Category: accessible Devices
when I first heard of the KNFB Reader I was amazed. Here was a totally portable reader that you could use anywhere, without a regular scanner or even a computer. I wanted, and still want, it but it was far too expensive. At first, when I saw this product, I thought it was a stand-alone too but it looks as if you have to plug it into a pc. Still, it's very light, has accessible software built-in and sounds portable enough to be used with a small laptop. If I can't find the whole package, I'm gonna check to see if I can find the scanner or something similar and see if it works with an accessible software package like Recognita, Oscar or maybe even a modern one for use with my netbook and XP. Come to think of it, is there a mainstream handheld that will work with XP and something like Kurzweil 1,000?
Taken from
http://www.abledata.com/abledata.cfm?pageid=113583&top=0&productid=86488&trail=0
"ARKENSTONE HAND READER HOT/AT
--- DISCONTINUED. (Verified 7/95) RETAINED IN DATABASE FOR REFERENCE.--- Arkenstone Hand Reader HOT/AT is a portable, hand-held optical character recognition device which converts printed material into computer text files that can be read by a blind or visually impaired person using a voice, large print, or braille output device. The Hand Reader is comprised of three components: 1) TrueScan, a scanner recognition card manufactured by Calera Recognition Systems; 2) a Mitsubishi Model MH216CG Handheld Scanner with optional sheet feeder; and 3) the Arkenstone Reader II Software, and also includes cable so that so that the system can be hooked up to a personal computer. The Hand Reader can be used with any PC/AT or 100% compatible 286, 386, or 486 computer. The Arkenstone Ready To Read, RTR/50 or RTR/100 (see separate entries), personal computers can be used in place of an IBM PC compatible. The hand scanner weighs 2.2 pounds (1.0 kg) and measures 10.2"x3.4"x3.0"(262x86x67 mm). When combined with the RTR/50 or RTR/100 computer, the Hand Reader becomes a complete reading machine. The TrueScan card plugs into the computer allowing it to convert scanned images of printed materials into an ASCII text file. Using a screen reader and a speech synthesizer, which must be purchased separately, the user is provided with voice output. When used with a computer screen magnification system, large print display can be provided. Braille output devices can also be used to read the screen or print copies of the text. Typewritten, typeset, laser printed, and dot matrix printed materials with monospace or proportional fonts sized from 6 to 28 points can be read. This includes books, magazines, computer printouts, and tabular information such as that which appears on bank statements or telephone bills. The Arkenstone Hand Reader HOT/AT scans materials at a rate of 120 characters per second. It includes an automatic page orientation feature which lets the user know when materials have been placed on the scanner in an upside-down or sideways position and then goes ahead and scans the material. Components can be purchased separately. A 30-day money back guarantee and a one year warranty on parts and workmanship are standard.
try looking in to the Planon Systems RC805 DocuPen Full Page Color Scanner
there are a few moddles. I do not know if it is compatible, but I know that is will scann hand wrighting.
As far as I know, no talking software can handle handwriting. I mean, a sighted person can see it but a screenreader can't pick it up.
you can pretty much use any scanner with programs like Kurzweil or Open book so all you need is one of those small portable scanners . I do believe freedom scientific and maybe others make stand alone scanners/readers as well. There is also an alternative to The KNFB reader called text scout thats in beta right now so i don't think final pricing has been announced yet. you can check it out at www.textscout.eu and try out the demo on your phone if you have a nokia with a decent camera. There list of officially supported phones is also more than KNFB reader supports.
I'm looking for something that's actually affordable. These all sound great, and I'll probably get one in the future, but we're talking hundreds, sometimes thousands, of dollars. I actually have two pretty good normal-sized scanners for XP. Out of curiosity, I hunted the net for that Mitsubishi MH216CG Scanner and couldn't find it anywhere, not even ebay or amazon, which is a little odd, since both carry old equipment. But I did find several sites with drivers for it. I didn't even try looking for the Truescan recognition card. I'm not sure if the scanner needs it or if that was just necessary for the reader. I tried dos handheld scanner but kept getting bar code ones. I should check the Recognita directory and see which scanners it supports and then look for one of those or see what new software/drivers exist for Enhanced DR-DOS. Maybe, the ocr software available for it will be accessible and will solve all my problems. I might even be able to use one of my XP scanners. Still, I want a nice handheld so I can take it with me when I go out.
Yes! Found something awesome!
http://us.geocities.com/tim_hobbs.geo/scan.htm
I bet the price has gone down alot now. This sounds exactly like what I want and they even mentioned the blind here, so you know it's accessible!