CSIO’s
mission for physically challenged
Chandigarh: Not far from the humdrum
of the 91st session of the Indian Science
Congress, beginning here tomorrow, scientists are quietly
engaged in using ‘technological compassion’ for the
rehabilitation of the physically challenged persons
at the Central Scientific Instruments Organization (CSIO).
It is a coincidence that while the theme of the Congress
is “Science and society in the twenty-first century:
quest for excellence,” the CSIO is already engaged in
serving the less privileged of the society.
The
CSIO Director, Dr. R. P. Bajpai, identifies the physically
challenged as ‘differently abled’ and not ‘disable’,
who from 5 per cent of the total population in the country.
However, only 10 per cent to 20 percent of them are
able to get rehabilitation aids and devices. There
are any number of reasons for this, including economic
or unavailability.
Therefore,
medical instrumentation is a favorite pursuit at the
CSIO, which has to its credit several state-of-art devices
for the rehabilitation of the physically challenged
to enable them lead a better quality of life or get
gainfully employed or contribute to the society. Delegates
to the Congress will have a lot to learn from a visit
to the CSIO, where the technological compassion project
has been taken up with a mission with active involvement
of the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment.
Dr.
Bajpai said the project was for those, who either suffered
from neuro-muscular motor disorders or those visually
and speech impaired.
For
those with very low vision, the CSIO has developed low-vision
aid and for the blind, a novel Braille-writer. An Indian
Council for Medical Research report has revealed that
around 45 million people suffer from low vision in the
country. A majority lives below the poverty line.
Low vision is an impediment with severely reduced visual
acuity and visual field that cannot be corrected surgically
nor with conventional spectacles. For such persons,
low-cost special low vision aids have now been devised,
based on light-weight plastic aspheric lens.
Similarly, the CSIO has developed low-vision reading aids
for near vision through the National Aspheric Facility
for Aspheric Fabrication and Precision Metrology.
The
CSIO has developed cost-effective methodology for high
and low volume production. The technological compassion
is ready for commercialization. The low vision reading
aids cost less than Rs 350, per pair, against Rs 3,000
of the imported devices.
Now the CSIO is developing aids for distance vision requirements
of low-vision persons.
The
real challenge, Dr. Bajpai says, has been to develop
high magnification system that is light and compact
in size. Against seven optical elements used in the
imported devices, the CSIO has developed ‘swadeshi’
prototypes with only two lenses, thereby reducing the
system weight from 32 gm to 20 gm.
This
has resulted in less fatigue and enhanced usage time.
This has dual purpose usage, it can be hand-held or
hand-free (spectacle frame-fitted) and costs around
Rs1000 against Rs. 8,000 of the imported aids.
Dr.
Bajpai proudly says that ‘science and society’ dove-tail
at the CSIO, when he talks about the ‘dual-face Braille-writer’
developed here.
Braille
is the language of the visually impaired for writing
and reading. In writing, alphabets are formed by coded
patterns of pits punched on paper with special Braille-writer.
While reading, the blind use their finger to scan these
patterns to identify alphabets. Braille writing is
done from right to left and reading is in reverse order.
The
dual-face Braille writer enables writing and reading
in one direction. Now visually impaired will not have
to remember the reverse pattern for each character for
writing.
Also
on the anvil at the CSIO is a ‘text-to-speech synthesis
system’ that will provide new ways of communication.
A visually impaired person can either type through the
key board or read a scanned or stored text file from
the computer system by converting text message into
audio message. Similarly, this system will help speech-challenged
persons in communication in voice mode through speech
interactive system.
Dr.
Bajpai says the text-to-speech technology constitute
the auditory interface for the real time translated
multi-lingual telephony, which is likely to be available
is the near future. The CSIO is also developing ‘near-natural
upper and lower limb extremity prosthesis’, under CSIR-
Net-worked project: ‘electronics for social purposes’.
The present prosthetic aids available in the country were
mostly ‘non-functional’, employed ‘low-technology’ and
were ‘body-powered’.
Therefore,
CSIO has undertaken a project on ‘intelligent prosthetic
devices’ that will function I near-natural way use sophisticated
electronics coupled to suitable actuating mechanism.
As these will be extremely powered, this will reduce
he mental burden of the users, enabling them to make
better use of their otherwise limited residual capacity.
Source: The Sunday Tribune
Date: 4th December 2004
|
