Local Startup’s Campaign Aims to Provide Devices to Those Who Can’t Speak

In 10 days, Project Vive hopes to grant a voice to 10 individuals who cannot speak.

The State College-based startup, founded by Mary Elizabeth McCulloch while she was still a Penn State student, launches at 5 p.m. today a 10-day crowdfunding campaign that will enable Vive to provide its Voz Box speech-assistance technology to 10 Pennsylvania adults who have conditions that prevent them from speaking, such as cerebral palsy and ALS.

“A Journey to Ten Voices,” aims to raise $10,000 to provide the customized devices to 10 individuals. Vive was founded with the goal of creating a low-cost speech-assistance device. While many of the current speech-assistance devices on the market can be expensive, costing upwards of $16,000, Vive’s Voz Box device, which has been in development for about a year, is offered for about $1,000, which includes hardware and software, maintenance and training for the users and their caregivers

“Devices on the market today are very expensive, and many times very difficult to get ahold,” said Scott Maust, the Deputy Director of Alleghenies Unlimited Care Providers in Johnstown. “[This] makes it very difficult for a lot of consumers to be able to navigate through the insurance industry to be able get these devices in the first place. And if they can get them, there is very little support attached to it.”

A launch reception, open to the public, will be hosted by project members with music by guitarist Isaac Moyer at 6 p.m. today at the Happy Valley LaunchBox, 224 S. Allen St. Tax-deductible donations can be made through ProjectVive.com. If the $10,000 goal is exceeded, the company will customize more Voz Box devices for individuals on its waiting list.

Vive was among the first group of five local startups selected for Happy Valley Launchbox, the no-cost business accelerator developed by Penn State in collaboration with local government and businesses.

McCulloch, who graduated from Penn State in May with degrees in bioengineering and biomedical engineering, first became interested in creating the technology while working with children with a variety of needs at an orphanage in Ecuador and she realized the lack of available, affordable technology to assist those who are non-verbal or have complex communications needs.

The Voz Box had a public debut in September at Happy Valley Launchbox with Aryln Edelstein of Johnstown, who has non-verbal cerebral palsy, utilizing the Voz Box technology to present her poetry to the public for the first time, with the theme of ‘My Voice, My Power.’

The device was customized for Edelstein, one of its first users, to allow her to construct words, phrases and sentences using a foot pedal mounted on her wheelchair footrest. That acts as a kind of keyboard to allow her to select words from a customizable vocabulary created through Vive’s editing software. After she has selected her words they are amplified through a Bluetooth-linked speaker.

She will again present her poetry at tonight’s campaign launch reception.

‘[Project Vive] has provided me, through the use of the Voz Box, a way of being understood by the general public,” said Edelstein, 70, through her device, according to a release. “During my life I have written dozens of poems, but now I can say them before an audience. I am grateful for the Voz Box.”

Edelstein has since presented two more poetry readings using the Voz Box.

McCulloch, who works with six programmers and engineers and two marketing interns, is excited for the progress Vive has made in its goal to help thousands of people who cannot speak.

“This is a milestone for our project as we’ve reached the point where we can provide a turn-key, field tested Voz Box unit for a fraction of the cost of the other products currently available. Our aim is to give voices to the tens of thousands of people who need to be heard, but before now, haven’t had an affordable, accessible device for easier communication,” she said.  “It has been an honor to develop a patented technology that enables people to articulate their needs, thoughts and dreams. It is truly amazing to see and hear the impact giving a voice has, not only for the recipient, but also for their loved ones and friends.”

The Project Vive team also will present the Voz Box at the ALS Association Assistive Technology Challenge on Dec. 5, in Dublin, Ireland.