1. Monitoring augmentative communication activity Rich Simpson, PhD, ATP University of Pittsburgh VA Pittsburgh Healthcare System

2. Augmentative communication n “Talking boxes” for people who cannot talk and cannot use sign language – Cerebral Palsy – Stroke – ALS

3. Evidence-Based Practice n Insurers – Was our money well spent? n Clinicians – What vocabulary is (or is not) being used? – How does configuration affect performance? n Researchers – What design choices work best? – What are the “upper bounds” on performance?

4. Current Approach n Record each keystroke in AAC device n Misses a lot: – Auditory and gestural communication – Location, topic and context – Responses from communication partners

5. Objective n Use SenseCam to capture a more detailed record of communication n Develop measures of communication that can be automatically calculated