Few people realize that the telephone was developed as a result of
Alexander Graham Bell’s experiments with ways to communicate with his
deaf wife. The concept of telecommunications for the deaf may sound like
an oxymoron – but telecoms infrastructure is fundamental to the delivery
of services to the deaf or hard-of-hearing.
Prototype ‘deaf sets’ for the hard of hearing were developed in the
1920s. Later initiatives have included textphones allowing deaf users to
communicate with voice users and of course SMS and IRC (Internet Relay
Chat) which although not developed specifically for the deaf have proven
invaluable tools.
Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) have the potential
to give disabled people a chance to communicate with the world on the
same basis as the community at large. And while work on improving access
to these technologies is not new, the latest advancements are opening a
world of opportunities for communication.
ITU-T pioneered international work on standardization of deaf
telecommunications with V.18 (an ITU-T Recommendation on a
multi-function text telephone) back in 1990 and will further open up
ICT access for the deaf by progressing its work to promote an
all-inclusive approach to telecommunications. The organization is also
actively promoting existing standards.
As part of this activity, 2003 has seen two ITU-T led workshops on
‘Accessibility’ where attendees were briefed on the current status of
standardization for accessibility enabled by multimedia communication as
well as on societal support and on practical results from the
implementation of all-inclusive communications facilities. Speakers
included representatives from standards-making bodies as well as the
user community. The first workshop was held in the US in July and the
second was one held during ITU Telecom 2003 World Forum in Geneva.
On the first Workshop, Claude Stout, Executive Director of TDI - a
consumer advocacy group organized and run by deaf people: "The ITU-T
workshop on accessibility was one of the most popular activities at the
15th Biennial International Conference of Telecommunications for the
Deaf, Inc. this July in Las Vegas, Nevada. The panelists gave
interesting, thought-provoking research and information about making
telecommunications products and services compatible throughout the world
between individuals who are deaf and hard of hearing, and the rest of
society. These possibilities will further bridge cultural, language, and
technology differences in various countries throughout the world. This
brings us closer to experiencing an accessible ‘global village’ where
everything ‘local is global’."
The first example of a mass-produced telecommunication device for the
deaf was developed by Robert Weitbrecht, a deaf physicist, in 1964. A
radio ham he was familiar with the way teleprinters communicate over the
air, and realized that these machines could be used by deaf people to
‘talk’ over the phone. He developed and patented a modem which, when
coupled to a teleprinter, allowed them to do just that. Mechanical
printers have been largely replaced by portable devices using LED or LCD
displays. By the early eighties 180,000 were in use, and they continue
to be used today.
But, according to Beat Kleeb, presenter at the second workshop and
president Procom Foundation - organization in charge of Relay Services
in Switzerland: "Text telephones are getting to the end of their life
cycle. We have long sought for a reliable new communication system based
on new technology. Finally, we chose a distance real-time audiovisual
and text communication system called teleSIP that has been tuned for the
needs of our community in particular for distance interpreting with sign
language and with text. This will cover the requirements for the deaf,
for deafened and hard of hearing people within a single system."
However according to Andrea Saks, international telecommunications
specialist for the deaf, textphones are far from being dead technology:
"Textphones don’t seem to want to die." Saks argues that the logistics
involved in getting every deaf or hard-of hearing person to switch over
to one type of – new - device are prohibitive. Interoperability between
new and old devices she says is key. It’s a sentiment that reflects
ITU-T’s general philosophy and certainly its work in the accessibility
arena. Saks communicates regularly with a textphone and reminds us that
if new communications methods do not support old terminals, then
thousands of users will find themselves with obsolete technology. Ronald
Hermann, President of the Swiss Federation of the Deaf, points out that
while the ‘regular’ telephone remains in every home and office there is
still a place for textphones.
Nelly Meraud, an ITU employee attending at the Geneva workshop and an
advocate of new generation technologies, says: "Communication technology
has greatly advanced in the last few years, which is very beneficial for
us deaf people. SMS, e-mail, IRC tools like MSN Messenger enable deaf
people to cope alone, without the help of a hearing person. They have
been developed not to enhance the audio aspect but to better communicate
using visual tools, which is important."
Meraud says that the workshop introduced a number of concepts that
she was not aware of and that she feels are important for the deaf
community. The Wireless Information Services for Deaf People On the Move
(WISDOM) project is developing mobile videophones, and is funded by the
European Commission Directorate. The development work concentrates on a
new device that will allow mobile communication in sign language, a
video server so that deaf people can download clips onto their mobile
phones and a relay interpreter service to allow deaf people to
communicate with hearing people wherever they are.
Total Conversation is an ITU-T defined concept that encompasses voice
telephony, video telephony and text telephony. The idea is that it gives
everyone the chance to communicate with one another regardless of
whether they are hearing, hearing impaired or deaf. Efforts have been
made to incorporate these principles into the development of many ITU-T
standards (Recommendations). Text over IP (ToIP) (developed in ITU-T
Study Group 16) is an example of these efforts. Its objectives are to
bridge two PSTN networks via IP, allowing for simultaneous
character-by-character text communication – this would enable textphones
to communicate over an IP network. The ultimate goal of ‘Total
Conversation’ is to allow any device to support the transmission of
video and or text signals. This could include a PC or PDA user connected
to an IP network chatting with the user of a textphone.
The good news is that Total Conversation principles are already being
incorporated into products. A number were demonstrated at both ITU
workshops.
ITU will continue to engage and educate through its standardization
work and further workshops, manufacturers, network and service providers
and governments on the need for standardization to ensure equitable
access to telecommunication through new and old technologies. This need
for standardization is underlined by Ronald Hermann: "We think that
standardization has a very significant role to play in the development
of telecommunication tools for us all. It is the only way to ensure
affordability, accessibility, compatibility, portability and
availability." |