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University Experts Come Up With Device For The Deaf (from York Press)
SCIENTISTS at the University of York have helped a national hearing charity - by designing special phone boxes for dogs.
Experts from the university's department of electronics created the devices to be used during the training of dogs by Hearing Dogs For Deaf People, which has a training centre at Cliffe, near Selby.
The special phone boxes can be connected to ordinary household phones so dogs can learn to respond to the sound and alert deaf people.
The new phone boxes can delay a ring for various times, which makes the dogs' training much closer to a real-life situation, where the phone may ring at any point.
The charity's existing phone boxes were old and unreliable and caused problems in training dogs and at high-profile demonstration events such as the Crufts show.
After contacting a number of suppliers without success, staff at the charity asked the university's experts for help.
Dr David Chesmore, chairman of the electronics board of studies at the university, agreed to visit the centre and see if he could help.
"I found the whole idea intriguing," he said. "After watching a hearing dog demonstration at Cliffe and understanding how vital these boxes were to the training programme, I went back to my department and began working on the design of a replacement phone box."
Dr Chesmore designed the complete system, including writing new software and Pete Turner, chief technician for teaching and research, made the circuit boards and constructed the cases. Head of the department, Professor Andy Tyrrell, provided the funds for the work.
Dr Chesmore said: "We all found it an interesting task' but not too difficult.
" It was a useful project to undertake and for such a worthwhile charity.
"It is wonderful to know that the university has helped play a part in training more dogs for deaf people."
Angie Oldfied, the charity's northern training centre manager, said she was delighted with the new boxes.
She said: "Hearing Dogs is very grateful to Dr Chesmore and everyone at the department of electronics for donating these special phone boxes.
"They are an integral part of a hearing dog's training and allow the trainers to teach the dogs to respond to the telephone in the most realistic way, enabling the dogs to work properly and efficiently when they are placed in their deaf owners' homes."
SCIENTISTS at the University of York have helped a national hearing charity - by designing special phone boxes for dogs.
Experts from the university's department of electronics created the devices to be used during the training of dogs by Hearing Dogs For Deaf People, which has a training centre at Cliffe, near Selby.
The special phone boxes can be connected to ordinary household phones so dogs can learn to respond to the sound and alert deaf people.
The new phone boxes can delay a ring for various times, which makes the dogs' training much closer to a real-life situation, where the phone may ring at any point.
The charity's existing phone boxes were old and unreliable and caused problems in training dogs and at high-profile demonstration events such as the Crufts show.
After contacting a number of suppliers without success, staff at the charity asked the university's experts for help.
Dr David Chesmore, chairman of the electronics board of studies at the university, agreed to visit the centre and see if he could help.
"I found the whole idea intriguing," he said. "After watching a hearing dog demonstration at Cliffe and understanding how vital these boxes were to the training programme, I went back to my department and began working on the design of a replacement phone box."
Dr Chesmore designed the complete system, including writing new software and Pete Turner, chief technician for teaching and research, made the circuit boards and constructed the cases. Head of the department, Professor Andy Tyrrell, provided the funds for the work.
Dr Chesmore said: "We all found it an interesting task' but not too difficult.
" It was a useful project to undertake and for such a worthwhile charity.
"It is wonderful to know that the university has helped play a part in training more dogs for deaf people."
Angie Oldfied, the charity's northern training centre manager, said she was delighted with the new boxes.
She said: "Hearing Dogs is very grateful to Dr Chesmore and everyone at the department of electronics for donating these special phone boxes.
"They are an integral part of a hearing dog's training and allow the trainers to teach the dogs to respond to the telephone in the most realistic way, enabling the dogs to work properly and efficiently when they are placed in their deaf owners' homes."