery switch adaptor: £9

34. Adapting Toys
• See the ACE Centre website for
Soldering approach
• Look for toys with a variety of rewards -
you can build an activity around e.g. A
toy washing machine etc,
• See LetsPlay! From Buffalo University
for lots of ideas around toys and
choosing toys

35. Switch & Computer
• Switch boxes are aplenty
• Inclusive Space & Enter box: £35. Crick:
£99, Inclusive Multiswitch: £95, JoyCable:
£49
• Developing switch skills
– Inclusive - Developing Switch Skills (with
scanning)
– Powerpoint/Adobe Reader slide-show
– SENSwitcher
– Games: oneswitch e.g Run Rabbit Run

36. Switches to control the
computer
• The Grid and Computer control
• In-TIC
• SAW. Switch Access to Windows.
• E.g. On-Screen Keyboard, IE, Access
Maths

37. Eyegaze
• Consider Facial
recognition software
e.g. Enable e-
viacam, Facemouse,
Camera Mouse
• Open source eye-
tracking solutions
aren‘t great at
tracking head
movement too

38. Eyegaze
• Opengazer, Cambridge
Inference Group. No
binary available.
• ITU tracker. Technically
very accurate with a fine
resolution. Need IR
camera
• Eyewriter
• TrackEye
• myEye
• OpenEyes

39. Eyegaze software adaptions
• Free games using flash - but not
fullscreen
• 1. MouseTrap
• 2. Run flash standalone - then
fullscreen…
• To do this use the flash projector
converter (but games need to be
self-contained - not accessing the
web)
• 1. Jacksonpollock.org
• 2. Find .swf link and load that. Save
as..
• 3. Open in standalone and “Create
projector”
• 4. Run exe and ctrl+f for full-screen

40. Eyegaze software adaptions
• How do I
control non-
eyegaze
games and
activities with
my eyes?
• AltController
• Eyetube, See
cogain

41. LUNCH

42. DIY software adaptions
• What do you need to do?
• “Tweaks” to operating system settings
and many software settings can be done
in the registry
• Demo registry editing
• See
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/136393 -
in short backup first!

43. RegEdit
• Need: “Turn
on and off
filter keys and
change
bounce time
to less than
0.5 seconds”
• 1. Look for
options
standard way

44. RegEdit
• 2. Search registry
3. Edit registry.
Did it work?!
4. Export a .reg
file. Edit in a text
editor if
necessary.
5. Run on
computer!

45. Autohotkey
The software equivalent of velcro
• Input method tweaks = Autohotkey
• http://www.autohotkey.com/
• Great for keyboard mapping (or mouse
mapping.. Or joystick mapping..)

46. Example
• “Disable the mouse buttons so a child can
use a switch for the left and right click
instead”

47. LButton::B
(Press the Left Mouse button - and it sends a
capital B to the screen)
LButton::
return
(Press the left button and just “return” i.e. Do
nothing)

48. LButton::
RButton::
return

49. LButton::
RButton::
Return
; cntrl+s
^s::Suspend

50. Have a go!
• Ideas
– Map the Q key to an A etc.. - to make a ABC
keyboard..
– Make a switch box piece of software (hint a
switch box is secretly a joystick and the 1 button
is Joy1 and Joy2 etc..

51. Creating your own software -
Options
• RegEdit
• AutoHotkey
• Flash - although note not supported
widely on new tablet PCs
• Processing.org (Example: CircleArt)

52. BREAK! But feel free to Play
with software

53. Environmental Control
• i.e controlling toys, physical devices,
equipment away from the computer

54. A brief (and scant) history of
connecting tech
• Infrared (IR)
– Possum range
– Home Entertainment systems (Phillips, etc)
– Cheap toys
• Radio
– Home easy
– Zigbee
– Proprietary
• Bluetooth
• Wifi
– TCP/IP
– Web servers

55. “I want to control my TV with
my Communication Aid”
• What is the aid? Is it easier to buy the
licence to enable the IR device that may
be already in the machine (e.g. Tobii..)
• Does the retailer offer a solution?
• What software are you already using?

56. IR Controllers
• GEWA Prog, BigJack (£541)
• TIRA £50-80
• USBUIRT £50-80
• IR-3SP £350
• (Airlink)
• Advocate+ £395 (but also look
at freeway etc..)
• DIY (Arduino etc)

57. IR Devices
• Possum (& the Powerlink 3)
• Home entertainment equipment (TVs, DVDs, Hifi,
Computers..)
• Toys
– Simple e.g. Tesco’s £2.99 toys but random usage
– Complex e.g. robosapiens but IR commands can
be be hard to capture
• Lowcost Home Automation / Energy saving devices
e.g. plug sockets

58. To control your TV
• Train the device with the code
• Plug in switch
• Press the switch
• So simple right?

59. To control your TV
• Train the device with the code
• Stuck
• Not all infrared toys are equal
• Demo with BigJack and UIRT

60. Play a video / song with a
switch
• Playing music could be done with a iPod
switcher (£305).
• You could try switch timing with a toy
controller
• But if you have a computer you could just
use iTunes or any other media player
(Space = Play/Pause. Most switch boxes
= Space).
• Latching – but for timed..

61. Control software
• WDPS IRCommand
• EventGhost
• Walkthrough of how its done 

62. What about this?
• Press a switch (either directly linked to a
computer or via a infrared sending device)
• Turn a light off
• Activate a slideshow/movie for a set
period of time
• Turn a light on
• Demo

63. Conclude
• What is best?
• Consider man hours, reliability and
appearance
• Is cheap always better?
• Cost shouldn’t be the driver. The right
solution should be