DOWN TO BUSINESS: A Helping Hand
 
A new workstation lets physically challenged people take their
place in the high-tech workplace
 
Microbytes Daily News Service
Copyright (c) 1989, McGraw-Hill, Inc.
When small computers first came on the market 15 years ago, they
looked like a real boon for handicapped people. Combine machine
intelligence, voice control, and a robotic arm, and you've got a
way to give disabled people enhanced independence and a greater
opportunity to be productive. Handicapped people weren't the only
expected beneficiaries of such a system, either. Faced with
skilled-labor shortages and federal legislation requiring equal
opportunity for the physically challenged, businesses all over
the country have been looking for ways to put physically disabled
people in front of computers.
 
But the reality has been a long time coming. The problem is that
most of the solutions, including speech-recognition systems and
robotic arms, are standalone peripherals. You have to do your own
system integration, and most businesses don't have the time or
the personnel for that. What the industry needed was a
prepackaged, integrated solution that would work well, satisfy
requirements, and meet the needs of both the employee and the
business.
 
The fact that handicapped people have been bypassed has become a
significant problem for many businesses. There are two reasons
for this. First, in many areas of significant technological
growth, there is also an equally significant labor shortage.
Second, the federal government has mandated that facilities must
be provided to give handicapped employees a fair chance at doing
work.
 
Employing the handicapped is not much of a problem in some
businesses. But in others, hiring people with certain handicaps
presents a serious problem. To be productive using computers, for
example, you have to be able to type. The problem is that many
physically handicapped people have limited use of their hands and
arms; otherwise, they are perfectly capable of performing work.
They just need a way to perform it.
 
Now Zenith Data Systems, through its Heath subsidiary, and Prab
Robotics, through its Prab Command subsidiary, have delivered a
workable solution at a reasonable price. It allows the user to
perform any required function on a personal computer through the
use of voice commands alone.
 
Included in the Prab Voice Command I package are a Zenith Z-286
LP computer and Zenith's FTM flat-tension monitor, a
voice-control keyboard designed by Prab, a robotic arm (also
designed by Prab), a Hewlett-Packard Laser-Jet II printer, a
telephone system, and a specially designed work area. It retails
for $49,500.
 
The robotic arm looks like an industrial robot, but it is
specifically designed for this application and incorporates a
number of safety features to ensure that a user would never be
hurt by it. The arm can move objects near the desk and handle
paper from the printer. It can even remove a soda from a
refrigerator.
 
The voice command system is the star of the workstation, though.
I sat next to Jan Ziff of the British Broadcasting Corporation in
the Alexandria, Virginia, Heath/Zenith store and watched while
she issued orders to the computer in her best BBC broadcaster's
voice. A square on the screen followed her commands. "Up, down,
left, right, stop," she said. The square on the screen went up,
down, left, right, and stopped. "Exit," she said. A menu returned
to the screen.
 
A few minutes later, I gave the same commands in a mixture of
Russian and Spanish, both tinged with a faint hint of Virginia.
The square on the screen followed my every order. Then Jan's
orders turned to controlling applications on the screen, and
finally running the robotic arm. The computer performed without a
hitch.
 
 
The Sum of Its Parts
The Heath/Zenith-Prab collaboration succeeds where other systems
have failed because of the attention that both companies pay to
details when it comes to integration. It's clear from the results
that a considerable amount of testing has gone into the design
and assembly of this product. In short, it works well, even for
users unfamiliar with it, such as Jan Ziff and me. We were able
to train it to our voices and start work in minutes.
 
It helps that the components that make up the workstation are
carefully crafted to work together. The Zenith Z-286 LP is a
fast, 80286-based IBM PC AT-compatible computer. It supports
Zenith's superb FTM monitor, an important asset for users who
won't be able to adjust the tilt to avoid glare, since the FTM
seems impervious to glare. Installed in the computer is Prab's
telephone controller, and Prab's keyboard is attached.
 
The keyboard contains the voice-recognition system, which
processes the commands before they ever get to the computer. The
keyboard sends what appears to the computer to be a series of
keystrokes. This is important because it means that modifications
to the computer were not required to support voice recognition.
Instead, another computer in the keyboard handles the voice. The
Prab keyboard can recognize about 160 words. Those words can
stand for individual keystrokes or for macros that can consist of
hundreds of keystrokes.
 
The macro capability means that complex commands can be developed
using only a word or two. According to Prab CEO Walter Weisel,
users can run Lotus 1-2-3 faster with voice commands than with a
keyboard. Weisel said that workers at Prab are able to run
AutoCAD and make complex drawings using a collection of only 130
words.
 
Training the voice-recognition system takes only minutes. The
training program takes you through the basics of the keyboard,
asking you to pronounce each word displayed. After you've done
this two or three times, the software decides that you are
trained and stores the vocabulary on the hard disk drive. From
that point on, you can operate the computer entirely by voice.
 
 
Independence
There's more to independence than running a computer, whether
you're in an office or at home. For this reason, the package
includes a phone management system that lets the user make or
receive calls. Like the rest of the workstation, it operates
under voice control.
 
I watched as Heath Area Manager Bob O'Neill spoke the
instructions to make a phone call. "Special down," he said into
his headset. The menu bar on the main menu moved down one place.
"Down," he said again, and "return." The menu bar moved down
another place, and then the Telephone Management choice was
selected. "Return," he said again. The computer asked what number
was to be dialed. "Digit one six one six three eight three four
four zero zero, return," O'Neill said. The computer dialed the
number for Prab Command.
 
In addition to allowing voice communications, the telephone
control system allows the computer to have modem communications.
The operator can communicate with a mainframe to perform file
transfers with other computers. According to Weisel, many users
have taken advantage of this capability to trade voice-control
macros and robotic-arm routines.
 
The workstation also contains an environmental controller that
lets the operator control up to 250 X-10 devices. This gives
users the capability to control lighting, appliances, and other
electronic equipment. As a result, an assistant is much less
necessary.
 
 
Modularity
The Heath/Zenith-Prab workstation is designed to be installed in
the workplace in modules. A basic version, called the Voice
Command II ($21,900), is available that has everything except the
robotic arm, the laser printer, and the furniture. These items
can be added later.
 
The furniture is an integral part of the design. It is built to
exacting specifications so that every installation is the same.
This is important, because users have indicated that they want to
trade programming routines for the arm, and for this to work,
everything needs to be in the same place. The workstation is
mounted in a cubicle that is designed for wheelchair access. The
desk height can be changed to meet the user's needs, and
additional items, including refrigerators and microwave ovens,
can be added.
 
 
Good Business
For the first time, a business no longer needs to be concerned
with how it will make provisions for the requirements of a
physically challenged employee. The Voice Command workstations
enable such an employee to have the same capabilities and
productivity as any other employee.
 
More important, these workstations do not require a massive
infusion of capital costs or staff time to implement. They are
provided off the shelf in a standard configuration. A business
need only purchase the product. This finally places computing for
the physically challenged employee within the means of most
businesses.
 
Heath/Zenith eases the transition by providing both installation
and training, which will include orienting the employee to the
use of the equipment and training the workstation on the voice of
the employee. Zenith has added to this package by providing
reasonably priced leasing, bringing the workstation into a cost
range that individuals can afford.
 
This product is clearly in the right place at the right time. The
shortage of skilled employees has become critical. The government
has mandated provisions for the handicapped. Heath/Zenith and
Prab Command have provided the best answer so far.
 
There is, of course, one other reason. This is the best chance
we've had for those we have left behind to be allowed to catch
up.
 
 
Items Discussed
 
Prab Voice Command I: $49,500
Heath/Zenith
Prab Command
5140 Sprinkle Rd.
Kalamazoo, MI 49002
(616) 383-4400
 
 
Voice Command II: $21,900
Heath/Zenith
P.O. Box 377
St. Joseph, MI 49085
(616) 982-3341
 
 
                              --- Wayne Rash Jr.
 
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