Abilitec Amber Manuel utilisateur
From
Abilitec Limited
Getting Started
A free on-line copy of this manual
is available from
http://www.tecsol.com.au/pdfs/Amber.pdf
Contents of this Manual
Using this Manual
Before you Begin
Looking After Amber
Battery Care
What Can Amber Do?
How Does Amber Work?
Test Drive
Using this Manual
This manual is the Getting Started manual. It contains basic information and simple step-by-
step instructions to help new users become familiar with Amber
Type conventions used in this manual.
Several different typefaces are used in this manual to help you differentiate between general
information and step-by step instructions which you should perform.
General information is printed in this type
Important points are printed in bold
Comments and references are in italics
Step by step instructions are in this type
Looking After Amber
Amber requires relatively little routine care and maintenance. Like all sophisticated electronic
equipment, Amber should live in a clean, dry environment, away from direct sunlight or
heaters.
Cleaning
It is important that Amber be kept clean, especially the front and rear panels where the
infrared signals pass through. Use only a damp cloth with a little soap or detergent for
cleaning. Abrasives and solvents may damage the plastic surfaces so should not be used.
Dampness
As with other similar electronic equipment, Amber should not become wet. Be aware of this
if Amber is mounted on a wheelchair which is used outdoors.
Battery Care
Amber has an internal rechargeable battery which allows operation away from the mains
supply for a limited time. It is important that the battery is regularly charged to prevent loss of
stored information or possible damage to the battery. See the separate section on battery Care
for details on charging.
Battery Care
Amber’s battery has 2 functions:
•it provides power for temporary operation away from the mains supply
•it keeps the recordings stored.
The battery used in Amber is a sealed lead-acid type. From a full charge it will keep the
system operating for about 100 hours. The battery is automatically charged when the unit is
plugged into the mains and can be left charging indefinitely without fear of damage. The
charger is designed to replenish 12 hours normal use in about 60 minutes and will
automatically regulate the charge to that required. When Amber is operating from its internal
battery (i.e. not charging) you will be warned by a red light blinking on the front panel.
CAUTION
Don’t let the battery go completely flat as you will not only lose the stored information but
the battery may be permanently damaged. Amber will beep every 10 minutes when the
battery is getting low. This means it should be charged within two hours.
To charge Amber’s battery:
1. Plug the battery charger cable into the charger socket on the bottom left
corner of Amber’s rear panel.
2. Plug the charger into the mains and make sure that it is turned on at the
wall.
3. Charge for at least 2 hours.
Before You Begin
Before you can use Amber, you must charge the battery for at least ½ an hour.
You might like to plug in the charger now, then read through the rest of these instructions to
familiarise yourself with Amber while the battery is charging.
To charge the battery, plug the charger into a mains outlet and plug the small plug on the end
of the wire into the charging socket on Amber’s rear panel.
SELECT
LEARN
DELETEMACRO RESET
RECORD
SPEECH RECORDING CONTROLSINFRARED CONTROLS
CHARGER TEACH
MAX 15 VOLT AC
MICRO
PHONE TRANSMITTER SPEAKERS BREATHSWITCH
SENSOR
EXTERNAL
1234
SECURATRONICS LTD CHRISTCHURCH
NEW ZEALAND MODEL 128-01
LEARN
ERROR
CORRECT
AB
AMBER
PAUSE
ADJUST
REACTION
ADJUST WARNING
SEEINSTRUCTIONS
BATTERY
OFF ON
COMMAND
SINGLE MULTI
BUSY
What Can Amber Do?
Amber is a piece of equipment called an Environmental Control System. It is designed to
assist people with severe physical disabilities to interact independently with their
environment.
There are many modern electronic appliances available to entertain us or enhance our comfort.
Most require us to be able to operate switches or push buttons or turn knobs to work them. If
you cannot do that, due to a physical disability, the appliance may be useless to you.
Amber is able to overcome such barriers to provide you with a means of operating a wide
range of electrical and electronic devices - completely independently. If you can work a single
switch, puff in a tube or even just blink an eye, Amber can give you access to the world.
Here are some examples of the appliances and other systems which Amber can operate at your
command:
•Television
•Video
•Stereo
•Radio
•Telephone
•Heaters
•Lights
•Intercom system
•Door locks
•Fan
•Air-conditioning
•Open & close doors
•Open & close curtains
How Does Amber Work?
Many appliances now come with remote controls which allow you to operate them from the
convenience of your chair or bed. These remote controls send signals to the appliances they
operate, via infra-red light beams. You can think of Amber as a sophisticated version of such
a remote control.
Rather than working just one appliance, Amber is able to send signals to a number of different
appliances and other electrical equipment. In this way it becomes a universal remote control
which can operate almost anything electrical, even appliances which do not have their own
remote control.
Most remote controls have an array of tiny buttons, one for each command. Amber uses a
different approach to select the various commands available, which requires a signal from just
one switch. Amber comes with a built in puff-switch, an optional touch switch or can use any
of a wide range of specialised switches available from other manufacturers.
Most environmental controls have a display panel to tell the user which function is to be
performed on which appliance. Instead, Amber uses spoken messages to tell you what is
happening. This means you do not have to be able to see Amber in order to use it. This
unique feature makes Amber suitable even for users with poor vision or total blindness.
Amber is also portable. The rechargeable battery gives up to 100 hours use allowing Amber
to be mounted on a wheelchair, or taken from room to room.
Amber is completely customisable to a user’s particular needs. That means that the user can
choose which functions on which appliances will be available from Amber. There are few
restraints on which appliances are suitable to work with Amber, leaving you free to choose
from a wide range of commercially available equipment.
Amber is able to store up to 128 different commands. In order to make the commands easier
to access, they are arranged into 4 groups of up to 32 commands. Each group of commands is
given a Heading. Look at the Command Sheet, Appendix A in the User Manual. As you can
see, there are 4 headings for 4 different sets of equipment (Television, Video, Stereo,
Appliances). These headings are user programmable and can be whatever you wish. Under
each heading is a list of Labels, one for each command you wish to store. The Headings and
Labels are recorded into Amber using a microphone. Appendix A shows some examples.
You may find it useful to compare Amber to a filing cabinet with four drawers. The Headings
identify the contents of each drawer. Inside the drawers are a set of filing pockets, up to 32 of
them. Each pocket has a Label. Inside each pocket is a secret code which Amber can send to
an appliance on an infra-red light beam, causing the appliance to perform some function in the
same way as a remote control would.
When you activate Amber’s switch, the four Headings are played through Amber’s
loudspeaker, just like playing a tape recording. If you press the switch again, immediately
after one of the Headings has played, the list of Labels stored under that Heading will then be
played. Pressing the switch after the Label you wish to select, will instruct Amber to issue the
infra-red code for that Label, so as to activate your appliance.
Take time now for a test drive to gain a better appreciation of how Amber operates. You will
begin to discover just how versatile Amber is.
Controls And Connections
Read this section “ Controls and Connections” carefully. Spend a few minutes familiarising
yourself with the location of the various controls. Don’t try any of them out just yet, as that is
what this test drive is for. The instructions below assume that you are starting with the
Battery switched off. Note the warning about this switch under Battery Care.
Front Panel Controls
3. 4.
VOLUME SELECT
AMBER
1. 2.
1. Speaker
2. Window for infrared transmission and no-charge warning light.
3. Volume control.
4. Care-givers operating button
Back Panel Controls
SELECT
LEARN
DELETEMACRO RESET
RECORD
SPEECH RECORDING CONTROLSINFRARED CONTROLS
CHARGER TEACH
MAX 15 VOLT AC
MICRO
PHONE TRANSMITTER SPEAKERS BREATHSWITCH
SENSOR
EXTERNAL
1234
SECURATRONICS LTD CHRISTCHURCH
NEW ZEALAND MODEL 128-01
LEARN
ERROR
CORRECT
AB
AMBER
PAUSE
ADJUST
REACTION
ADJUST WARNING
SEEINSTRUCTIONS
BATTERY
OFF ON
COMMAND
SINGLE MULTI
BUSY
1. Select Selects column and command when recording
2. Learn Used to teach commands from remote controls of TVs, VCRs,
Stereos etc.
3. Macro For combining up to 10 commands into one selection. (see
Additional Features)
4. Delete Use to erase unwanted infrared codes.
5. Reset Resets learning mode if Learn LED refuses to go out while
teaching Amber infra-red commands
6. Error
Correct
Learn
}
} Indicate infrared teaching status.
}
7. Charger Battery charger socket
8. Teach Receives signals from the infra-red remote controls used for
teaching Amber.
9. Record For recording spoken menu of commands.
10. 1-4 Speech
Recording
Controls
For selecting the desired column for speech recording.
11. Busy Lights up when Amber is processing.
12. Microphone Socket for microphone
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