VisionAid International Readit Scholar HD Installation instructions

Hardware Guide Rev B
English
Copyright (C) 2008-2017, VisionAid International Ltd, all rights reserved.

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Table of Contents
Table of Contents ................................................................................................. 1
Introduction ......................................................................................................... 3
Readit Improvement program ............................................................................. 3
Ownership and intellectual property ................................................................... 4
Box contents ........................................................................................................ 4
Adjusting USB Cable Length ................................................................................. 5
Positioning Scholar HD for use ............................................................................. 5
Unfolding Scholar HD camera ........................................................................... 6
Folding Readit Scholar for transport ................................................................. 9
Plugging In ..........................................................................................................10
Turning Scholar HD’s camera on and off ..........................................................11
Disabling “Camera connected” notification ........................................................11
Windows XP .....................................................................................................12
Windows Vista / 7 / 8 .......................................................................................12
Positioning documents for capture .....................................................................13
1. Tactile Alignment - Magnetic Guide .........................................................13
2. Tactile Alignment - Grooves .....................................................................15
3. Visual Alignment ......................................................................................15
Close-up lens attachment ...................................................................................16
Viewing the bottom of an A4 (Letter) Page in camera mode ...........................17
Self-Viewing ........................................................................................................17
Distance Viewing ................................................................................................17
Scholar HD flash .................................................................................................18
Headphones ........................................................................................................19
Appendix A: Safety ..............................................................................................20
Appendix B: Technical Information .....................................................................20

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Introduction
Congratulations on choosing the Readit Scholar HD digital capture reading system
– the most advanced reading system for low vision and blindness currently
available.
The Readit Scholar HD combines high speed OCR, speech and reformatted text
output with ease of use and portability. It can capture and read any printed
material such as letters, bank statements, newspapers, food packaging etc. and
weighs just 1.2 kg (3.3 lbs). It is also the only machine to feature A3 (double letter
capture size) and full OCR at distance.
Readit Improvement program
Users are the best people to help us improve and develop our products so if you
have any ideas or suggestions, no matter how small, please do contact us.
Suggestions contact information
Please use the following methods to contact us regarding your suggestions:
Email:
[e-mail]
Post:
VisionAid International Ltd.
Bridge Lodge, Spalding, Lincolnshire
PE11 3AU
United Kingdom
Phone:
[phone]
Thank you and we wish you many hours of enjoyment with your new portable
digital capture reading assistant!

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Ownership and intellectual property
The software makes use of third party software libraries that are redistributed
under their own respective licenses.
LAME is distributed under the terms of the GNU Lesser General Public License
(LGPL), a copy of which can be found at http://www.gnu.org/licenses/lgpl.html
and is included in the software’s program directory.
OpenCV is distributed under the terms of the Berkeley Software Distribution
(BSD) license, a copy of which is included in the software’s program directory.
Copyright (C) 2000-2008, Intel Corporation, all rights reserved.
Copyright (C) 2009, Willow Garage Inc., all rights reserved.
Third party copyrights are property of their respective owners.
Box contents
Your Readit Scholar HD box should contain the following items:
1. 16 megapixel Scholar HD portable digital capture reading system with
integrated USB cable.
2. Magnetic positioning guide for A3 / A4 (Double letter / Letter) paper sizes.
3. Over ear headphones with in line volume control.
4. Padded ruck sack carry case.
5. Installation DVD.
6. Laminated Quick Reference Guide.
7. This Hardware Guide.
8. Software instruction manual.
If any of these items are missing, please contact your local distributor.

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Adjusting USB Cable Length
Scholar HD has an integrated cable management system in its base. This allows
the user to adjust the USB cable to precisely the correct length, so there is no
excess cable around the laptop or PC it is being used with.
The maximum length available is 110cm or 43 inches.
Increasing the cable length
1. Ensure the Scholar HD is in its folded configuration and unplugged.
2. Turn the Scholar HD camera over so that the base is facing upwards.
3. At the rear of the base, the USB cable exists out of a small hole in the middle.
Feed approximately 4 cm of the cable inwards through the exit hole to help
loosen the cable.
4. Trace the cable around the two cable grippers and carefully unwind the
additional length of cable that is required.
5. Finally, carefully pull the unwound cable through the exit hole and ensure
the cable has been pulled tightly so that the cable does not poke through
the bottom of the base and cause the Scholar HD to be uneven.
IMPORTANT:
USB extension cables will not work with Readit Scholar HD. If a longer cable
is required, then a mains powered USB 2.0 or above hub must be used.

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Positioning Scholar HD for use
Remove Scholar HD from its rucksack and place it on a flat surface. When doing
so, try and ensure that it’s not directly underneath any bright lighting, as this can
affect its accuracy, especially when reading glossy documents.
Unfolding Scholar HD camera
Getting Scholar HD ready for use takes just a few seconds and a few easy steps.
1).
Firstly, place the fingertips of
one hand under the crossbar on
the base and with your other
hand, grasp the centre of the
cross bar and lift it upwards. A
locking pin will click into position
to hold the arms upright once
you have moved it far enough
(around 65 degrees).
2).
With one hand on the base, using
your other hand, grasp one of the
two bars between the camera
head and the crossbar and rotate
it upwards 180 degrees until it
stops and is in line with the main
bars. A locking pin will click into
position once you have moved it
far enough.

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3).
With the main stand in position,
tilt the camera head downwards
towards the desk until it stops
or is parallel with the desk. As
the camera head lowers down,
it should locate itself
automatically so that it is
square. This will ensure it is in
exactly the right position for
photographing your documents.
4).
Pictured is the wedge shaped
guide in the camera head that
locates onto the wedge shaped
guide on the camera stand as
the Scholar HD camera head is
titled downwards into the
capturing position.

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5).
The whole unfolding process
should only take 10 seconds.
Once unfolded, your Readit
Scholar HD will look like this:

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Folding Readit Scholar for transport
To fold Scholar HD for transport, practically the exact opposite method is
required, plus to buttons must be pressed to release two locking pins on the left
hand side of the stand.
WARNING:
Always ensure the camera lens has fully retracted before transporting. This
is done by exiting the Readit software, pressing the on / off button or
unplugging it. Failure to do so may lead to camera damage and is not
covered by warranty.
1).
Firstly ensure the camera is facing
downwards, (in the standard picture
taking position) and with your left
hand, push and hold the top release
button inwards. It’s on the left hand
side of the crossbar, facing away from
you). With the release button fully
depressed, gently lower the top part of
the stand downwards 180 degrees with
your other hand until it stops.
2).
Next, grasp the crossbar with
your right hand and then press
in the bottom release button,
(located on the left hand side of
the base of the stand). With it
depressed, gently lower the
stand downwards until it is
resting flat on the base. Finally,
Ensure the camera head is also
pushed flat to the base.
Push button
down
Push button down

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Plugging In
With Scholar HD unfolded, you can plug Scholar HD in to your PC or laptop. One
USB 2.0 port is required. Below is a picture of typical USB ports found on a laptop
computer:
Bump-on attached to bottom side of
USB connector (for most computers)
USB Ports
IMPORTANT:
Some computers have their USB ports fitted the other way up!
USB connectors will only plug into USB sockets one way round. They do not
require much force, so take great care when inserting them into a socket.
Forcing a USB connector into its socket the wrong way round will break the
socket and or the connector. This is not covered by warranty.

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Turning Scholar HD’s camera on and off
Turning on
Scholar HD has a small integrated battery which keeps the camera in standby
mode for up to 5 days. This helps it to be instantly ready to power up when
required, as soon as it is connected to your computer.
If the battery runs completely flat, ensure it is plugged into a USB port and your
computer system is turned on, then press and hold the on / off button for 3
seconds.
The on / off button is located in the middle of the front panel of the camera head
and is slightly raised.
From off, rather than standby, Scholar HD will take approximately 25 seconds to
start up. Scholar HD’s camera lens will briefly extend and then retract once it has
completed starting up.
Turning off
There is no need to turn off the Scholar HD camera after use if it is going to be
used within the next few days. The lens will automatically retract and it will go
into a power saving mode when the Readit software it exited or the USB cable is
unplugged.
Disabling “Camera connected” notification
When the Scholar HD is plugged into a USB port and the computer and camera
are turned on, a “Camera Connected” screen will appear. This will happen by
default, every time this occurs.
On / off
button

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To disable this notification (recommended), do the following depending on your
operating system:
Windows XP
1. Click “Cancel” on the window that has appeared
2. Left click “Start”
3. Left click “Control Panel”
4. Double left click “Scanners and Cameras (Note: If you can see “Pick a
Category”, left click “Switch to Classic View” first, then “Scanners and
Cameras” will appear.)
5. Right click on “EK-GC110”
6. Left click “Properties”
7. Left click on the “Events” tab
8. Under “Actions” left click “Take no action”
9. Left click “Ok”
If you have several USB ports that Scholar HD’s camera might be plugged in to,
you may have to follow this procedure each time you plug Scholar HD’s camera
into a different USB port.
Windows Vista / 7 / 8
When the camera is turned on, the “AutoPlay” window will popup. To disable the
AutoPlay window from popping up, do the following:
1. Click “Cancel” on the window that has appeared
2. Left click “Start”
3. Left click “Control Panel”
4. Make sure “View by:” (in the top right corner of the screen) is set to “Small
Icons”.
5. Double left click “Autoplay”.
6. Scroll to the bottom of the AutoPlay window that appears and click the drop
down box for the "EK-GC110" and select "Take no action".
7. At the bottom right, click "Save", then close the Control Panel window.

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Positioning documents for capture
Scholar HD is capable of capturing documents up to A3, (11 x 17) in size at close-
up. Documents must be placed onto its base plate in landscape orientation before
capturing. The following section describes how best to align your documents.
There are three methods that can be used to accurately position your documents,
two tactile and one visual. For all three, you should firstly ensure that the Scholar
HD’s camera head is 1. facing straight down at its base and 2. that it is square on
to you, as shown in the following picture:
1. Tactile
Alignment - Magnetic Guide
The Scholar HD includes a guide that magnetises into either the A4 (Letter) or A3
(11 x 17) positions depending on its orientation. It slots over two grooves in the
base and provides a “top left corner” position for you to slide your documents
into before photographing.
The default location of the guide is in the transport position. The guide must
always be returned to this position before transporting, where it is in rear groove
and in-line with Scholar HD’s baseplate.
1).
Camera head facing
straight down.
2).
Camera head’s flat edge is
facing straight towards you,
parallel to the crossbar. It
should locate automatically
when tilted downwards.

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Positioning Magnetic guide for A3 (11 x 17) sized documents
To locate the guide into the A3 position, place your fingers onto the guide (located
just in front of the base bar) and simply slide it over to the left until it magnetises
into position.
Positioning Magnetic guide for A4 (Letter) sized documents
To locate the guide into the A4 position, lift the guide up slightly and slide it
towards you so that it’s in line with the front (A4) groove. Then slide it to the left
slightly until it magnetises into position.

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2. Tactile Alignment - Grooves
The base includes two grooves (engraved horizontal lines). The rear one is for
positioning the long edge of an A3 (11 x 17) size page up against. The front one is
for positioning the long edge of an A4 (Letter) size page.
When aligning your documents on the A3 (11 x 17) groove, the left side of the
page should be overhanging the base by 9cm (3.5 inches).
When aligning your documents on the A4 (Letter) groove, the left side of the page
should be overhanging the base plate by 2cm (0.75 inches).
3. Visual Alignment
When capture has been initialised, the full area that will be photographed is
visible on screen. Depending on the aspect ratio of your screen, black bars may
appear on the left and right sides. As long as your document is completely in view
on screen, it will be properly captured.
Visual alignment is the only way that distance capture can be achieved.
POSITIONING TIP:
Readit Scholar HD has powerful document straightening and rotation abilities
but for the highest accuracy and speed, try to position your document as
squarely as possible and ensure pages are relatively flat.
IMPORTANT:
For capturing documents at A4 (Letter) and A3 (11 x 17) sizes, the close-up lens
should not be attached to the Scholar HD lens.
However, if you wish to zoom in and capture smaller objects or documents with
extremely small print (less than 6pt size) you can zoom in up to 21x with the
close up lens attached.

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Close-up lens attachment
Camera mode allows real-time viewing and handwriting on your documents.
To attach the close-up lens, do the following:
IMPORTANT: You must attach the magnetic close-up lens only for:
1. Real-time document viewing, handwriting and capturing with optical
zoom levels higher than 4x.
2. Self-viewing.
Failure to do so will mean Scholar HD will not focus.
1).
Grasp the edges of the
close-up lens, located at
the left side of the
camera head and gently
remove it from its
magnetised holding.
2).
Position the lens on to
the magnetised camera
lens barrel.
IMPORTANT: Always ensure the lens is returned to the left side of the camera
before folding and transporting Readit Scholar HD.

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Viewing the bottom of an A4 (Letter) Page in camera
mode
When using the Scholar HD as a traditional video magnifier, in order to view the
bottom of a page it is necessary to tilt the camera head towards you slightly. For
magnification levels over 4x, the close-up lens must be attached for Scholar HD
to be able to focus.
Self-Viewing
From the document capturing position, simply
twist the camera up towards you to change it
to self-viewing position. The close-up lens
must be attached during self-viewing in order
for the camera to focus correctly.
Most users will also wish to change the Readit
software to mirror mode. Please refer to the
user manual or quick reference guide for how
to achieve this.
Distance Viewing
To view objects or text in the distance, from
the document capturing position, simply lift
the camera up towards you, (the same step as
in Self-Viewing) and then rotate the camera
around to face the item you wish to target.
The Readit software will automatically switch
to distance viewing mode when lifted upwards
and it remembers your zoom and colour
settings.
Scholar HD’s camera head can rotate 340 degrees. If you cannot access the angle
you desire, try rotating the camera head around in the other direction.

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Scholar HD flash
The flash pops out when the button on the right hand side of the camera head is
pressed. It’s located around 1 cm (half an inch) down the side.
However, this is currently reserved for future use and will not fire under any
circumstances. This may be enabled in future upgrades.
To retract the flash, simply push it back in towards the camera head and it will
click into place. The flash is located on the right hand side of the front edge of the
camera (facing towards you when the camera is in the document capturing
position).
WARNING:
Always ensure the pop up flash is in its closed position before transporting.
Failure to do so may lead to camera damage and is not covered by
warranty.
Flash pop up
button (flash
currently inactive)

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Headphones
Scholar HD includes a pair of over ear headphones with
in-line volume control. They have a standard 3.5 mm
audio jack connector.
To use the headphones, (or any other that you may
already own), simply plug them into the headphone
socket on your PC or laptop.
To alter the headphone volume, we
recommend using the in-line volume
wheel, located on the headphone wire.
It is also possible to adjust the volume
of the headphones using the volume control on your
computer.
In-line volume control

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Appendix A: Safety
 Handle the Scholar HD with care. Rough handling may damage internal
components and will void your warranty.
 Contact your VisionAid International distributor to service this equipment if
necessary.
 Do not open or remove any parts of the Scholar HD as it will void the
warranty.
 Do not expose the Scholar HD to excessive cold, heat or direct sunlight.
 Do not use the Scholar HD near inadequately shielded medical devices.
 To avoid risk of electrical damage, keep your Scholar HD away from fluids
and chemicals.
Use of the Scholar HD other than described in this manual will exclude it from
warranty.
Appendix B: Technical Information
General information
Dimensions folded (LxWxH) 27 x 8 x 5.5 cm
10.6 x 3.1 x 2.2 inches
Dimensions
unfolded: (
L
x
W
xH)
27
x
8
x
40.2
cm
10.6 x 3.1 x 15.8 inches
Weight: 1.2 kg (3.3 lbs)
Camera: 16 MP with 21x optical zoom and auto-
focus
Operating conditions
Relative Humidity:
<70%, no condensation
Temperature:
10
to 35
°C
Storage and transport conditions
Relative humidity: <95%, no condensation
Temperature: 5 to 45 °C