Bridging the Communication Gap

By Michael Walton

Sometimes deaf and hard of hearing passengers have a hard time understanding what airport police are trying to say. It’s frustrating for all involved.

Ken Gan is a hearing businessman who lives in Rochester, New York. Gan invented a new kind of technology—an airport communication system called the InterpreType, or ITY. Rochester Airport installed the new ITY system in its check-in and rental car terminals.

The ITY system is similar to a TTY system. Two small laptop computers allow two users to type messages back and forth. A deaf or hard of hearing passenger can type in his or her identity on the computer, and then airport police can easily check and verify the passenger’s identity by typing in a response.

“Now the airport staff can communicate with deaf people and hearing the same way,” said Abiodun Odunlami, a 19-year-old student in Rochester. “We’re not being left out of important communications.”

- Information from The Democrat and Chronicle

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