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AFL icon and Australian of the Year Neale Daniher lost the ability to speak because of motor neurone disease (MND), but thanks to AI technology, his family and fans can hear his voice again.
Here’s how the technology works.
Neale Daniher and his family complete a lap of honour at the MCG before Monday’s Big freeze match between Melbourne (the team he used to coach) and Collingwood.Credit: Getty Images
MND is a degenerative autoimmune disease that damages nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord responsible for controlling muscles, which slowly impedes the person’s ability to move and speak.
But the eye can be resistant to the degeneration, so eye-gaze technology has been developed to help patients communicate.
Eye-gaze technology involves the user looking at a keyboard or phrases on a screen, while an infrared-sensitive camera tracks their eye as it moves. The camera uses the pupil as a centrepoint and the light reflecting off the eye to detect movement, allowing the user to spell out or select words, according to research and development company Eyegaze Inc.
Daniher, 64, has used the technology to record his words which are converted into an animated voice. He was using that technology in January when he made his acceptance speech as Australian of the Year, an award bestowed on him for his fundraising efforts to find a cure for MND.
The voice has a similar robotic cadence as that made famous by fellow MND sufferer Stephen Hawking, though the theoretical physicist used a cheek muscle to dictate to a computer once he lost the use of his hands.
But with the latest AI developments that allow for voice cloning, Daniher has been able to communicate using a voice, tone and style that sounds remarkably like he did beforehand.
AFL icon and Australian of the Year Neale Daniher lost the ability to speak because of motor neurone disease (MND), but thanks to AI technology, his family and fans can hear his voice again.
Here’s how the technology works.
Neale Daniher and his family complete a lap of honour at the MCG before Monday’s Big freeze match between Melbourne (the team he used to coach) and Collingwood.Credit: Getty Images
MND is a degenerative autoimmune disease that damages nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord responsible for controlling muscles, which slowly impedes the person’s ability to move and speak.
But the eye can be resistant to the degeneration, so eye-gaze technology has been developed to help patients communicate.
Eye-gaze technology involves the user looking at a keyboard or phrases on a screen, while an infrared-sensitive camera tracks their eye as it moves. The camera uses the pupil as a centrepoint and the light reflecting off the eye to detect movement, allowing the user to spell out or select words, according to research and development company Eyegaze Inc.
Daniher, 64, has used the technology to record his words which are converted into an animated voice. He was using that technology in January when he made his acceptance speech as Australian of the Year, an award bestowed on him for his fundraising efforts to find a cure for MND.
The voice has a similar robotic cadence as that made famous by fellow MND sufferer Stephen Hawking, though the theoretical physicist used a cheek muscle to dictate to a computer once he lost the use of his hands.
But with the latest AI developments that allow for voice cloning, Daniher has been able to communicate using a voice, tone and style that sounds remarkably like he did beforehand.
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