Optelec ALVA 570 Satellite Pro User manual

ALVA 570 Satellite Pro ii
Copyright © 2007 Optelec B.V.
Breslau 4
2993 LT Barendrecht
The Netherlands
Phone: [phone]
Fax: [phone]
E-mail: [e-mail]
Website: http://www.optelec.com

ALVA 570 Satellite Pro iii
Preface
Congratulations on choosing the ALVA 570 Satellite Pro Braille display.
The 570 Satellite Pro is the fifth-generation Braille display, featuring the
latest hardware innovations and ergonomic designs. Equipped with
inbound and outbound USB ports, an on-board multi-voltage power
supply, Touch Cursor and Double Touch Cursor buttons, and a
redesigned front panel, the ergonomic design of the ALVA 570 Satellite
Pro gives the user extended flexibility and productivity, all housed in a
new, thin, light-weight profile.
This manual will familiarize you with the features and basic operation of
the ALVA 570 Satellite Pro. Please read this manual carefully before
connecting the Braille display to your computer.
If you have any questions or suggestions concerning the use of this
Braille display, please contact your distributor or Optelec's home office
using the contact information below. Your feedback is greatly
appreciated. We hope you enjoy working with your ALVA 570 Satellite
Pro.
Optelec B.V.
Breslau 4
2993 LT Barendrecht
The Netherlands
Phone: [phone]
Fax: [phone]
E-mail: [email protected]
Website: http://www.optelec.com

ALVA 570 Satellite Pro iv
Regulatory notice
This equipment has been developed and tested in order to comply
with following regulations:
CE
FCC for a Class B digital device, pursuant to part 15 rules
These limits are designed to provide reasonable protection against
harmful interference in a residual installation. This equipment
generates, uses and can radiate radio frequency energy and, if not
installed and used in accordance with the instructions, may cause
harmful interference to radio communications. However, there is no
guarantee that interference will not occur in a particular installation.
If this equipment does cause harmful interference to radio or
television reception, which can be determined by turning the
equipment off and on, the user is encouraged to try to correct the
interference by one of the following measures:
Re-orient or relocate the receiving antenna.
Increase the separation between the equipment and receiver.
Connect the equipment into an outlet on a circuit different from
that to which the receiver is connected.
Consult the distributor or an experienced radio/TV technicain for
help.

ALVA 570 Satellite Pro v
Contents
Preface iii
Regulatory notice iv
Contents v
1Introduction 5
1.1 About this manual 5
1.2 ALVA 570 Satellite Pro package contents 5
2Description of the ALVA 570 Satellite Pro 5
2.1 Surface and front panel layout 5
2.2 Back panel layout 5
2.3 Front panel keys, satellite keypads and double touch
cursors 5
2.3.1 Front panel keys 5
2.3.2 Windows satellite keypad 5
2.3.3 Screen reader satellite keypad 5
2.3.4 Touch cursors and double touch cursors 5
3Installation 5
3.1 USB connection 5
3.1.1 Installing USB driver for Microsoft Windows 5
3.1.2 Screen reading software and ALVA Satellite Braille
drivers 5
3.2 Serial connection 5
3.2.1 Serial port 5
3.2.2 Serial cable 5
3.2.3 Serial driver for the Satellite 5
3.3 Switching between USB and serial connection5
4Local mode menu 5

ALVA 570 Satellite Pro vi
4.1 Activating the Local mode menu 5
4.2 Main menu 5
4.3 Status submenu 5
4.4 Config submenu 5
4.5 Save submenu 5
4.6 Load submenu 5
4.7 Test submenu 5
5Miscellaneous 5
5.1 Error Messages 5
5.2 Using both the serial and USB connections 5
Index 5

ALVA 570 Satellite Pro 7
1Introduction
The ALVA Satellite Braille display presents text, graphic and other
information in Braille corresponding to what is displayed on a
computer screen. Used together with screen reader software the
Satellite display can be installed for a particular operating system
such as Windows 98 or Windows NT to provide a tactile and audible
user interface.
The ALVA 570 Satellite Pro Braille display offers an enhanced
ergonomic design that extends the navigation and operation
possibilities of the screen reader software. The features of the ALVA
570 Satellite Pro are designed for optimal capabilities when working
in a graphical computer environment. Note that the functionality of
the ALVA 570 Satellite Pro depends somewhat on the Braille display
options that your screen reader software offers.
The Satellite Braille display was designed following the Open
Standard philosophy. This enables compatibility with most screen
reader software and operating systems. Contact your distributor or
Optelec for updated information about screen reader software that
fully supports the functionality and possibilities of the ALVA 570
Satellite Pro Braille display or tailor-made solutions.
ALVA Satellite Braille displays are optimized to work in a graphical
computer environment. It is also possible to work in a non-graphical
environment under MS-DOS.
1.1 About this manual
This manual is intentionally kept brief to enable you to quickly begin
using your ALVA Satellite Braille display and for easy reference in the
future. Chapter 1 provides an introduction and a list of the contents

ALVA 570 Satellite Pro 8
of the ALVA 570 Satellite Pro package. Chapter 2 provides a detailed
description of the ALVA 570 Satellite Pro and the names used for the
keys, buttons and switches on the Braille display. Chapter 3
describes how to set up and install the Braille display. Chapter 4
explains how to configure the Braille display. Chapter 5 provides
information regarding the integrated power supply. Chapter 6
provides information regarding the Universal Serial Bus connections
and explains how to operate the ALVA 570 Satellite Pro in an MS-
DOS environment. If you need additional information about the
ALVA 570 Satellite Pro Braille display, please consult your distributor.
1.2 ALVA 570 Satellite Pro package contents
The ALVA 570 Satellite Pro package contains the following:
Box 1: – The ALVA 570 Satellite Pro Braille display
Box 2: – An AC-adapter
–Serial cable to connect the Braille display to a computer
–USB cable to connect the Braille display to a computer
–The ALVA Satellite driver software on disk
–This manual in print and Braille
If any of these items are missing from your package, please contact
your distributor.

ALVA 570 Satellite Pro 9
2Description of the ALVA 570 Satellite
Pro
2.1 Surface and front panel layout
The ALVA 570 Satellite Pro Braille display is designed with a row of
70 Braille cells at the front of the flat surface. Behind the Braille
cells, a flat surface is provided so that a keyboard can be placed on
top of the Braille display. Above the row of Braille cells are two rows
of small buttons known as Touch Cursors (lower row) and Double
Touch Cursors (upper row). Each Braille cell has a corresponding
Touch Cursor and Double Touch Cursor button.
On the left and right side, just below the array of Braille cells, are
two groups of six keys. These groups are called the Satellite
keypads. Each Satellite keypad forms an inner circle of four keys
with two larger keys positioned alongside the circle. At the front of
the Braille display are ten front panel keys: two round keys, one on
the left and one on the right, four rectangular keys in the middle,
and aside two tumbler keys.
2.2 Back panel layout
At the back of the Braille display are the power switch and
connections for the PC, other devices and the power supply. The
connections are partially covered by the case, which extends
somewhat beyond the back panel. Tactile markings have been
placed on the underside of the cover that indicate the meaning of
the connections.

ALVA 570 Satellite Pro 10
From left to right (with the Braille display front side facing you) the
layout of the connections is:
On/off switch, indicated by a circle and a dash. The Braille
display is off when tumbled to the left.
One 9-pins serial connector for serial connection with the
PC, indicated by two circles between vertical marks
Inbound USB connector, square shaped, for connection to
the PC, indicated by an inward pointing arrow to the
connector
Electrical socket connector indicated by a curl
2.3 Front panel keys, satellite keypads and double
touch cursors
This section lists the standard names for all front panel keys and
satellite keypads. These names will also be used in the user manual
of your screen reading software when referring to the ALVA 570
Satellite Pro. The exact functionality of the keys is defined by the
screen reader. Please refer to your screen reader documentation for
detailed functionality of the ALVA 570 Satellite Pro.
2.3.1 Front panel keys
From left to right, the front panel keys are:
Left tumbler key
HOME Round front panel key at the left
LEFT Rectangular key with bend at the left
UP Rectangular key with line mark at the top
DOWN Rectangular key with line mark at the bottom
RIGHT Rectangular key with bend at the right
CURSOR Round front panel key at the right

ALVA 570 Satellite Pro 11
Right tumbler key
2.3.2 Windows satellite keypad
One of the two satellite keypads will be used for issuing Windows
commands. By default this will be the satellite keypad on the right
hand side of the Braille display. The following names will be used in
the documentation:
BACK TAB Left outer circular key
FORWARD TAB Right outer circular key
LEFT PAD Left inner circular key
UP PAD Top inner circular key
DOWN PAD Bottom inner circular key
RIGHT PAD Right inner circular key
2.3.3 Screen reader satellite keypad
The second keypad is defined by the functionality of the screen
reader. Examples of screen reader functionality that can be
implemented on this satellite keypad are speech-related functions,
extended Braille functionality, and toggles for user defined scripts
and macros. Your screen reader documentation describes the
functionality that is implemented in the screen reader Satellite
keypad. By default the satellite keypad located at the left-hand side
of the ALVA 570 Satellite Pro will be assigned to the screen reader
functionality.
The following names will be used in the documentation:
BACK EAR Left outer circular key
FORWARD EAR Right outer circular key
WEST PAD Left inner circular key
NORTH PAD Top inner circular key

ALVA 570 Satellite Pro 12
SOUTH PAD Bottom inner circular key
EAST PAD Right inner circular key
2.3.4 Touch cursors and double touch cursors
The touch cursors and double touch cursors correspond to the
particular Braille cell immediately below each pair of buttons.
Typically, they are used for routing the cursor or caret to the
corresponding Braille cell, generating a left or right mouse click at
that point, or for obtaining additional information about the contents
of the Braille cell.
The touch cursors are referred to as:
TC 1-70 This is the row of 70 buttons directly above the Braille cells
The double touch cursors are referred to as:
DTC 1-441-70 This is the top row of 70 buttons above the Braille
cells

ALVA 570 Satellite Pro 13
3Installation
3.1 USB connection
The file driver.txt describes how to install the Satellite using USB
connection. Use the serial connection of the ALVA 570 Satellite Pro
Braille display for other operating systems such as Windows NT4,
Windows 95 and MS-DOS.
3.1.1 Installing USB driver for Microsoft Windows
An ALVA USB device driver must be installed for Microsoft Windows.
When the USB cable of the ALVA Satellite is connected to the PC for
the first time, the Microsoft Windows
Add new hardware Wizard
appears. The Wizard displays several dialogs used to install the ALVA
USB driver. The
Add new hardware Wizard is only shown the first
time that the ALVA Satellite is plugged in. Subsequently, Windows
will automatically load the installed driver.
In principle, this installation process should only have to be done
once. However, if Windows is re-installed the procedure must be
followed again.
When Windows starts and has identified the ALVA Satellite on the
USB connection, an audible signal is issued to indicate that the USB
connection is working.
3.1.2 Screen reading software and ALVA Satellite Braille drivers
The next step is to install your screen reader. Follow the installation
procedure as described in the manual of your screen reading
software. For screen readers that do not yet include ALVA Satellite
support, the ALVA driver disks in the ALVA 570 Satellite Pro package

ALVA 570 Satellite Pro 14
contain information about manually installing the USB support for
the screen reader and the ALVA Satellite.
3.2 Serial connection
3.2.1 Serial port
Use the serial port for communication with operating systems that
do not support USB (MS-DOS, Windows 95 or Windows NT4). The
Braille display automatically switches to serial communication when
the USB connection is not used.
3.2.2 Serial cable
Use one of the serial cables supplied with the ALVA 570 Satellite Pro
Braille display for connection to the computer. Plug the serial cable
in to the 9-pin serial port of the Braille display (indicated by two
circles between vertical marks) and connect the cable to the serial
port of the PC.
3.2.3 Serial driver for the Satellite
The serial driver for the ALVA Satellite is identical to the serial driver
used for other ALVA Braille displays. This means that the ALVA
Satellite can be used with any screen reader that supports ABT3,
ALVA Delphi or ALVA Delphi MultiMedia Braille displays.
Installation of the screen reader with the ALVA Satellite is described
in the user manual of the screen reading software.
If you are using a screen reader that does not yet support the ALVA
Satellite use the following procedure to install the needed software:
1. Select ALVA ABT3 as the Braille display.
2. Select the serial port as the communication port.

ALVA 570 Satellite Pro 15
3. Replace the abtser32.dll (Jaws, Protalk or Supernova) or
abtser.dll (outSPOKEN, VisioBraille or Winvision) in the screen
reader directory by one found in the directory a:\win32\ or
a:\win16\ respectively supplied on the driver disk.
The drivers.txt file on the ALVA Satellite driver disk describes how to
update various versions of screen reader software for support of the
ALVA Satellite.
3.3 Switching between USB and serial connection
The ALVA 570 Satellite Pro automatically detects whether it is
connected to the serial port or the USB port of a computer. The
ALVA 570 Satellite Pro can be connected to two different computers
simultaneously. One computer will use the USB port and the other
the serial port. In this case the ALVA 570 Satellite Pro will choose
the USB port as the main communication port. In the Local mode
menu of the ALVA 570 Satellite Pro you can specify whether the USB
or serial port is preferred.
Open the Local mode menu by simultaneously pressing the three
keys: Back Ear + South Pad + Forward Ear of the Windows or the
Screen reader Satellite keypad. The Braille display shows the text
usb ser and the other menu options. Press the Touch Cursor above
the
usb or ser option to select the preferred connection. This
connection will be used next time you power on the ALVA 570
Satellite Pro.
Exit the Local mode menu by pressing the CURSOR front panel key.

ALVA 570 Satellite Pro 16
4Local mode menu
When the ALVA Satellite is turned on, the following message is
displayed:
ALVA Satellite OK, waiting for connection… This message disappears
when the screen reader is loaded and a successful connection to the
Satellite is established.
4.1 Activating the Local mode menu
The ALVA Satellite menu is called the Local mode menu, and it
enables you to change several built-in settings of the Braille display.
The Local mode menu can be activated by simultaneously pressing
the Back Ear + South Pad + Forward Ear on either the Windows or
the Screen reader Satellite keypad.
When the Local mode menu is activated, a sound is emitted and the
main menu appears on the Braille display:
usb ser status config save load test
The relevant submenu is activated by pressing one of the Touch
Cursors above the main menu option. Use the HOME front panel key
to move back to the previous menu level or to exit the Local mode
menu when the main menu is active.
Use the CURSOR front panel key to immediately exit the Local mode
menu from anywhere within the Local mode.

ALVA 570 Satellite Pro 17
4.2 Main menu
usb ser status config save load test
The main menu has seven options:
usb For manually setting the USB connection. Select this option
when the USB port must be used for communication with
the PC.
ser For manually setting the serial connection. Select this
option when the serial port must be used for
communication with the PC.
status Contains a submenu with the current settings: connection,
battery information, serial number and firmware date of
the ALVA 570 Satellite Pro (see section 4.3).
config Contains a submenu for changing a variety of settings on
the ALVA Satellite (see section 4.4).
save Contains a submenu for saving the current settings (see
section 4.5).
load Contains a submenu for loading particular settings or
restoring the default setting (see section 4.6).
test Activates a test mode used for testing the operation of the
ALVA Satellite Braille display (see section 4.7).
4.3 Status submenu
The status submenu is used to verify the current status of the ALVA
Satellite. The status menu contains the menu items:

ALVA 570 Satellite Pro 18
comm battery sernum settings
comm Refers to the status of the communication. Activating the
comm menu item provides the status of the USB or serial
communication, and shows the device that is attached to
the serial connection. This can be an ALVA
spacepad,
keypad
or FeelMe utility , but is generally a PC . The most
frequently displayed communication information is:
usb mode=pc
ser mode=pc
battery Does not apply for the ALVA 570 Satellite Pro. The battery
status shows:
voltage=0
sernum The serial number of the Braille display and the version
number of the firmware are displayed. The firmware is
loaded into the main processor of the ALVA 570 Satellite
Pro and is responsible for the functionality of the Braille
display. If technical developments require new functionality
of the Braille display, it is possible that the current
firmware version may need to be replaced by a newer
version. An example of the sernum status is:

ALVA 570 Satellite Pro 19
serial nr=xxxxxxxx firmware version=1.0.0.0
where xxxxxxxx stands for the serial number, such as 57000001.
settings The settings menu item provides the status of the current
configuration of the ALVA satellite. Use the UP and DOWN
front panel keys to view the settings. The settings menu is
used only for viewing the current settings. If you want to
change one of these configuration settings use the config
menu (section 4.4). The settings menu provides the
following information:
loaded set=xxxx
where xxxx indicates which set, set1 to set7, is currently loaded.
volume=xx
where xx is a number from 0 (no sound) to 31 (maximum volume)
referring to the volume of the built-in speaker.
sleep mode=xxx
The sleep mode status can be set from 1 second to 255 seconds.
This indicates the time after which the Braille display puts itself into
sleep mode if there is no activity. Consequently, when the Satellite is
in sleep mode, it consumes virtually no energy. The sleep mode is
inactive if 0 is shown.

ALVA 570 Satellite Pro 20
dot pressure=x
The dot pressure can be set from 1 to 5 indicating the amount of
pressure that the dots produce when reading the Braille. A value of 1
indicates the least amount of dot pressure and 5 indicates the
highest dot pressure.
status cells=xxxxx
The position of the three status cells can be left, right or none. This
indicates whether three status cells and one blank separator cell are
positioned on the left, right, or turned off. If
none is selected, then
all 70 Braille cells are used as data cells.
switch satellite function=xxx
This setting can be yes or no indicating whether the Windows and
Screen reader satellite keypads are interchanged or not.
front panel=xxxxxxx
This option displays the layout of the UP, DOWN, LEFT and RIGHT
front panel keys, and also indicates that the PROG key is emulated
on one of the satellite keypads for compatibility with the ALVA DOS
software.

ALVA 570 Satellite Pro 21
internal Braille table=xxxxxx
This indicates the internal Braille table language that is used in the
Local mode menu and the built-in messages that can appear on
the Braille display.
4.4 Config submenu
The configuration submenu has seven user-definable options:
vol sleep dots stcell satellite front table
Select the option that you want to change by pressing the Touch
Cursor above the menu item. Use the UP and DOWN front panel
keys to change the setting. Changes to the settings for the loaded
configuration set are immediately saved when you press the HOME
or CURSOR front panel key to go back to the previous menu level or
to exit the Local mode menu, respectively.
volume=xx
vol Changes the volume level of the sounds generated by the
ALVA 570 Satellite Pro in steps from 0 to 31. The UP front
panel key increases the volume; the DOWN front panel key
decreases the volume. If you want no sounds to be
generated, select 0. The default value is 15.
sleep mode=xxx
sleep Set the time from 1 second to 255 seconds, indicating the
time after which the Braille display puts itself into sleep