Scott McGuire, who has ALS, uses tech from Tobii Dynavox.
Scott McGuire was 29 years old in 1997 when doctors diagnosed him with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), colloquially known as Lou Gehrig’s disease. He was wheelchair-bound and on a ventilator within a few years, losing his voice entirely in 2002. A retired Pennsylvania biology teacher, McGuire, now 54, relies upon a communicative device that uses eye-tracking for navigation and control.
The communicative device McGuire uses is from Sweden-based assistive technology maker Tobii Dynavox, whose products are popular with many people like McGuire and AAC specialists in educational and clinical environments. The company has been subject of coverage for this column several times, most recently when chief executive Fredrik Ruben did an interview with me last November about Tobii’s collaboration with Apple on the then-new TD Pilot product.
McGuire uses Tobii’s I-13, which combines eye-tracking with audible speech functionality running Microsoft’s Windows 10 Pro. This integration also allows him to use a desktop computer made by Hewlett-Packard, or HP.
Tobii’s technology has revolutionized McGuire’s ability to connect with people.
“As my speech deteriorated, I was reduced to mainly communicating through my eyes, facial gestures, and an alphabet board. These methods were extremely frustrating and I learned to just deal with things that weren’t life-threatening. Most of my days were spent watching TV and movies,” he said to me of discovering Tobii’s products in a recent interview conducted over email. “One Sunday, I think early 2008, I was watching the TV show 60 Minutes and they had a story about a quadriplegic man using eye- tracking software to type on a computer. I instantly knew I had to have this. I asked my neurologist about eye-tracking software and he gave me the contact information for Tobii. Well, after wading through all the red tape from my insurance company, [which took] almost a year, I finally had my P-10 [device], and my world went from a small room and a TV to an ever-expanding universe. From my Tobii, I was able to learn several different graphic design programs and began making greeting cards for family and friends. Since those early days, the Tobii Dynavox eye-tracking computers have kept improving their accuracy and ease-of-use, which has allowed me to learn more complex media editing programs and enabled me to work more precisely.”
McGuire is able to text family and friends, post on Facebook, write email, and loads more simultaneously using Tobii Dynavox’s hardware and software, as well as third-party apps TeamViewer and TextNow. TeamViewer allows McGuire to effectively and efficiently use his computer for tasks “all day long,” he said.
When asked about the Americans with Disabilities Act’s anniversary last week, McGuire told me he’s “never known a time without its benefit” since the legislation was enacted in 1990. He feels the law has worked to society’s overall betterment, with physical world accommodations such as disabled parking spaces close to businesses and wheelchair ramps on sidewalks. “Having a wheelchair-bound great-grandmother living next to me for a few years in the late 1970s, I remember her not being able to go to church or shopping in town because of limited access,” McGuire said. “[Solving] this problem makes the Americans with Disabilities Act an amazingly freeing piece of legislation for millions over the past 32 years.”
McGuire feels the ADA, as it’s commonly known societally, has been the main instrument responsible for boosting the accessibility awareness meter in society writ large. Whenever McGuire has encountered an issue in life with gaining access to something or someplace, he explained, there’s inevitably an able-bodied stranger who “mentions the Americans with Disabilities Act,” he said.
The feelings of autonomy and independence instilled in McGuire from using technology from Tobii Dynavox has worked wonders for his mental health. He was abused by an early caregiver upon learning of his diagnosis; the advent of his device literally gave him a voice and enabled him to share his harrowing experiences. McGuire’s best friend, Maria, serves as his permanent caretaker.
As to tech’s future, McGuire believes the next frontier for the industry is what he calls “invasive” products. His description isn’t meant to be draconian: McGuire believes there will come a day, sooner than later, when technology will be implanted into human bodies. Specifically, tech surgically placed into specific regions of the brain that McGuire describes exist to “bridge the gap” between disability and desired function. In McGuire’s case, that means addressing two major problems for him: speaking and ambulation—the act of walking.
In other words, McGuire envisions himself somewhat of a Six Million Dollar Man.
“As I see it, I would have a computer chip implant that would translate my speech brain waves to a Bluetooth speaker,” he said. “I would also have a chip that would translate movement brain waves to an exoskeleton suit so I can move. I know this sounds very sci-fi, but it is very plausible and it is coming. Ask Elon Musk.”
