An adapter has been developed that helps people with hand tremors control a computer mouse. The device uses “steady cam” technology found in camcorders to filter out shaking hand movements, reports BBC Online.
“Using a computer mouse is well known for being extremely hard for people with tremors, so we’re delighted to hear that a technology has been developed to address this problem,” said Karen Walsh, from the UK National Tremor Foundation.
IBM researcher Jim Levine developed the prototype for the Assistive Mouse Adapter (AMA) after seeing his uncle, who has Parkinson’s disease, struggle with mouse control.
“My uncle had a pretty bad tremor in his early 80s. One time he tried to use the computer in my house and he simply couldn’t do it. He simply couldn’t use the mouse,” said Levine.
About three million Britons have some sort of hand tremor condition. Although people over 40 years old are more commonly affected, conditions like Essential Tremor (ET) are genetic and can hit all ages. Parkinson’s disease is the leading cause of tremors.
As the population ages, the number of elderly computer users will increase. For the first time last year, the Office of National Statistics reported that more than half of all households in Britain had a home computer. AMA could allow people who begin to suffer from tremors to continue using a computer.
AMA is an adapter box that a PC mouse plugs into. It manipulates data from the mouse before sending it to the computer’s operating system. A knob can control the degree of tremor tuned out depending on the severity of a user’s condition. In addition to steadying erratic movements of the cursor on the screen, AMA is able to recognise erroneous multiple clicking on a mouse button.
IBM said it would partner up with a small UK-based electronics firm, Montrose Secam, to produce the devices, which will cost about £70. Jim Cosgrave, one of Montrose Secam’s directors, said a prototype of the device has transformed his life.
“I’m a pilot and my tremor condition has not limited my ability to fly a plane,” he said. “But using a PC has proven almost impossible simply because everything revolves around using the mouse to accurately manipulate the tiny cursor on the screen.”