| Having limited sight, whether through a medical | | | | that makes all the difference in the usability of the |
| condition or by natural aging can create limitations for | | | | prescription reader. To ensure a lightweight, |
| personal independence, safety and privacy. A perfect | | | | reasonably priced portable design, a system-level |
| example of this is when a sight impaired person | | | | convergence of technical requirements including |
| needs to take medications. Often, these people need | | | | power consumption, processing performance, |
| to have another sighted person available to read their | | | | peripheral interfacing and technology-ecosystem was |
| prescription and dosage directions, but thanks to | | | | needed. This led En-vision's engineers to the Analog |
| Envision America's Scriptalk® Station, a new | | | | Devices Blackfin processor which satisfied En-vision's |
| automated prescription reader device, they can now | | | | need for a single processing engine that can |
| have their own personal prescription details "read" to | | | | simultaneously implement the ScripTalk Station's |
| them. A potentially life saving technology when using | | | | intuitive user interface, high-quality audio output, and |
| essential disease-maintenance drugs and dangerous | | | | accurate TTS signal processing on a single platform. |
| substances like narcotics. | | | | Envision partnered with Mistral Solutions®, a |
| Impairments such as blindness, dyslexia, or illiteracy | | | | "concept to deployment" design engineering firm to |
| prevent a significant number of patients from reading | | | | ensure that the end product was well designed and |
| prescription-medication label information. Utilizing RFID | | | | also to expand the user community by providing high |
| and text-to-speech (TTS) technologies, ScripTalk | | | | quality, multi-lingual speech processing. |
| Station leverages Analog Devices' Blackfin® | | | | With two decades in creating assistive technology, |
| processor to transform drug-label printing into audible, | | | | En-Vision delivered a straightforward, 3-button |
| spoken words. When a sight-impaired patient places a | | | | interface for users. But the simplicity of the ScripTalk |
| prescription bottle on the ScripTalk unit, a | | | | design also extends into the pharmacy where a |
| digitally-generated voice "reads" the prescription label | | | | ScripTalk base unit connects to a computer via USB |
| out loud to the patient, articulating both the drug | | | | or serial port to interface with existing |
| name and the recommended dosage. The result is | | | | Windows-compatible software. Pharmacists upload |
| that sight-impaired patients are able to manage their | | | | prescription data from standard |
| own medical concerns in a safe and private manner, | | | | pharmacy-management software to the En-Vision |
| through a technology-enabled product that is | | | | device. With a simple button press, a special |
| specifically designed to be affordable and very easy | | | | RFID-tagged label is encoded with all warnings, side |
| to use. In fact, the device is already installed in all of | | | | effects and patient personal information. At home, |
| the Veteran Administration outpatient pharmacies | | | | the sight impaired patient uses a similar device to |
| helping independent-living veterans who are unable to | | | | hear the label information. |
| read their own prescriptions. | | | | In the future, En-Vision expects to broaden user |
| True Technological Independence | | | | mobile connectivity, by incorporating Bluetooth, Wi-Fi |
| It really is the convergence of multiple technologies | | | | and other wireless functionality. |