Open Source Accessibility Hardware and Software
OpenAdaptive is a family of open source access tools for people with disabilities: a wireless switch built from about $15 in parts, and a free app that turns photos into stories read aloud with a single press.
Why this exists
A typical commercial Bluetooth adaptive switch costs around $200, and the software meant to pair with it is often priced far beyond what it delivers. Having a disability already costs so much, and access should not be sold at a premium. OpenAdaptive lowers the barrier to the price of raw parts: roughly $15 for a switch, nothing for the apps. Every design is published under the GPL, so each piece can be built, repaired, and adapted to the person using it.
The apps
Open Adaptive Switch
A DIY wireless switch for iOS Switch Control. One press sends a keystroke over Bluetooth. About $15 in parts, set up entirely from a phone: the key it sends, one action or three, sleep, name, and color, plus firmware updates over the air.
The companion app is on its way to the App Store.
Open Adaptive Stories
A free iPhone and iPad app that turns photos into talking stories. A highlight moves from spot to spot, and one press of a switch picks the highlighted one and speaks it: a word, a sentence, or a recorded voice.
An App Store release is being prepared.
Made to work together
Pair a switch with an iPad and the Stories app recognizes it immediately, with no Switch Control setup. Scanning, page turns, and the exit button share one cycle, so an entire story can be read from a single button. Each piece also stands on its own: the switch pairs with anything that accepts a Bluetooth keyboard, and the app answers to any switch that types a key.
Resources
- Switch build guide: parts, wiring, firmware, and the app source
- Web setup page for the switch, in Chrome or Edge, or the Bluefy browser on iOS
- Stories web app: make and play story files on any computer with a browser
- Story file format, an ordinary ZIP with a documented layout
- Switch Bluetooth protocol, so new clients and tools can be built against it
- Monarch Reader, a library of thousands of free picture books the web app can import
- Apple's Switch Control overview and the guide to actions and recipes