University of Washington creates a computer mouse driven by sound

Say "ahh" and the cursor zips toward the northeast corner of the computer screen. "Ooo" sends it shooting straight south. Want it to head southeast? Say "ohh." To make the cursor do a circle or figure 8, let vowel sounds bleed into one another, like eee into ahh into aww and so on. You can make it hurry or slow by regulating the volume of your voice. To open a link, make a soft clicking sound.

So goes the University of Washington’s "Vocal Joystick" software, which uses sounds to help people with disabilities use their computers.

The vocal joystick: http://www.vocaljoystick.org

AIM research: http://depts.washington.edu/aimgroup

By Richard Seven

Seattle Times staff reporter

Full Story: http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2008231288_btjoystick06.html