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Photos: Disability technology goes mainstream

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  • Companies such as The Key Connection are making special gadgets for people with vision problems. This Keys-U-See large-print keyboard sells for $34.95.

    Caption by: Bill Detwiler

  • Some assistive technologies help people with musculoskeletal problems. The DataHand is a programmable computer keyboard and mouse with a QWERTY layout and keys that adjust both vertically and horizontally. The device retails for $497.

    Caption by: Bill Detwiler

  • The orbiTouch keyless keyboard, priced at $399, allows users to type characters by sliding the domes around to create letters and numbers.

    Caption by: Bill Detwiler

  • This headband and armband lets a computer user control the computer cursor with motion and eye blinks to activate button clicks. A person with physical limitations could "point and click" without lifting a finger from the computer keyboard. This device, Stanford's BioControl Systems, are not publicly available.

    Caption by: Bill Detwiler

  • Jerry Swerdlick is an entrepreneur who helps companies assist employees with visual, physical, hearing or learning disabilities. Swerdlick, who is legally blind, inked a deal with Dell on Sept. 29, 2005, to provide assistive technology for disabled veterans through the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.

    Caption by: Bill Detwiler

  • A customized handheld device with a GPS module aims to help a person with cognitive disabilities catch a bus. Using prototype software from AgentSheets, it sends a prompt to get ready when the bus is approaching (left) and another when the bus is at the stop (right).

    Caption by: Bill Detwiler

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Specialized gadgets are being created for the more than 54 million people in the U.S. who have disabilities, and for aging baby boomers.

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Companies such as The Key Connection are making special gadgets for people with vision problems. This Keys-U-See large-print keyboard sells for $34.95.

Caption by: Bill Detwiler

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