SmartAAC is an augmentative communication system that has been designed to work both on an iPad. It provides access to language even though each page within the system only has 35 locations (arranged in a 7 x 5 grid). To provide access to an extensive vocabulary with a limited number of page cells necessarily forces up the number of pages which would normally result in greater system navigation issues. However, SmartAAC is smart! It uses a system of vocabulary rules to tell the program where to go. This has resulted in a system that is keystroke efficient, comparing very favourably to much larger systems.
SmartAAC can be accessed directly through a touch screen, via a mouse or mouse alternative, or through switching via an on-screen scan.
SmartAAC can be edited, altered, adjusted, added to, amended, extended, modified, and or simplified if you possess the Voice Symbol iPad (VSi) software. Only simple changes are possible directly on the iPad itself. Editing the program with VSi is undertaken on a PC or laptop and then loaded back to the iPad (or run directly on any PC).
Why is it smart? It is because SmartAAC uses AI (Artificial Intelligence) to move between pages. Activating a button (cell) from any overlay can do a number of things:
- Speak a word (or phrase);
- Move to another page;
- Perform a function;
- Switch function;
- Alternative text sound function;
- Hide/Show cell function;