Spanish Translators Needed!

Spanish Translators Needed!

The Braille Monitor
April
2005
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Hearing Enhancement and Spanish Translation Available at National Convention
Spanish Translators Needed!

by D. Curtis Willoughby
From the Editor:
Curtis Willoughby is a member of the NFB's Research and Development Committee
and head of our Ham Radio Interest Group. Here is his announcement:
Again this year at national convention we will offer special
arrangements for severely hearing impaired people attending convention sessions
and the banquet. This will consist of transmission of the public address system
signal over a special short-range radio transmitter for the severely hearing
impaired. Also Spanish language translation of convention proceedings in general
sessions and the banquet will be provided using a similar arrangement. The special
receivers required for these services will also be provided.

In cooperation with several state affiliates (Colorado, Louisiana, Ohio, Utah,
and Virginia), the NFB will provide receivers for these special transmissions
to those needing them. The receiver-lending will be managed by the Ham Radio
Group and will be operated from a table just outside the meeting room. A deposit
of $25, cash only, will be required of anyone wishing to check out one of the
Federation's receivers. The deposit will be returned if the receiver is checked
in at the checkout table in good condition by adjournment or within thirty minutes
after adjournment of the last convention session. Batteries for the receiver
will be provided. Anyone checking out a Federation receiver will be given, upon
request, a miniature earbud type earphone to use with the receiver.

Along with explaining what will be available, it is important that we explain
what will not be available. The miniature earbud loudspeaker type earphone will
be the only kind offered. The receiver requires a 1/8-inch earphone plug, in
case you want to use your own earphone(s), neck loop, adapter cable, etc. You
are advised to arrange for such things well ahead of the convention. Other than
the earphone jack on the receiver, no means of connection to a hearing aid will
be available from the checkout table. The receiver does not have a built-in
loudspeaker. Though earphones and even neck loops are sometimes available in
the exhibit room, you cannot be certain of getting one there.

Many severely hearing impaired people already use radio systems that employ
FM radio signals to carry the voice from a transmitter held by the person speaking,
to a receiver in the hearing aid. Many such hearing-aid systems can be tuned
to receive the Federation's special transmitters. In this case the hearing-impaired
person may simply tune his or her own receiver to receive the Federation's transmitter
and will not need to check out a Federation receiver.

Some audiologists and rehabilitation agencies are now buying digital and other
FM hearing aids that cannot be tuned to the Federation's frequency. If you have
one of these or if you have any other type of hearing aid, you should obtain
from your audiologist an adapter cable to connect your hearing aid to a monaural
1/8-inch earphone jack. This will allow you to plug the cable from your hearing
aid directly into a receiver you check out from our table. This will allow you
to hear as well as anyone else using one of our receivers.

The transmitter for the hearing-impaired will be connected to the public address
system so that the signals from the head table and the aisle microphones will
be transmitted on channel 36 (74.775 MHz narrow band FM). (People must not operate
their personal transmitters on channel 36 or on channel 38, because that would
interfere with the reception by others.) This means that folks wishing to use
their own receivers (rather than checking out one of the Federation's receivers)
need to have their personal receivers arranged so that they can switch between
their personal channels and channel 36. Some people may need to purchase replacement
or additional receivers. Caution your audiologist that there is more than one
channel 36, and he or she must also verify that the frequency matches our frequency.

This announcement is published now to allow as much time as possible for those
interested to make the necessary arrangements before convention. It contains
this amount of detail so that any audiologist who works with this type of equipment
should be able to know by reading this article exactly what capabilities a person's
FM hearing system must have to work with the Federation's system at convention.

Even if you do not use an FM hearing aid, you may be able to purchase a neck
loop or an adapter cable to couple the signal from a Federation receiver directly
to your hearing aid. Your audiologist should also be able to help you with this.

The service for Spanish speakers will be similar, except that a live Spanish
translator will speak over a separate transmitter on channel 38 (75.275 MHz
narrow band FM). We do not expect people to bring their own receivers for the
Spanish, unless they are also hearing impaired and use an FM hearing aid system.

Norm Gardner of Utah will be coordinating the Spanish language interpreters,
and he would appreciate hearing from anyone willing to volunteer to interpret.
Please call him prior to convention at (801) 224-6969, or send him email at
<[email protected]>.
Finally, if other state affiliates or chapters are interested
in purchasing this type of equipment for use in state and local meetings, they
are encouraged to purchase equipment that is compatible with that which we are
using and allow it to be used in the pool of equipment that the Ham Radio Group
administers at national convention. I, Curtis Willoughby, would like to help
you choose equipment that is compatible with that which the NFB is using. I
may also be able to help you get the good prices the NFB has been getting. You
may contact me at (303) 424-7373 or <[email protected]>.

The Federation is pleased to offer these services to our severely hearing impaired
colleagues and to our Spanish speaking colleagues, and we hope and believe that
it will again significantly improve their convention experience.

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