Vision Australia Mildura has teamed up with SuniTAFE to help improve the lives of people with low vision.
A group of students studying a Certificate III in Electronics and Communications at SuniTAFE has been repairing used CCTVs, which will be donated to people in the community who need assistance with a range of vision problems.
CCTVs are some of the most sophisticated and powerful magnifying tools available to people with low vision, and may be used when a handheld or stand magnifier won’t work.
Materials are placed under the camera, and an enlarged image is displayed on the monitor. The user then adjusts a zoom lens to enlarge the image to the desired size.
CCTVs can also help the user perform literacy tasks more efficiently thanks to features such as auto-focusing, colour, dark text on a light background and light text on a dark background.
Vision Australia orthoptist Carmel Harris said visual magnifiers made it possible for people with low vision to be more independent.
“CCTVs can aid people with a range of vision impairments, including macular degeneration, glaucoma, cataracts, retinitis pigmentosa and diabetic retinopathy,” Ms Harris said.
“They can continue to do all the things that they love, such as reading, writing, crossword puzzles and using computers.”
Ms Harris said unfortunately CCTVs often came with a high price tag, which made it difficult for people to access the technology.
“Thanks to the skills of the SuniTAFE students and their teacher Rob Zudetich, Vision Australia can donate CCTVs to clients who might not be able to afford them otherwise,” she said.
“This has been a fantastic exercise for the students, who can see firsthand the difference they have made to the lives of people with low vision.”
A group of students studying a Certificate III in Electronics and Communications at SuniTAFE has been repairing used CCTVs, which will be donated to people in the community who need assistance with a range of vision problems.
CCTVs are some of the most sophisticated and powerful magnifying tools available to people with low vision, and may be used when a handheld or stand magnifier won’t work.
Materials are placed under the camera, and an enlarged image is displayed on the monitor. The user then adjusts a zoom lens to enlarge the image to the desired size.
CCTVs can also help the user perform literacy tasks more efficiently thanks to features such as auto-focusing, colour, dark text on a light background and light text on a dark background.
Vision Australia orthoptist Carmel Harris said visual magnifiers made it possible for people with low vision to be more independent.
“CCTVs can aid people with a range of vision impairments, including macular degeneration, glaucoma, cataracts, retinitis pigmentosa and diabetic retinopathy,” Ms Harris said.
“They can continue to do all the things that they love, such as reading, writing, crossword puzzles and using computers.”
Ms Harris said unfortunately CCTVs often came with a high price tag, which made it difficult for people to access the technology.
“Thanks to the skills of the SuniTAFE students and their teacher Rob Zudetich, Vision Australia can donate CCTVs to clients who might not be able to afford them otherwise,” she said.
“This has been a fantastic exercise for the students, who can see firsthand the difference they have made to the lives of people with low vision.”