APPLICATION:
ALERT DRIVERS TO ‘SOUNDING’ EMERGENCY VEHICLES.METHOD: CONVERT ‘SOUND’ TO ‘LIGHT’.
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A SIMPLE DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTIONA SMALL MICROPHONE AND AMPLIFIER ARE PUT IN A CAR (UNDER THE DASHBOARD, AND POWERED BY THE ‘CIGARETTE LIGHTER’). THE OUTPUT GOES TO LEDs LOCATED ON THE DRIVER’S (PERIPHERAL AREA) WINDSHIELD. THE LEDs SHOW THE PERIODICITY (AND ‘GROSS’ INTENSITY) OF EXTERNAL SOUND.
EMERGENCY ‘SOUNDING’ FROM AN AMBULANCE, POLICE/FIRE (OR ANY) CAR IS REPETITIVE IN TIME, GOING ‘ON’ AND ‘OFF’ IN ABOUT A SECOND. THIS DEVICE ALLOWS A HEARING-IMPAIRED DRIVER, OR ANY DRIVER, TO ‘DETECT’ REPETITIVE SOUND AS REPETITIVE LIGHT. NO FREQUENCY FILTERING IS USED.
THIS DEVICE FOR THE ‘HEARING-IMPAIRED’ CAN VISUALLY ALERT ANY DRIVER WHEN ANY VEHICLE IS ‘SOUNDING’ FOR EMERGENCY TRAVEL. FOR EMERGENCY TRAVEL ALERT, ‘REPETITIVE LIGHT DETECTION’ IS SIMPLER AND BETTER UNDERSTOOD THAN (SOMETIMES USED) ‘FREQUENCY FILTERING’.
THIS ‘HEARING-IMPAIRED’ ASSISTIVE-DRIVING DEVICE OPERATES WITH ONLY THE ‘BRAIN’ AND ‘EYESIGHT’ REQUIRED FOR A DRIVER’S LICENSE.
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THIS DEVICE IS AN ‘AFTERMARKET’ ITEM. IT CAN BE INSTALLED OR REMOVED IN ANY CAR IN SECONDS. IT IS SMALL, SIMPLE TO USE, & VERY CHEAP. *NOTHING* IS ATTACHED TO THE DRIVER’S BODY. NOTHING INTERFERES WITH CAR OPERATION OR DRIVING. THE DEVICE WILL BE USEFUL TO DRIVERS WITH TEMPORARY OR PERMANENT DEAFNESS, AND EVEN TO DRIVERS WITHOUT A HEARING IMPAIRMENT.
OBVIOUS ADDITIONS TO THE INVENTION: A ‘BODY-WORN’ DEVICE IS OBVIOUS. SOUND-TO-BODY VIBRATION IS OBVIOUS. DIRECTIONAL SOUND DETERMINATION IS OBVIOUS. A LED ‘BARGRAPH’ (INSTEAD OF A SINGLE LED) IS OBVIOUS. BUT THESE ADDITIONS TO THE INVENTION ADD COST AND COMPLEXITY.
MAY 18, 2007
LOUIS R. TESTARDI, 1803 SAGEWAY DRIVE, TALLAHASSEE, FLORIDA
STEPHEN TESTARDI, 5882 DRAWBRIDGE DRIVE, BOISE, IDAHO