IBM develops mouse adapter for hand tremor sufferers

IBM today announced a new computer mouse adapter, invented by IBM researchers, that enables people who suffer from hand tremors to have completely normal use of a personal computer. IBM is licensing the mouse adapter to Montrose Secam Ltd, a small British electronics company, which will manufacture and sell the Assistive Mouse Adapter for under $100 (U.S.). 

According to the International Essential Tremor Foundation (IETF), nearly 10 million people in the United States alone are affected by Essential Tremor, the most common form of hand tremors. The involuntary movements of the hand when using a computer mouse make it extremely difficult to operate a PC. Simple tasks like opening an email or pressing a web button are made almost impossible because of the erratic movements of the cursor on the screen. 

The new mouse adapter could change all that. It works by filtering out the shaking movements of the hand — in a similar way to how the image stabilizing systems of some camera lenses work. The device, which works with any PC and operating system, can benefit users in homes, offices as well as in public places like libraries and universities. No additional software is required; the adapter is simply plugged in between the computer and the mouse and can be switched on or off, and adjusted depending on the tremor severity. It can also be set to filter out unintended multiple clicking on the mouse caused by a shaking finger. 

By bringing the mouse adapter to market, Montrose Secam hopes to give millions of sufferers around the world uninterrupted access to their computers for the first time. One of the company's directors, James
Cosgrave, himself a sufferer of a tremor condition which he inherited at birth, said “I'm a pilot and my tremor condition has not limited my ability to fly a plane, but using a PC has proven almost impossible simply because everything revolves around using the mouse to accurately manipulate the tiny cursor on the screen. I have been using a prototype of the mouse adapter for over a year now and it has literally transformed my life.” Montrose Secam will donate a percentage of sales from the adapter to local tremor foundations to help offer support and advice to sufferers of tremor conditions. 

Parkinson's is perhaps the disease most commonly associated with tremors, but there are other conditions such as Essential Tremor (ET) which is less well known but actually more common. Despite tremor conditions often being worse in the elderly, they can occur in people of all ages - Essential Tremor, for example, is a condition inherited genetically at birth and can affect people throughout their lives. 

According to the World Health Organization, worldwide there are more than 750 million persons with disabilities, of which 54 million people reside in the U.S. IBM sees this market as a significant business opportunity and a way to apply technology to improve the quality of life for so many individuals. IBM believes such accessible computing technologies will eventually become accepted as mainstream by business customers. 

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