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Texthelp Systems and ABBYY Increase the Access to Information for People with Dyslexia or Literacy Difficulties

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Read&Write GOLD is Texthelp's literacy support software designed to assist students of all ages who require extra help with reading and writing. The software assists people with learning disabilities by reading text aloud. Through the integration of ABBYY FineReader Engine, Texthelp is able to substantially increase Read&Write GOLD’s functionality and benefits to customers. The recognition quality gives users better quality of information.

The Background:

According to http://www.dyslexiaaction.org.uk/, between 4 and 5 percent of the population in the UK have dyslexia. This means that approximately 375,000 pupils in the UK and a total of some two million people are severely affected with a condition which hinders their ability to recognize and assimilate information.

Texthelp’s Read&Write GOLD software assists users with reading, writing or composing text. The Screenshot reader allows users to read inaccessible text on webpages aloud. The software offers support functionalities frequently absent in mainstream MS Windows applications. In addition, Read&Write GOLD provides a host of study features to assist any user with research and composition. The read-back facility alone is a perfect aid for research and proofreading - even the calculator and spellchecker have speech options. Coping with homophones and similar sounding words, can be especially difficult but the software's homophone feature allows users to identify and change words that are used in the wrong context.

Read&Write GOLD’s scan and read facility ensures that books and reports are accurately scanned into MS Word, HTML or PDF formats.

The Challenge:

In order for inaccessible Web content like Flash to be processed and read aloud, OCR technology is needed to convert the images of text into text that can be processed and read aloud by Texthelp’s software. Graphics, images or pictures generally decrease the accuracy of recognition quality, putting the dyslexic user at a disadvantage again. The majority of student literature, whether books or the internet, contain graphic elements. This calls for OCR software that can recognize images as well as text without needing a lot of development.

The Solution:

Texthelp implemented ABBYY FineReader Engine, a SDK flexible enough for any type and size of application . ABBYY FineReader Engine can easily be integrated with most types of software architecture. It was important for Texthelp to find OCR software that could be implemented in their software without having to make significant development changes.

One important requirement was to be able to read text within images. PDF conversion and field-level (zonal) recognition is the reason why ABBYY FineReader Engine is the perfect solution for the accuracy problems Texthelp wished to overcome. ABBYY FineReader Engine has high quality recognition of zones, or snippets of images, containing valuable data. This data is converted through intricate algorithms and then made available to the users.

To ensure that users have the best possibility to receive correct information, accuracy is crucial. ABBYY FineReader Engine is based on ABBYY’s award-winning technology which ensures high accuracy.

“Previously we had to use zoning to distinguish between text and pictures, but with ABBYY FineReader Engine 8.1 it isn’t necessary anymore, as it is now automatically done. As the text within pictures can be very important, we needed an easy to use, but still accurate software to process this information,” said Mr. Steve Menagh, Technical Development Manager from Texthelp.

The Outcome: 

Texthelp continually upgrades and improves their award-winning Read&Write GOLD software to ensure their users have optimal literary assistance. The implementation of ABBYY FineReader Engine is another addition to improve the users’ experience.

“As Read&Write GOLD is deployed throughout the entire University public workstation network, it is accessible to all students. Reports from students have shown that, in particular, the facility of being able to scan directly into MS Word and then use Read&Write to listen to the scanned documents is very useful,” said Andrew Dykes, Assistive Technology Service from the University of Southampton.

About Texthelp Systems

Ltd Texthelp Systems Ltd is the worldwide leader of literacy software solutions provided through three core business divisions: Education, Speech Services and Publishing. Texthelp has been developing assistive technology software for the learning disabled community since 1996. The aim has always been to provide the most comprehensive cutting-edge technology available to provide inclusive education. Based in Antrim, N. Ireland and with offices in the US , Texthelp is currently experiencing a period of explosive growth. The company has a reseller network covering over 20 countries. The premier Education prod­uct is Read&Write GOLD, which is a discreet integrated solution comprised of many features designed to assist students with their reading and writing. Speech Service products include Browsealoud, which has been adopted as the service of choice in the UK and Ireland to read websites aloud for those with literacy difficulties, which includes 20% of the population in the online world. Lexiflow is Texthelp’s latest product and allows publishers to create media rich, multimedia flash presen­tations for electronic books and eAssessment.

Texthelp has been a Deloitte Technology Fast 50 Award winning company for seven years. Read&Write GOLD won the ICT Excellence Award 2007 for Best Use of Technology in Education and Training and was finalists in the BETT Awards 2008 for the best Special Educational Needs Solution. Browsealoud was highly commended in the GoldenEye T Awards 2007 for Business IT.

Contact

Elaine Emerson

Marketing Manager in the Contact section

Texthelp Systems Ltd.

Enkalon Business Centre

25 Randalstown Road

Antrim

Northern Ireland

BT41 4LJ

http://www.texthelp.com/

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