Rzeszów/Scientists develop computer program to detect speech disorders in Parkinson's disease

The authors of the computer program for detecting and assessing speech disorders in Parkinson's disease are: Dr. Barbara Wilk, Małgorzata Augustyn and Dr. Anna Szlachta from the Department of Metrology and Diagnostic Systems of the Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, and a speech therapist from outside the university, Ewa Nowak.

The tool won the PRO SOCIETAS BONO Diamond Award during the International Invention and Innovation Show INTARG in Katowice, which took place on May 11-12.

According to Anna Worosz from the Rzeszów University of Technology press office, the program allows to carry out an objective assessment of speech disorders in Parkinson's disease based on the analysis of speech signal recorded with a microphone during a speech therapy examination. Its functions include periodic speech therapy examinations, assessing the stage of the disease and therapy planning.

'It determines various time, frequency and time -frequency parameters that can be used in medical diagnostics for objective assessment of the phonation, articulation and prosodic process, and to detect trembling voice that is typical in Parkinson's disease', Worosz explains.

Thanks to this application, patients can do speech therapy exercises that slow down the speech degradation process. The program can also be used by speech therapists and neurologists.

Researchers from the Rzeszów University of Technology have also developed the project 'Interactive solar-active wall - ISAS', which is part of the strategy of smart and environmentally friendly construction engineering.

This project also gained recognition at INTARG in Katowice and won a gold medal and the Award of the First Institute Researchers and Inventors (I.R.I.). The awards were presented to the author of the project, Dr. Jerzy Szyszka from the Department of Building Engineering of the Faculty of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Architecture.

Worosz explains that this interactive, solar-active thermal insulation wall with heating function (ISAS) is a kind of partition that can be widely used in the construction of residential, public and industrial buildings.

'It enables heat recovery from solar radiation, reducing the consumption of conventional energy needed to heat buildings. This interactive, simple in construction, maintenance -free wall automatically reacts by changing thermal resistance to sunlight', explains Worosz. (PAP)

author: Agnieszka Pipała

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