This programme ran from 2008-2010 at the Pervasive Media Studio. For more projects like these please visit the Studio website.

Projects 2009

Company Profile

HMC Interactive is a multimedia production company, based in Plymouth. With a passion for exhibition and education, HMC have completed projects for clients such as National Museum of Scotland, Battle Abbey Visitor Centre, the Royal Observatory and Cadbury World.

Drake Music is a national music and technology organisation. They provide disabled musicians of all ages with progression pathways into music and the cultural sector.

bibic is a national charity offering practical help to families caring for children with conditions such as autism, cerebral palsy, Down’s syndrome and specific learning difficulties such as dyslexia and dyspraxia.

Journal Authors

Kane Andrews

Cyber-therapy

by HMC Interactive, Drake Music, bibic

Visual Voice Pro (VVP) is a type of Cyber-therapy that uses mixed-media to improve the health of children with learning and physical disabilities through stimulation via sensors, light, sound and other digital media.

Multi-sensory environments provide therapeutic stimulation via touch, sight, hearing, smell and taste, but the technology is expensive and only available within specialist centres. VVP uses existing technologies in new ways to provide accessible, meaningful experiences. It was launched by Jools Holland and is now on sale at an affordable price.

Journal Entries

Journal Entries

Jools Launches Gem Of A Concept To Light Up Lives

Tue 26 May, 2009

Here's a write up of the recent official release of Visual Voice Pro as seen in the Western Morning News.

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Volume Control

Wed 22 Apr, 2009

We now have volume control that works cross platform between windows XP and vista. It took about one week to make the software vista compatible at a framework level, but it will take longer to make all the interface elements working together.  

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Things That Version 1 Menu System Should Do

Wed 15 Apr, 2009

1) Have simple copy protection by locking in to the USB microphone. (Online registration or serial number registration might be too complicated for many users) 2) The usb volume / sensitivity should be changeable in the settings somehow (This is possible on XP with an activx component I have, but it does not work in vista, and I have no clue how you would do it in vista) 3) There should be a settings screen where you select what monitor you want your games to appear on, screen 1, screen 2, mirror mode, etc etc as there will be different resolution setups.

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Background Research Into Tonal and Chromo Therapy

Tue 7 Apr, 2009

One of the main intentions of Visual Voice Pro is to benefit, aid and be used by people with learning disorders such as autism. The animated feedback given by the software provides the user with a visual stimulus that reacts to the noise and sounds created by their voice which they wouldn't get normally. This would then give the user a step up in terms of speech and language development and allow them to move onto further stages that they may not have been able to reach easily.

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Introduction to Cyber Therapy

Tue 24 Mar, 2009

As part of the Media Sandbox project, HMC Interactive will develop cyber therapy based software to help benefit children with learning disorders which could be used in specialised sensory rooms. The software would stimulate the user by giving visual feedback to sounds (such as their own voice or an instrument) in an aesthetically pleasing form which they would not normally have in everyday life.

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