Computers can Speak for Cerebral Palsy Patients

Cerebral Palsy, a physical impairment that affects movement - but not necessarily the ability to think.

Using knees to control a computer attached to a wheelchair, cerebral palsy sufferers are able to speak via a voice facility, text, email, play CDs, send and receive picture messages.

Demonstrating the new stechnology, a 21-year-old cerebral palsy patient said: "It's fab - having a communication aid has changed my life.

Scope, the disability charity for people with cerebral palsy, has financial backing from BT to help develop communication devices for young disabled people. The Wheeltop Project is being developed at Scope's Beaumont College in Lancaster, UK. Scope estimates that there are hundreds of thousands of people in the UK alone who have communication impairments from cerebral palsy or other conditions.