Adaptive software for head-operated computer controls.
Head-operated computer controls provide an alternative means of computer access for people with disabilities who are unable to use a standard mouse. However, a person's disability may limit his or her neck movements as well as upper extremity movements. Software was developed which automatically adjusts the interface sensitivity to the needs of a particular user. This adaptive software was evaluated in two stages. First, 16 novice head-control users with spinal-cord injury or multiple sclerosis used head controls with and without the adaptive software. The adaptive software was associated with increased speed in standardized icon selection exercises (p < 0.05). A small increase in accuracy was also observed. In addition, five current head-control users evaluated the software in a real-world setting. One of these five subjects perceived an improvement in comparison to his current head-control system.
LoPresti
Edmund F
EF
University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15260, USA. edlopresti@acm.org
Brienza
David M
DM
D000203:Activities of Daily Living; D003143:Communication Devices for People with Disabilities; D016287:Computer Peripherals; D005246:Feedback; D005260:Female; D019416:Head Movements; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009103:Multiple Sclerosis / Q000534:rehabilitation*; D017060:Patient Satisfaction; D016059:Range of Motion, Articular; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D012984:Software; D012986:Software Validation; D013119:Spinal Cord Injuries / Q000534:rehabilitation*; D014584:User-Computer Interface