Stephen Hawking talks through the computer using a speech-generating device (SGD) or a voice output communication aid. This is a special device that either supplements or replaces speech/writing.
Stephen Hawking is a name that is impossible to ignore, at least if you’re a human from Earth. Although, to be fair, I’m willing to bet that aliens also know a thing or two about him.
To give a bit of quick background, Steven Hawking is a British cosmologist and physicist most famously known for his notable scientific works regarding the theoretical prediction of radiation emission from black holes (Hawking radiation), Penrose–Hawking theorems, the general theory of relativity and quantum mechanics. He also authored A Brief History of Time, a popular bestseller that discusses the Big Bang and black holes.
Apart from these accomplishments, there’s one more thing that he is commonly known for: he has amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Also referred to as motor neuron disease in some countries, it involves the death of neurons in a patient’s brain. It results in muscle twitching and a gradual deterioration of muscles that leads to difficulty swallowing, speaking and eventually breathing.
Image Source: Flickr.com
Therefore, Hawking uses a number of gadgets to give lectures and communicate with people, since he no longer has the ability to speak as most people do. You have almost certainly seen him in photographs and footage sitting in a wheelchair with a few different machines attached to it.
Let’s check out some different parts of the machinery and explore how they help Hawking disseminate his brilliance through words to the entire world.
Speech-Generating Device
What Hawking uses to communicate is aptly named a speech-generating device (SGD) or a voice output communication aid. This is a special device that either supplements or replaces speech/writing for people who have problems communicating in a traditional way.
The machine that enables Stephen Hawking to communicate
Hawking has been using this computer-based communication system made by Intel Corporation since 1997. The entire computer system is replaced every two years to cope with the gradual loss of control over his muscles over time. Hawking has actually written a small post titled ‘The Computer’, where he briefly talks about the tools that help him communicate. You can check it out here.
Intel has released Hawking’s speech system, i.e., Assistive Context-Aware Toolkit, as open-source code for the general public to make tweaks and tinker with so that it can become more suitable for a wider range of communicative disabilities.
Feeding the information into the machine
Hawking’s communication system has three major components. First is the input, which also happens to be the most challenging element in Hawking’s case. Like many other ASL patients, he has little control over his muscles, which means that he can’t just type out words or click some buttons (which, by the way, he was able to do when his condition was better than it is now) to input the information. He now needs a different, more sophisticated way to feed information into the computer.
Hawking used a clicker when his health condition was better (Image Source: Wikipedia)
This is achieved by an infrared switch mounted on his spectacles that catches the slightest twitches or movements in his cheek. When his condition was better than it is now, he pressed a clicker using his thumb for input. However, he eventually lost control of the nerves that control his thumb muscles, and had to use other methods of input, hence the infrared switch that traces movements in his cheek.
Interface
The next part involves forming words using the input from the infrared switch. This interface is a program called EZ Keys, developed by Words Plus Inc. It provides a software keyboard that’s displayed on a tablet computer and mounted on one arm of his wheelchair, which is powered by the wheelchair batteries.
The software moves a cursor across the keyboard by either moving through columns or rows. When it reaches the desired word, Hawking can stop it with a twitch of his cheek. Individual letters are selected in this way to form words and then sentences. Furthermore, EZ Keys also lets him move the pointer in the Windows computer that he uses.
To make things easier still, the software also includes an auto-complete feature – very similar to what we have in smartphones and tablets – that predicts the word without requiring Hawking to complete the spelling of the entire word.
Output: Talking out loud
The last part, and probably the easiest one, is speaking the complete sentence out loud. For this, Hawking uses a speech synthesizer (developed by Speech+) that speaks the sentence once it has been approved or completed. However, it does have an unmistakable accent, which has been diversely described as American, Scottish or Scandinavian.
Hawking speaks to US President Barack Obama (Image Source: Wikipedia)
This machine doesn’t just let him talk, but also allows him to do plenty of other tasks as well, including checking his email, browsing the Internet, making notes and using Skype to chat with friends. Intel has a dedicated team of engineers that is working on improving his communication system even further and enhancing the number of tasks he can perform, even with his gradually degrading health.
All in all, Hawking can currently give lectures and interact with people without much difficulty using this communication system. Also, with a few exciting new ideas for his machinery in the cards, the future for this genius’ talking system looks bright!
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A year ago | 912 words
