FACTSHEET 6 - Alerting devices and induction loops

Visual, vibrating and amplified sound alarm systems are essential for any severely deafened person, especially at home and in the workplace. If you wear a hearing aid or cochlear implant with a T-switch, you should be able to receive amplified sound from a loop installed round the room or in a particular location. You may also be able to wear a receiver that accepts sound in the form of radio waves from a transmitter or radio microphone.

Local authority social service departments should supply some of these aids if you are registered with them. Provision may vary according to where you live, but it is always worth contacting them to see what they are prepared to fund. You may like to obtain catalogues from suppliers such as Sound Advantage (RNID), Connevans Ltd. or Sarabec Ltd. (See Factsheet 1 for contact details). Some local authorities and some voluntary bodies run resource centres where it is possible to inspect equipment, and possibly try it out, before deciding to buy it.

Alerting devices

A wide selection of alerting devices can be chosen from the catalogues mentioned in the previous paragraph. These will respond by means of:
  • A flashing light, which may be a strobe light that is almost impossible to ignore.
  • A vibrating pad or attachment to an item of equipment that is normally held or worn.
  • A particularly penetrating sound which will be heard regardless of the environment and level of background noise.
Circumstances in which deafened people are likely to need a suitable alerting device include:
  • Waking up in the morning. Depending on how deeply you sleep, you may need a particularly loud alarm clock, a strobe light that will flash when the alarm goes off or a vibrating pad than can be placed under the pillow. The wake ‘n' shake device described in the catalogues provides these facilities as well as a large LCD showing the time. Remember, you are unlikely to be wearing a hearing aid in bed, so the alarm must be effective without it.
  • Someone at the door. A range of products are available that respond to somebody knocking on the door or pressing a bell push. These can react by emitting a sound sufficiently loud to be heard by somebody who is hard of hearing or causing a light to flash. They can be used on either internal or external doors.
  • Baby crying. An alarm can be purchased to alert deaf parents that a baby is crying. This can respond in any appropriate manner: a flashing light or a vibrating pad. It needs to be powerful enough to wake an adult when asleep. The same system can be used for anybody, of whatever age, who is in need of constant attention.
  • Fire alarms. A permanent worry for deafened people staying in hotels is that they will not hear the fire alarm if it goes off. At home, you can attach the fire alarm to a strobe light or vibrating pad that you can be sure will wake you, but it is most unlikely that a hotel will have the same facilities. You MUST therefore warn Reception of your deafness. They will record it in a register, and, in the very unlikely event of there being a fire, the firemen will be warned of the problem as soon as they arrive. An increasing number of hotels are including instructions in their information for guests leaflets. Make sure you read them!
  • Telephone ringing. If you have a textphone or an amplified phone that you cannot hear ring, you can have a light that will flash brightly when it rings.
Induction loops

An increasing number of halls, theatres, cinemas and places where the public has access are fitted with induction loops. Arguably, all such venues should have loops to meet the requirements of DDA.

It should be possible to tell whether a particular venue is fitted with an induction loop as a sign showing the “ear” symbol should erected at the entrance. Theatres frequently advertise that they are equipped with a loop.

There are three components of a loop system, all of which must be connected and working for it to have any effect. The loop itself is a continuous length of wire, which passes round the room attached to the walls. It can be temporarily attached to the floor on the circumference of the looped area. The user must be located inside the area defined by the loop. Both ends of the wire are attached to an amplifier, which will probably be powered from the mains through a transformer. There may also be a volume control. One or more microphones, of various types, will be attached to the amplifier.

Domestic loop systems are available from the suppliers listed previously in this Factsheet and are relatively inexpensive. They may be available from the local authority.

In large halls and theatres it is possible that the loop will only include part of the whole area, so it is important to check when booking that reservations are made for the right seats. It is also important to check with the Front of House staff that the loop is switched on. They do sometimes forget, and won’t know if you don’t tell them.

Personal loops can be placed round the neck of the user, with amplification and microphone contained in a unit that is worn, carried or placed on a convenient surface. The unit could include a receiver that accepts sound transmitted by a radio microphone on the other side of the room, which could be appropriate in a classroom or lecture situation. Nokia mobile phones can be connected to neckloops. Loops can be placed round a single chair, or contained within a cushion, if there is only one person present with a hearing loss. A short loop can be placed round a counter or service point. A wide range of specialist equipment is available for hearing aid and cochlear implant users equipped with a telecoil (T-switch) to make use of induction loops.

FM radio microphone systems available include the Connevans fmGenie and CRM-220 systems, the Williams Hearing Helper, and the Contego system marketed by RNID. Similar systems are available from other sources. See contact details in Factsheet 1.

N.B. The information in this factsheet is given in good faith but NADP cannot accept responsibility for any loss, damage or injury resulting from its use.

Updated January 2008

NADP, PO Box 50, Amersham, Bucks HP6 6XB
E-mail: enquiries@nadp.org.uk
www.nadp.org.uk


Top
Back