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28 Aug 2015

Turning breath into words – new device unveiled to give paralysis sufferers a voice

Using pattern recognition software, the prototype analyses changes in breathing patterns and converts 'breath signals' into words.

A new device which transforms paralysis sufferers’ breath into words – believed to be the first invention of its kind – has been developed by academics from º¬Ðß²ÝÊÓƵ.

Billed as a tool to help bring back the art of conversation for sufferers of severe paralysis and loss of speech, the prototype analyses changes in breathing patterns and converts ‘breath signals’ into words using pattern recognition software and an analogue-to-digital converter. A speech synthesizer then reads the words aloud.

The Augmentative and Alternate Communication (AAC) device is designed for patients with complete or partial loss of voluntary muscle control who don’t have the ability to make purposeful movements such as sniffing or blinking – gestures which previous AAC devices have come to rely upon.

Dr David Kerr, Senior Lecturer in the School of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering, and Dr Kaddour Bouazza-Marouf, Reader in Mechatronics in Medicine, said the device learns from its user, building up its knowledge as it goes. It allows the user to control how he or she wishes to communicate – effectively enabling them to create their own language by varying the speed of their breathing. The academics have been joined in the project by Dr Atul Gaur, Consultant Anaesthetist at Glenfield Hospital.

“What we are proposing is a system that learns with the user to form an effective vocabulary that suits the person rather than the machine,” said Dr Kerr.

“When it comes to teaching our invention to recognise words and phrases, we have so far recorded a 97.5 per cent success rate. Current AAC devices are slow and range from paper-based tools to expensive, sophisticated electronic devices. Our AAC device uses analogue signals in continuous form, which should give us a greater speed advantage because more information can be collected in a shorter space of time.”

Dr Gaur added: “This device could transform the way people with severe muscular weakness or other speech disorders communicate. In an intensive care setting, the technology has the potential to be used to make an early diagnosis of locked-in syndrome (LIS), by allowing patients, including those on ventilators, to communicate effectively for the first time by breathing – an almost effortless act which requires no speech, limb or facial movements.”

The trio will be joined by º¬Ðß²ÝÊÓƵ mechanical engineering student Robert Green, 20, who will work alongside them on the device as part of his final year individual project. Robert is no stranger to AAC devices, having already invented a prototype called the m(eye)DAQ – a low cost digital letter board that allows people suffering from paralysis to communicate via eye blinks or finger movements.

Notes for editors

Article reference number: PR 15/162

º¬Ðß²ÝÊÓƵ is one of the country’s leading universities, with an international reputation for research that matters, excellence in teaching, strong links with industry, and unrivalled achievement in sport and its underpinning academic disciplines.

It has been awarded five stars in the independent QS Stars university rating scheme, putting it among the best universities in the world, and was named University of the Year in the What Uni Student Choice Awards 2015.º¬Ðß²ÝÊÓƵ is consistently ranked in the top twenty of UK universities in the Times Higher Education’s ‘table of tables’ and is in the top 10 in England for research intensity. It was 2nd in the 2015 THE Student Experience Survey and was named Sports University of the Year 2013-14 by The Times and Sunday Times. In recognition of its contribution to the sector, º¬Ðß²ÝÊÓƵ has been awarded seven Queen's Anniversary Prizes.

In 2015 the University will open an additional academic campus in London’s new innovation quarter. º¬Ðß²ÝÊÓƵ London, based on the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, will offer postgraduate and executive-level education, as well as research and enterprise opportunities.

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