InvoTek wins da Vinci Award

Alma-based InvoTek won a da Vinci Award for Communication and Educational Aids. The award honors innovative developments and research in adaptive and assistive technologies for people with disabilities from organizations around the globe.

“We are honored and delighted to be selected from an international field of excellent firms,” Tom Jakobs, InvoTek’s president, said in a statement. “We designed Supplemental Speech Recognition (SSR) to help our clients communicate more efficiently, thereby reducing fatigue and frustration.”

SSR enables people with physical and speech disabilities to use their natural speech combined with a few keystrokes to enter text efficiently.

The Michigan chapter of the Multiple Sclerosis Society established the da Vinci Award in 2001 to “celebrate people who triumph over disabilities and honor those who have developed new technologies and innovations that enhance mobility and enable people to function at their fullest.”

Founded in 1988, InvoTek specializes in applying technology to the needs of people with severe disabilities. InvoTek also established the Be Extraordinary program in cooperation with the Arkansas Spinal Cord Commission. The program identifies people with severe disabilities who want to accomplish a life goal. The goal can be wide ranging — improved participation in their health care, access to books, better communication with family or friends, the ability to advocate on their own behalf, or accomplish an educational or vocational goal. Be Extraordinary uses tax-deductible contributions from generous donors to fund these projects.