Ten thousand dollars might not sound like a lot of money, but it is to an
individual, and evidently, there has been no industrial cooperation in this
endeavor.
-----Original Message-----
From: optacon-l-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:optacon-l-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On ;
Behalf Of dan.tevelde@xxxxxxxxxxx
Sent: Monday, July 20, 2020 4:05 PM
To: optacon-l@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [optacon-l] Re: suggestions for orbit research
HI Charles,
I'm so sorry to hear about your health problems. Is there someone you could
turn the project over to who might have a vested interest in continuing your
work? The dollar amount you mentioned doesn't seem like a lot of money. It's
too bad Freedom Scientific wasn't interested in continuing the work Deane
Blazie did to develop a new optacon. They decide to waste money on products
like the pacMate which have a short shelf life. an optacon is something which
could be developed, and tweaked when parts no longer are available or when
technology changes. It's a matter of persuading the right people that there is
a need for an optacon that no other device can fill.
Dan
-----Original Message-----
From: optacon-l-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx <optacon-l-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> On Behalf
Of CHARLES POND (Redacted sender "wpg67" for DMARC)
Sent: Monday, July 20, 2020 6:08 PM
To: optacon-l@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [optacon-l] Re: suggestions for orbit research
Hello Dan and list, Charles Pond still struggling to recover in Ottawa here.??
Plateaued thus far.?? The actuators on the Orbit device (they were desperate
and silly enough to have snapped up me hapless annoying compound word
"tactuator" for tactile-actuator) are essentially linear motors from what I can
gather.?? Generally for linear motors, as the spindle turns it causes a lead
screw to move up or down.?? This forms the dot.?? Looking loosely at the
numbers, we have an active surface of about say 7.5 to 8-inch * 10-inch, and 40
* 60 pins = 2,400 pins.?? this gives an implied resolution of 5 or 6 pins per
linear inch, to say nought of the space between diagnally placed pins in an x/Y
raster matrix.?? In adddition to the coarse pitch which is not good enough even
for braille let alone for an optacon, such larger pins and the driving
mechanisms in no way can ever even approach the optacon's empirically optimal
refresh rate of about 250Hz.
So there. =>
A minor (more or less static update if I am honest haha): the optacon III is
where it was about 2+ years ago just before my drastic and dreadful,
life-altering illness and hospital internment.?? Whilst in hospital, I did note
wryly and with concern that the cafeteria was close to and connected to the
morgue.
Assuning that I can recover enough to return to some limited productivity, I
would need about $10,000 to $13,000 to bring it to full fruition.?? If nought
else is done, the technology is viable as it is, and not overly expensive,,
albeit it uses up a lot of power.?? Several reconfigured display architectures
need to be tried for betterment, all of which are similar.?? I have about 7 or
8 untested techniques for reducing the power usage of the display.??
Ironically, the "tactuators"
still produce way too much force when turned down to their minimum intensity
(rather than too little), and yet if the intensity current is turned down below
this level they do not simply reduce their force to abetter vibrotactile level,
but they drop off to a quasi-random vibrating of sorts and lose their steady
sinusoidal movement.?? Like a determined but hapless fly buzzing and bouncing
in the same place against a window pane.?? At and above a certain level of
intensity the tactuators (tactile-actuators( resume their reliable but too
powerful optacon vibrotactile characteristics.?? This is actually not bad,and
it can be seen as a technical blesssing in disguise. Why??? I can fix this
drop-off problem by using a lesser circuit and optimal geometry, which means
potentially cutting the power draw of the display by perhaps 50% and improving
performance as well.?? "T'is good Monsieurs!".?? this all requires more bench
work, and some simulator work, and hence the need for Healthy and helpful hands
here abouts.?? Although a display of about
500 tactuators does not heat up significantly, the drivers do become toasty.??
My calculations were so way off I just dropped them for now (or at least in
Spring 2018); so, from my notes it looks like the display consumes something
approaching 50 Watts when on fierce, finger-fuzzing??
full throttle.?? Such a display overdrive condition as this is almost never the
use with our present optacons, certainly not for more than a few moments now
and then.
The drivers can be improved and therefore the display itself by adding clever
error checking logic which I had designed but had not yet done as of Spring
2018.?? Not difficult.?? The drivers here in Ottawa could also improve by
having some logic and error checking imposed on them from the "controllers" at
city hall.
Since it is not likely that I can return to a fully productive working life,
for better or for worse I can likely put more time into the optacon III now and
several other related projects, assuning that I do improve somewhat.?? As I
wrote above (and daily pray to the above as all of us self-righteous Christians
should do), if this is to progress to the finish line being done here, I would
need likely from at least
$10,000 to $13,000.?? For just two items for instance: I'd need a proper
waveform generator and a more suitable bench power supply.?? I no longer have
access to the labs we used and to their instrumentation, and I do have some
excellent stuff here.?? Until Spring 2018 I used either a simple function
generator for standard stuff, and my computer as a waveform generator for more
complex waveforms.?? this will not do. Fpor specialized actuators (tactuators)
work wherein the very slightest noise can be felt on a vibrotactile display,
not to mention other coefficients, one needs a really top-level and somewhat
dedicated bench power supply.?? In addition, I would need to pay for
technician's help now.?? Darling Mary here worked well of course as a skilled
and dedicated digital electronics technician (she does other things well also),
but she is now quite ill like I am.
So, that is where it is, just about as was 2+ years ago.
I trust my post is being received.?? New computer system, and fixed things up
at the ubiquitous nethernet levels.?? It is difficult now to sit up for long
periods,and to compose and write emails.
Charles
On 2020-07-20 8:22 a.m., dan.tevelde@xxxxxxxxxxx wrote:
Hi all,
I wasn't suggesting contacting Orbit Research.?? Nolan Runyan or someone else
with a technical and/or engineering background may have already done that.
I was just informing the list that Orbit Research is open to new ideas.
Orbit Research may have already had a discussion with people pursuing a new
optacon and determined that it wasn't feasible.?? I remember someone mention on
this list that they felts that the actuators Orbit uses for the graphiti
weren't adequate for a new optacon.
Dan
-----Original Message-----
From: optacon-l-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx <optacon-l-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> On Behalf
Of Laurel Jean Walden
Sent: Sunday, July 19, 2020 6:41 PM
To: optacon-l@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [optacon-l] Re: Suggestion for Orbit Research
Hi, Dan and all.
This sounds like a good idea to me. I will contact Orbit Research this week and
add my 2-cents worth regarding the prospect of a new Optacon. The more of us
who speak up, the better, even if such a consideration is put on the back
burner because of the pandemic.
Even in this age of smart phone cameras and intelligent apps, there are still
cases when I really need to see how something appears or is oriented on a page,
what my handwriting looks like, etc. My Optacon still sits on the bookcase by
the front door, ready to go to work at a moment's notice.
Best wishes and stay safe.
Laurel in South Carolina
On Jul 18, 2020, at 2:11 PM, dan.tevelde@xxxxxxxxxxx wrote:
Hi all,
Yesterday I was in the NFB exhibit hall talking with people from Orbit
Research.?? Their president mentioned that they are receptive to ideas for new
products.?? Has anyone approached them about developing a new optacon?
I hope everyone is doing well.
Thanks,
Dan
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