Personalised ADPCM speech playback devices for the non-vocal and the non-vocal physically handicapped
Richard B. Reilly, Annraoi dePaor · 1991
Two personalised instantaneous speech playback devices were designed and developed Both centred upon the memory efficiency advantages of Adaptive Differential Pulse Coded Modulation (ADPCM). One system is handheld and offers 64 seconds of speech. The second system hasdictionary of 230 four second phrases and is PC based. Medical Assessment: The problem of communication for the vocally handicapped is of grave concern. The communication aids currently available for this group of society include text-to-speech synthesizers and portable LPC coders (ref. 1 & 2). The use of these devices is restrictive due to poor quality speech and the use normally of a mid atlantic accent. Some offer good quality speech although are somewhat restrictive in use (ref. 3). The non-vocal physically handicapped also have few systems available to them for communication. The seventy of their disabilities normally limits their use such systems. Following a study conducted by the National Medical Rehabilitation Centre it became evident that a syntheziser system would have to preserve quality accent and sex. Also apparent from this study was the fact that full text-to-speech was not required by the majority of potential users but instead short well spoken phrases. Cost also had a bearing on the communication aid prescribed. An