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Tecla Access for Android

User Guide

Version 0.3

Getting Started

1. Download and install the Tecla Access App

The latest release version is 0.7.1 beta. There are a few different ways to install Tecla

Access App on your Android-powered device:

1. Visit the Android Market on your device and search for “tecla”, then follow the

app installation procedure.

2. Visit the Android Marketplace on your computer and log in using the Google

account registered with your device, search for “Tecla Access” and click on the

“Install” button. The Tecla App will be downloaded automatically to your device.

2. Activate and select the Tecla Access keyboard

In order to start using the Tecla App for Android, you have to activate, select and

configure it using the Settings app.

1. To activate the Tecla Access App, go to Settings > Language & Keyboard and

check the box beside the “Tecla keyboard” entry.

2. A pop-up window will appear warning you about the sensitive nature of an input

method and prompting you to confirm whether you still want to activate it. Read

and accept the prompt.

3. Once the Tecla keyboard is active, the next step is to select it as your “input

method”. This step is different for different versions of Android, so before you

continue, find out which version of Android is running on your device. You can

do that by going to Settings > About phone > Android version.

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The method for selecting the Tecla Access

keyboard varies depending on the version of

Android running on your device.

a. For Android 3.x and below: Go to any text input box (hint: finding a

search box is probably the easiest) and long-press (press & hold) on it.

Then select the “Input method” entry in the pop-up window that

appears, and finally select “Tecla Access” from the list on the second pop-

up window. The following images summarize the process:

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The pairing process has to be done only

ONCE for each Android device that you

wish to connect the Tecla Shield to.

b. For Android 4.x and up: Go to Settings > Language & input and press on

“Default”, then select “Tecla Access” from the list on the pop-up window.

4. Finally, you can configure the Tecla Access App by going to Settings > Language

& keyboards > Tecla keyboard settings

3. Connect the App to the Tecla Shield

Connecting the Tecla Access Shield to the Android App may be a bit tricky, specially the

first time. The first thing you need to do is to pair the Shield with the handset. This only

has to be done once on each device that you wish to connect the Tecla Shield to.

1. Turn on the battery by pressing the on switch button, the lights will start blinking

and show the current charge.

2. Connect the battery to the Tecla Shield via the USB port

3. Go to Settings > Wireless & networks > Bluetooth Settings > Search for devices

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The Tecla Shield will connect to your Android

device using 1234 as the pairing code.

4. If the Shield is on, you should see it appear in the Bluetooth

devices list

5. Select the Shield to pair it with the phone using 1234 as the pairing code, the

Shield appears as “TeclaShieldUno-XXXX”, where XXXX is a random sequence of

characters.

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Once paired, you can go to Settings > Language & Keyboard > Tecla keyboard settings

and select Connect to Tecla Shield. After a few moments, the Shield should connect

automatically and show you the navigation keyboard.

4. Tecla Access Settings

General

Vibrate on keypress - Provides tactile feedback on keypress when active

Sound on keypress – Provides auditory feedback on keypress when active

Auto-capitalization – Provides automatic capitalization after punctuation marks when

active

Enable voice input – Adds a key for quick access to voice commands and speech

recognition to Tecla keyboard

Show accent keys – Adds a key to enable accents and other character variants to Tecla

keyboard

Alternative input settings

Connect to Shield – Searches for and connects to a nearby Tecla Shield

Configure switch actions – Change the actions assigned to each switch input.

Fullscreen switch mode – Allows use of the entire screen as a single switch

Show navigation keyboard – Shows the navigation when not entering text

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While in fullscreen switch mode, you can

quickly access the Tecla App Settings by

long-pressing anywhere on the screen.

Navigation keyboard timeout – Adjusts the delay before the navigation keyboard

automatically hides, options go from “Immediately” (hides instantly), 4, 8, 15, 30 or 60

seconds; to never (always shown).

Scanning settings

Enable self-scanning – Scans the keyboard automatically at intervals set in Scanning

speed, switch activation selects the highlighted action. Required when controlling Tecla

with 1 or 2 switches

Enable inverse scanning - This option starts scanning the keyboard on switch press and

selects the highlighted item on switch release

Scanning speed – Adjusts the scanning speed

Word suggestions settings

Quick fixes - Corrects commonly typed mistakes

Using the Tecla Access System

Fullscreen switch mode

The fullscreen switch mode can be used to evaluate the functionality of the Tecla Access

App even when a Tecla Shield is not available. In this mode, the entire screen can be

used as a single switch. Fullscreen switch mode works in combination with self-scanning

and inverse scanning. When self-scanning is selected, you can long-press (press & hold)

the screen to go back to the Tecla Access settings to quickly disable it.

Switch Access

The Tecla Shield has three input ports

available for connecting standard adapted

switches: two single switch 1/8” or 3.5mm

mono ports named Switch Port 1 (SP-1) and

Switch Port 2 (SP-2), and one ECU Port

providing up to four additional switch inputs

through a DSub 9-pin (also known as DB9)

connector compatible with the directional

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When using the Multiple Switch Adapter (sold

separately), you can mix and match up to six

single switches for a fully optimized experience.

controls available on standard powered wheelchair Environmental Control Units.

In combination with the Tecla Shield, the Tecla Access keyboard can be controlled by up

to 4 external switches. You can connect two mono switches directly to the Switch Ports

1 and 2 on the Tecla Shield or up to 4 switches to the ECU port via the DB9 connector.

• Single–switch access – Tecla Access can be used with as little as one switch in

self-scanning and inverse scanning modes. Connect your switch to the Switch

Port 1 (SP1) on the Tecla Shield to start using immediately.

• Dual-switch access - Tecla Access can be used with two switches in self and

inverse scanning modes. It is also possible to use two switches in step-scanning

mode by changing the corresponding switch actions with the Configure switch

actions setting in the Tecla Access Settings app. By default, a switch connected

to Switch Port 1 (SP1) on the Tecla Shield will activate the highlighted option

while a switch connected to the Switch Port 2 (SP2) on the Tecla Shield will

cancel the last selection (when the full keyboard is shown).

• Multiple switches (3+) –Tecla Access can be used with up to 4 switches

connected to the ECU port. By default, switch 1 activates a selection, switch 2

cancels the last selection, switch 3 moves to the next item in keyboard and

switch 4 moves to previous item in keyboard. This behavior can be changed and

restored at any time with the Configure switch actions setting in the Tecla

Access Settings app.

Powering the Tecla Shield

For the initial set-up of the connection between the Tecla Shield and the Android device

please refer to previous section “Connect the app to the Tecla Shield”. Once the initial

set-up has been completed follow these steps to start using the shield:

1. Turn battery on by pressing the switch, lights on battery will blink and show

charge level

2. Connect Tecla Shield to battery using the USB port

3. A red light will start blinking on the Tecla Shield

4. Turn on your Android device, if set-up has been completed properly it should

connect automatically

5. The red light on the Shield will turn green once connection has been established

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Controlling the Android User Interface

The Tecla Access app is an input method, this is a special kind of application that

integrates tightly with the operating system enabling access to most of its functions.

Navigation keyboard

When using an alternative input method (fullscreen switch or switch access) the

navigation keyboard allows you to navigate the Android user interface. The navigation

keyboard sits at the bottom of the screen.

The keys in the navigation keyboard have the following functions:

• The bent arrow key on the left can be used to send a “Back”command. This key if

often included as a hardware button in Android handsets.

• The directional arrows allow you to navigate the elements of the user interface

(icons, buttons, menus, etc…).

• The OK button allows you to activate user interface elements.

• The last key on the right allows you to show the full typing keyboard.

In self-scanning mode, the items on the keyboard are automatically highlighted at

intervals set in the Scanning speed setting, a switch connected to Switch Port 1 in the

Tecla Shield (or any other switch whose action is configured as “Select Highlighted”) will

activate the highlighted key. In inverse scanning mode, automatic scanning is initiated

when you press and hold the same switch, with selection occurring when this switch is

released.

When using 2 switches or more, you can control scanning by assigning the “Highlight

Next” and/or “Highlight previous” actions to any secondary switch using the Configure

switch actions setting in the Tecla Access Settings app.

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Typing keyboards

Tecla Access has a few typing keyboard depending on the context of the task. Typing

keyboards can be navigated in a row/column scanning fashion. Where you first select a

row and then an item on the selected row.

You can select the key on the right bottom corner to return to the navigation keyboard.

Other features

• Long-press Home reset: You can press and hold any switch for more than 3

seconds (except in inverse scanning mode) to send a Home command, which will

take you back to the Launcher or Home screen regardless of what state the

device is on. This is useful when inaccessible elements block your interaction

with the device.

• Any switch picks up call: When the phone is ringing, pressing any switch will pick

up the call in speakerphone mode.

Troubleshooting

If you cannot establish a connection between the Tecla Shield and the Android device or

if it keeps connecting and reconnecting follow this steps:

1. Uncheck Connect to Tecla Shield in Tecla Access settings

2. Unplug Tecla Shield from power source

3. Wait a few seconds

4. Plug Tecla Shield back to power source

5. Check Connect to Tecla Shield in Tecla Access settings

For more information visit: http://komodoopenlab.com/tecla/, or contact us at:

support@komodoopenlab.com