Pulse Data Debuts myReader(TM), a Revolutionary Reading Device for People with Age-related Macular Degeneration and Other Degenerative Eye Diseases Concord, CA (November 16, 2004) - Pulse Data HumanWare today announced the introduction of a new low vision auto-reading device called, myReader(TM)(www.myreader.com).

The first significant breakthrough in adaptive reading technology in over 30 years since the Rand Corporation demonstrated its video magnifier prototype in 1968, myReader is a compact, transportable device that turns the difficult and frustrating task of reading into an easy and enjoyable one for millions of people with impaired vision. myReader was developed to overcome the serious limitations of video magnifier technology and provide people who are visually impaired a comfortable and easy way to read for extended periods of time.

Using proprietary SmartSense™ technology developed by Pulse Data, myReader captures an entire 8 1/2-inch x 11 3/4-inch page and displays the text so it can be read in much the same way that fully sighted people read. Within three seconds of placing a document or page on the reading table beneath the ‘sensor,’ the enlarged text appears on the LCD monitor, rearranged like a page from a large print book.  The user then selects one of three reading modes: row, column, or word. In row mode, text appears in a single horizontal line across the screen. In column mode, text displays as a vertically formatted paragraph. In word mode, text appears one word at a time. 

When reading in the column mode, for example, the user reads from the top of the screen to the bottom, and then touches a key on the handheld control device to bring up the next page. Depending on the selected magnification size, the original document may be transformed into as many as 30 screens of enlarged text. For hands-free reading, users can select the automatic scrolling feature, which moves text automatically at the selected speed, similar to a TV teleprompter.  

myReader offers many other assistive functions, including the ability to magnify and view photographs in full color. In live video mode - a high magnification option - users can independently accomplish challenging tasks like threading a needle, reading a medicine bottle, writing checks, and composing letters to friends and family.