Speech Pathology Toolkit

A series of iPhone applications designed for the use of Speech Pathologists and those who experience difficulties with speech.

Developed with two speech and language therapists, they bring together essential pieces of speech therapy equipment at an affordable price.

Easy AAF

Using advanced audio processing algorithms, and designed to aid those who suffer from developmental and acquired stammers, this app plays the user’s voice back to them with either a delay (DAF - delayed auditory feedback) or a shift in frequency (FSF – frequency shifted feedback) or a combination of both DAF and FSF. It can be used with Apple Headphones with Remote and Mic or a Bluetooth headset making use socially acceptable. Adjusting the settings is easy through the use of sliders.

Speech Amplifier

Uses your device to amplify quiet voices for people with speech difficulties, or amplify volume for professional voice users such as teachers or lecturers.

This app works best when used in conjunction with an external speaker connected through the 3.5mm jack, and users can use a lapel microphone for optimal use.

Swallow Now

Swallow Now is an app that enables people who are having difficulty with management of their saliva to receive an external prompt to swallow.

Swallow Now can be set to vibrate, emit a tone via the external speaker or emit a tone via a Bluetooth headset or headphones to maximise social acceptability (Bluetooth and vibrate use is only possible on iPhone, not iPod Touch or iPad). This can be set to take place between 20 seconds and 3 minutes.

Using Swallow Now is designed to develop a more frequent automatic swallow pattern and has the potential to reduce the need to manage this difficulty with medication.

Type2Speak

Type2Speak provides text to speech technology to people with difficulty communicating. This could be as a result of weakness of the muscles of speech (dysarthria) or difficulties with voice (dysphonia).

Users can save phrases and access them via a library function. In the library pressing the "Aa" button will automatically paste the selected phrase into the speech window on the main page. By using the "edit" function in the library, users can delete or re-order saved phrases to personalise use of the app.

Speech Pathology Toolkit

Combines the above four applications with two additional app included exclusively in the toolkit:

Sound Level Meter

Calculates the volume of the user's voice, or any other noise, using a short-term moving average and displays this to the user, allowing a SLP/T to assess the user and assist in therapy activities. The app also records measurements and displays them in a statistics screen, as well as allowing the user to record a sample for later playback for analysis.

Digital Recorder

Allows an SPL/T to record audio files and saves them chronologically by date and time. Combining them with recordings from Easy AAF and Sound Level meter, Digital Recorder then allows all of these recordings to be played back and reviewed for analysis purposes, and downloaded from the device to your computer using iTunes.