Money talks; new technology helps visually impaired hear ATM transactions. (Tech News).For most of us, going to the ATM is a breeze. But for the visually impaired, it can challenging. One company may have solved that problem. Triton has developed "talking" ATMs. You may have seen a freestanding free·stand·ing adj. Standing or operating independently of anything else: a freestanding bell tower; a freestanding maternity clinic. one at your local deli or gas station. The company has been rolling them out all across the country since late last year. But before debuting the latest versions of the 9700 series, engineers at the Long Beach, Mississippi Long Beach is a city (incorporated August 10, 1905) located in Harrison County, Mississippi, USA. It is part of the Gulfport-Biloxi, Mississippi Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 17,320. , firm got input from members of the disabled community in an effort to meet existing, as well as proposed, regulations of the Americans with Disabilities Act Americans with Disabilities Act, U.S. civil-rights law, enacted 1990, that forbids discrimination of various sorts against persons with physical or mental handicaps. (ADA Ada, city, United States Ada (ā`ə), city (1990 pop. 15,820), seat of Pontotoc co., S central Okla.; inc. 1904. It is a large cattle market and the center of a rich oil and ranch area. ). "There is a lot of discussion going on about older ATMs, and how much of a burden it would be for banks and other financial institutions to upgrade them in the near future. If we wait long enough, all of the old machines will, of course, go away and be replaced by newer machines--hopefully, equipped with voice guidance," says Curtis Chong, director of technology for the National Federation of the Blind The National Federation of the Blind (NFB) is an organization of blind people in the United States. It is the oldest and most likely largest national organization to be led by blind people. Its national headquarters are in Baltimore, Maryland. . The new ATMs feature an audio port for the visually impaired and offer the ability to perform private audio transactions using text-to-speech synthesis via headphones Head-mounted speakers. Headphones have a strap that rests on top of the head, positioning a pair of speakers over both ears. For listening to music or monitoring live performances and audio tracks, both left and right channels are required. . It also features a shorter, ADA compliant cabinet for wheelchair access, and a brighter LCD transaction screen with a wider viewing angle. For Chong, developments such as these are long overdue. "While it is difficult to predict with 100% certainty what our federal government will do or regulate, we are fairly confident that there will come a time when all new or remodeled ATMs will be required to have voice guidance in them," says Chong. "The banks want more time. The industry has had 11 years [since legislation was passed] to take care of the problem. How much longer must we wait? When will the government finally issue its regulations?" It is not clear when--or if--the government will require ATM manufacturers to retrofit ret·ro·fit v. ret·ro·fit·ted or ret·ro·fit, ret·ro·fit·ting, ret·ro·fits v.tr. 1. To provide (a jet, automobile, computer, or factory, for example) with parts, devices, or equipment not in some 325,000 older machines nationwide, but Triton is redesigning a retrofit kit that will be available midyear. |
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