Microswitch for vocalization responses: comparing single- versus dual-microphone arrangements for a man with multiple disabilities

Microswitches are technical devices designed to enable persons with multiple disabilities to control environmental events, generally preferred stimuli such as music and lights, using simple/feasible responses. For example, a sound-detecting microswitch may allow a person to turn on brief periods of preferred stimulation through simple vocal responses. This study compared the accuracy of two versions of a sound-detecting microswitch, i.e., one using a throat microphone and the other both throat and airborne microphones, for a man with multiple disabilities. Analysis showed that the latter microswitch version radically reduced the false activations present with the former microswitch version. Thus, the latter version seemed to have a clear accuracy advantage over the former with important practical implications.