Environmental Control Units Improving People's
Independence
By John M. Williams
Ben Johnson is 70. He is retired and lives alone in Los
Angeles. Bill Macy, 68, lives with his wife, Edna, of 45 years in New York
City. Mildred Pierson, 58, lives alone in Chicago.
Though Johnson, Macy and Pierson have never met one
another, they have many things in common. All three have an independent streak.
All three want universal health coverage. And all have a disability and use
environmental controls to enrich their lives. 
“I have chronic back pain, a slight vision loss and
arthritis in both hands, and so I can't stoop down, and I can't type,”
said Johnson, a retired investor and entrepreneur.
Pierson is legally blind and has partial paralysis on her
left side, mainly her hand. She writes short stories, essays and other material
under a pseudonym.
Macy, who uses a wheelchair, has slightly impaired hearing
and vision, and he has a weak voice. He uses a voice amplifier when speaking.
He does not speak much about his life, except to say that he was a soldier of
fortune whose disabilities are “the result of too many gun battles on too
many continents in too many countries.”
The three have another common character trait: As their
senses and physical abilities declined, they accessed the Internet to learn
about products that might provide help. They were not ashamed to recognize they
needed help.
They all came across information about an environmental
control unit. An ECU is a piece of assistive technology that allows those who
are physically disabled to control their living environment. A person
with a physical disability cannot always pick up the telephone receiver, flick
on the light switch or press the keys on a remote-control device, but an
environmental control unit is the technological bridge that can assist them to
accomplish those tasks. Each ECU has its own features, but a typical one
allows a person who is physically disabled to turn on (or off) lights and small
appliances; answer and make telephone calls; control the TV, stereo and DVD
player; open doors; manipulate heating and air-conditioning controls; prepare
baths and meals; read; and use a computer.
“I wanted a way to control all the appliances in my
house and open and close the doors,” said Macy, who bought the units off
the Internet.
Johnson learned there are two basic environmental control
units: switch and voice control.
With voice control, the user speaks commands to the ECU.
With switch control, the user activates an accessible
switch to control the ECU. This is done through menu scanning. The menu items
are presented, and the user selects the feature he desires. Some ECUs have
submenus that offer more features specific to a particular menu item. The menus
are presented either visually on a screen or through a speaker so the user can
hear the options.
The first time a user activates a switch-control ECU, the
unit scans through the available choices (such as "lights, television,
telephone ...") in menu format. When the user sees on the display screen or
hears the menu choice, the switch is activated again to cause the environmental
control unit to perform that action or in turn present another menu of choices.
Switch control is much more reliable than voice
control.The main problem with switch control is that menus are presented one at
a time, making it slower to access than the voice method.
Consumers can buy units that use both switch and
voice-control methods.
“Voice is faster than switch control,” said
Perkins, who uses voice commands to make telephone calls, turn appliances on
and off, and open her front door. “Bit by bit, I am building a smart
home.”
Johnson controls his computer and his appliance
environment using a foot pedal, which replaces his computer's keyboard.
Macy uses a switch to control his computer, from which he
controls every appliance in his house. When he enters a room and says
“Light,” the lights automatically go on, and when he utters commands
such as “Dim,” “Bright,” “Brighter,” the lighting
is adjusted accordingly. He prefers voice command over switch control because
he does not have to carry the switch control with him.
In a smart home, everything is controlled either by voice,
switch control or both. Smart-home technology, which saves energy, is becoming
more common in homes and even apartments.
Macy, who has an electrical engineering background, uses
switch and voice control. He has, however, learned that voice commands do not
always work. Citing one example, he said, “When I have the TV on and give
a command to raise the thermostat, nothing happens.” In that circumstance,
he said, he raises the thermostat manually.
The trio has spent various amounts on their units. Johnson
has spent about $1,700, Macy about $2,200 and Perkins about $3,000.
All three have developed a love for technology and say
they believe it enhances their independence and adds to their quality of life.
John M. Williams can be reached at
jwilliams@atechnews.com .
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