The philosophy behind assistive technology is to provide those afflicted with cognitive and physical disabilities the chance to function in a more independent and productive manner. This kind of technology varies from simple braces to mechanical lifting and transportation devices. Some assistive products are designed to reduce pain while others are built to increase a person's range of mobility and strength.

Whether they are suffering from Carpal Tunnel Syndrome (CTS) or have a limited amount of muscle strength, those who have a tough time using regular consumer keyboards usually have to look for models that are more ergonomic in design. Boards with alternative key configurations, usually angled to offer a more easy typing position, are wonderful options, as are numeric keypads with programmable keystrokes and shortcuts. These will help any typist perform his work quickly and efficiently, regardless of whether or not he can move his fingers as fast as a capable typist will full mobility.

Another kind of assistive technology is that which can help an individual control and view data from a secondary device (like a computer) without the aid of a mouse or keyboard. Products such as these include speech recognition systems, voice control modules, and even electronic pointing devices that respond to eye movements, nerve signals, infrared beams, ultrasound, or brain wave patterns. These are instrumental for quadriplegics or amputees who have lost the ability to use their hands and fingers.

Assistive Technology for the Blind

In the last ten years, manufacturers of assistive technologies have created a number of incredibly advanced products to help the blind or semi-blind. These products include "refresh-able" Braille displays that translate the on-screen text (whether from an email, website or word document) and create a mechanical representation on a display pad (accomplished by raising or lowering plastic or metal pins to create Braille characters). They also include screen magnifiers and large-print word processors, which allow the text to be increased in size on the screen, and speech synthesizers that literally speak the text out loud through the computer's speakers.