Signing Santa
Program allows deaf children to communicate directly with Santa

Deaf Santa visits Kansas School for the Deaf visiting with deaf children and using sign language to communicate with children their wishes for Christmas.

When the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) was passed in 1990, it seemed overdue. Equal access for people who are disabled had long taken a back seat to the more visible fights that included equal rights for women and minority groups. The ADA literally changed the landscape. It paved the way for many of the advancements we now take for granted, including handicapped parking spaces and wheelchair-accessible ramps. In addition to closed captioning (CC) on television programs, perhaps the most important benefit for those with hearing loss was the development of relay and captioned telephone (CapTel®) services.

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by Frank Endres

Hamilton CapTel’s® 800i uses an existing phone service for the voice portion of the call, together with a high-speed Internet connection, which delivers captions on both incoming and outgoing calls.

Forrest J. Robinson hadn’t successfully used a telephone for nearly 20 years. A former minister residing in Winfield, Kan, Reverend Dr Robinson lost most of his hearing during World War II. Captioned Telephone (CapTel®) literally changed his life.

“Being able to use the phone is my great joy! It provides a great source of security because I live alone,” Robinson says. “I constantly tell people about the miracle of CapTel.”

Robinson is not alone. Today, one in every 10 Americans—approximately 31 million people—lives with some form of hearing loss. Often, they find everyday tasks more difficult because using the phone is problematic since they struggle to hear what is said. As a result, they become disconnected, out of touch, and separated from the daily mainstream.

In 1990, however, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) spurred the development of relay and captioned telephone services. Title IV mandated that assistive technology and services be made available to those with hearing loss in any state, at any time, and, best of all, free of charge to the end user.

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CapTel 800i

My grandmother, a college graduate and former reference librarian, recently walked out of an electronics store in frustration. She compared the techie conversations that were going on around her with people speaking in a different language. And she isn’t alone.

Though it isn’t always obvious, the technology industry sees senior citizens as a target demographic — especially where cellphones are concerned. Mobile phones could act as valuable lifelines in health-related situations and, at the very least, provide an easier way for relatives to keep in touch. Major cellphone carriers offer models that they say are easier for seniors to use thanks to big buttons and large screen fonts. But some companies go a step further. GreatCall Inc., for example, designed its Jitterbug cellphone specifically to appeal to non-techies, including — but not limited to — senior citizens. It shirks phone extras like Internet access for simplicity and includes a concierge service that does things like remotely adding numbers to the phone so users don’t have to do it.

This week, I took a look at a cellphone that was designed specifically for senior citizens: the ClarityLife C900. It’s the first cellphone from Clarity (clarityproducts.com), a division of Plantronics Inc. that specializes in telephony (landlines and other products) for people with hearing loss. The cellphone incorporates features that are useful for someone who may be hard of hearing or using a hearing aid.

The C900 is a bulky slider phone with a top half that slides up, revealing a number keypad below; number keys each measure a half-inch square. This might be a deterrent for seniors who want their phone to look hip or slip easily into a pocket. But Clarity says the phone’s deliberately large size makes it easier to hold and use, and accommodates a roomy 2.5-inch screen.

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Clarity C900

More Information

WSJ.com

CapTel users share their thoughts.

More Testimonials

New model of CapTel phone provides captions over the Internet

March 31, 2009 – Madison, WI – Ultratec, Inc. today announced the new CapTel 800i® telephone – the latest addition to the company’s Captioned Telephone line of products and services that help people with hearing loss use the phone. Designed specifically for use with high-speed Internet service, the CapTel 800i gives people the advantage of written text captions to help understand what their phone callers say.

Unlike previous CapTel models which rely on only an analog telephone line, the new CapTel 800i connects to both a telephone line and an Ethernet / IP connection. The telephone line carries the voice portion of the call, in the same way as any other typical telephone conversation. At the same time, the Ethernet / IP connection automatically links the CapTel 800i over the Internet to the CapTel Captioning Service. Operators at the Captioning Service use voice-recognition technology to transcribe everything the caller says into text, which is instantly transmitted to the CapTel 800i over the Internet connection. The captions appear on the phone’s display screen, giving users the ability to hear what they can of the phone conversation and read what they need to in the display screen.

This seamless, behind-the-scenes connection to the Internet automatically gives CapTel 800i users captions on any call – incoming or outgoing. Captions can be turned on or off at any time during the call, so they are available to help clarify things whenever the user has difficulty hearing what a caller says.

Requirements

The new CapTel 800i requires both telephone service and high-speed or broadband Internet access. The telephone connection can be any telephone service, including standard analog line, VOIP connection, DSL, or cable modem telephone service (an analog port is required for use with a digital PBX). The Ethernet connection can be any basic broadband Internet service (it does not work with dial-up connections). People who do not already have Internet access should consider the CapTel 200, an alternative that relies on standard analog telephone lines instead of an Internet connection.

Availability

The new phone is expected to be available later this summer.

For CapTel user, Helen Rizzi, it’s all about independence. “Before I had CapTel, I had to depend on other people to make and receive my telephone calls,” she explains, as her progressive hearing loss made it difficult to use the phone. “If I was not at home, I had to depend on others – sometimes friends and sometimes complete strangers – to help.”

“It was not until I received a CapTel phone that I could be entirely independent in placing and receiving calls,” she states.

Helen, who lives in Eau Claire, Wisconsin, has never been shy about finding ways to deal with her hearing loss. “Even though for the past year and a half I have had a cochlear implant,” she explains, “I still use the CapTel for all my calls, to make sure that I understand each word of the conversation.”

“I use CapTel for every single phone call that I make,” she continues. Helen relies on CapTel with the USB option, hooked up to her computer. “I am so pleased to have the large text of the conversations printed on my computer screen,” she says.

“I like the independence that the CapTel gives me. It makes life safer and happier knowing that no matter what time of the day or night, I can make a CapTel call myself. That alone means the world to me.”

People who have an Apple iPhone 3G can talk and read captions – all on one device! Use the iPhone to access the WebCapTel* site of your choice, then enter the phone number for your iPhone and the phone number of the person you want to call. Speak and listen on the iPhone like any other call, while reading captions on the iPhone display. If you have an iPhone but do not have 3G service, you can read the captions on your iPhone, but you will need a second telephone for the voice part of the conversation (see directions above).

CapTel users can benefit from some of the exciting new technology that has recently become available. By using a “smartphone” or mobile device that has Internet access, you can now see captions of your phone calls even when you are away from your CapTel phone.

To see captions of your calls, you’ll need two things:
1. A telephone to talk/listen on (it can be a cell phone, a cordless phone – or any kind of phone!)
2. A mobile device with Internet access to run WebCapTel* on (such as a “smartphone” or mobile device running Windows Mobile 6 or Apple Mobile Safari browser – see Which Mobile Devices Work?)

Using your smartphone or mobile device, go online to the WebCapTel* site of your choice. On the site, enter the phone number of the telephone you will be speaking/listening on. Then enter the phone number of the person you want to call. Next, click on “Place Call”. WebCapTel sets up the call between you and the other person, then displays captions of the call on your mobile device. You talk and listen over one phone, while reading captions on the mobile device.

Which Mobile Devices Work?

WebCapTel supports the following smartphones and mobile devices:

• Apple 3G iPhone
• MotorolaQ9C
• HTC Mogul
• Treo 800w

WebCapTel may also work on other devices that use Windows Mobile 6 or Apple Mobile Safari. You can also run WebCapTel on any computer with broadband Internet access