Bank opens Branch for Deaf/HoH

The largest bank in the U.S. has opened its first branch designed to serve the Deaf and hard of hearing community. The JPMorgan Chase branch is located in Washington, DC near Gallaudet University and offers features like on-demand video, remote interpreting, T-loop Bluetooth technology, and digital screens with captions. Six of the branch’s nine employees are ASL fluent and three identify as deaf or hard of hearing. JPMorgan Chase is also putting a quarter of a million dollars to Gallaudet University’s Innovation and Entrepreneurship Institute. Read more about the new branch from WAMU radio here.

Hearing-assistance technology options in Movie Theaters

ADA law requires U.S. theaters to make programs and services accessible to those who require hearing assistance.  Here are some of the devices you'll find at theaters that can improve the movie-going experience:

Assistive Listening Devices (ADLs)
When a theater has an ALD available, that means the moviegoer will be given a headset that will work with the person's hearing aids. Some hearing aids come with a T-switch, which means a neck loop can be plugged directly into the hearing aid. ADLs require adjustments to the volume of both the hearing aid and the hearing assistance device provided by the theater.  The user often leaves identification at the ticket office such as a driver's license when they pick up the device which is returned when the device is returned.

Subtitle Glasses 
Sony has developed glasses that work like 3D glasses. They project subtitles in the glasses that only the wearer can see. The glasses fit over regular glasses and the size of the letters is adjustable.

Closed Captioning
In this case, the spoken words are projected on the screen along with the film or onto the seat in front of the viewer.

Smart Phones Apps
There are apps that will amplify surrounding sounds.

If you are going to use a theater's hearing assisted technology, it is recommended you arrive early. You may be asked to leave your driver's license, but there should never be a charge.

Growth of viral video leaves deaf in the dark

Viral video are leaving millions of deaf and hearing-impaired people out of the loop. Read the story here.

In the Loop

Hearing loops are becoming more popular, but is the technology being used? An article addressing the topic in an Arizona paper here.

Museum adds Loop

Washington's Bellevue Arts Museum is adding a hearing loop to its guest services and auditorium. The device sends a signal from a microphone directly to a compatible hearing aid. It's one of more than a dozens places in the Seattle-area with the service. There is more information here.

The Loop System

Popular in Western Europe, the loop hearing system is now making inroads in the U.S. The technology allows hearing aid users to get signals sent right to their device. When you see a blue sign of a human ear, that's a cue to hearing aid users that they can press a tiny button to listen. A thin copper wire that radiates electromagnetic signals in a room. A tiny receiver called a telecoil built into most hearing aids and cochlear implants picks up the signal. This might be music, sound from a movie, or a speaker. The advantage of a loop system isn't volume but the minimization of environmental sounds. You'll find the loop system at a growing number of stadiums including Yankee Stadium and Citi Field in New York, Target Field in Minneapolis, and TD Ameritrade Park (the home field of the College World Series) in Omaha, Nebraska.

Stadium Gets Loop System

The home field of the College World Series now is equipped with a loop system. The TD Ameritrade Park in Omaha, Nebraska offers the system at the ticket office and in some seating sections. The technology allows hearing aid users to get signals from a microphone sent right to their device. Read more about the induction-loop hearing system here. The system was installed for about $20,000 when the stadium was built, about a year ago.

UK Bank Investigation

The London Times says UK banks could face huge penalties for their treatment of deaf customers. The paper says the banks it investigated are “routinely discriminating against customers with hearing loss by failing to provide equal access to services.” Some deaf customers have to deal with “broken hearing aid loop systems, poorly trained and rude staff, a lack of understanding about how text phones work and an over-reliance on spoken answers to security questions.” There are even stories of people stranded overseas because the customer could not call the bank to resolve the problem. Action on Hearing Loss says a majority of the 152 banks it surveyed have no working hearing loop, a device which many deaf and hard-of-hearing people in the UK depend upon.

Church Install Hearing Loop

WVIR-TV in Charlottesville, Virginia reports on a Catholic Church using a hearing loop to help members during services. The video is posted below on DeafNewsToday.com (no captioning).

The Loop

The New York Times takes a look at the hearing loop in a Health section article here.

Deaf Town Hall Meeting

A Deaf Town Hall will take place in Rochester, New York this afternoon, starting at 4pm. The Center for Disability Rights and Regional Center for Independent Living is co-sponsoring the event along with the Genesee Valley Region Registry of Interpreters for the Deaf and the New York State Commission on Quality of Care and Advocacy for Persons with Disabilities. The gathering will provide information for a report due to state lawmakers by January on the conditions of services for the deaf and hard of hearing in New York. The report is being put together by the Deaf Interagency Council on Services for Individuals who are Deaf, Deaf/Blind or Hard-of-Hearing. There will be sign language interpreters on hand, a hearing assistance loop and live captioning through Communication Access Realtime Translation.

Prof Honored

The American Academy of Audiology is honoring a Hope College psychology professor for his work on on the new hearing-loop technology which broadcasts public-address systems, television and telephone sounds directly to hearing aids. David Myers received the President’s Award during the association’s national AudiologyNOW! Annual convention in Chicago this month. You can read more about what Myers is doing at his site here. His book A Quiet World tells of his own struggles with hearing loss.

Hearing Loop

When you see a blue sign of a human ear, that's a cue to hearing aid users that they can flip a switch hear specially broadcast announcements sent directly to their device. NPR talks with a man who has led an effort to get these hearing loops installed everywhere. Read about it here.

Hearing the TV without Blasting Others Out of the Room

People who use hearing aids no longer need the TV loud. What’s called an “induction loop system” allows users tie into the audio-out of a TV or stereo system. A small transmitter plugs into the jack and a thin wire is run in a circle around the room. The technology is in wide use in Europe. Wireless Hearing Solutions offers a typical set-up that runs $185.

From Mic to Hearing Aid

A growing number of concert halls and movie theaters are adding what's called an induction loop system. These facilities broadcast directly from the output of instruments and microphones to hearing aids equipped to receive them. Among the places you can tap into the signals are the DeVos Performance Hall in Grand Rapids, Michigan and the Rialto Cinemas Lakeside in Santa Rosa, California.