Orbit Teacher Remote Application User Guide
- June 4, 2024
- Orbit
Table of Contents
Orbit Teacher Remote Application
Introduction
The Orbit Teacher app is a revolutionary platform allowing teachers in mainstream classrooms to seamlessly interact with blind or visually impaired students.
Teachers are now able to connect to their student’s Orbit Reader 20 braille display by connecting to the app via Bluetooth on a smartphone, computer, or tablet. It then provides a real-time text translation of the braille being typed or read by the student using the device.
The Orbit Teacher Remote allows teachers to effectively teach in a remote setting. Through an internet connection, the teacher can view the student’s braille display and can type the text that will appear on the student’s braille display.
The system requires just an Orbit Reader braille display and two inexpensive
Android tablets or phones to provide internet connectivity.
The teacher needs:
- The Orbit Teacher app running on an Android phone or tablet
- (Optional) Teachers may also use an Orbit Reader 20 braille display if they wish
The Orbit Reader is connected via Bluetooth to the Orbit Teacher app on the
phone or tablet. This document uses the term “tablet” to mean either a cell
phone or tablet. Tablets must be connected to Internet through WiFi, while
phones have the option to link cellularly.
The Orbit Teacher app is fully accessible through the TalkBack screen reader
that is available for Android.
If you need assistance for various issues such as downloading and installing
the application on an Android phone, establishing the connections with OR-20
or completing the first-time user sign up/login, relevant instructions are
included in subsequent sections of the document.
The interface
The diagram below shows the basic interface.
Orbit Teacher Remote – Teacher User Guide
The essential devices are the teacher’s Android Phone with the Orbit Teacher app, the student’s android phone with the Orbit Teacher app, and the student’s Orbit Reader 20.
Connect with Wi-Fi
If your device is not connected to Wi-Fi you need to connect it with Wi-Fi to
get internet access. To configure Wi-Fi, you need to perform the following
steps:
Option 1:
- Swipe down from the top of the screen.
- Tap and hold Wi-Fi.
- Turn on Use Wi-Fi.
- Tap a listed network. Networks that require a password.
- After entering a password tap on connect.
Option 2:
- Open your device’s Settings app.
- On some devices, the Wi-Fi option is directly available. If the Wi-Fi option is not available then tap on Network & Internet or Connections then tap on Wi-Fi.
- Tap on your desired Wi-Fi listed on the networks.
- Enter the password for the Wi-Fi.
- After entering a password, tap on connect.
Download TalkBack
To check whether TalkBack downloaded on your android device need to perform the following steps
-
Go to Settings
-
Tap on Accessibility
-
In some devices, you can directly see the TalkBack, if you cannot find TalkBack in Accessibility then tap on option installed services/additional settings option from Accessibility
-
You can see the option TalkBack if it’s installed.
-
If TalkBack is not installed on your device you can download it from Google Play to download TalkBack you need to perform the following steps
-
Go to the application list and open the Play Store application
-
After opening the Play Store you can search for the Android Accessibility suite or use this link to download the android accessibility suite:
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.google.android. marvin.talkback -
Now tap on Install
-
After installation is completed, you can find the TalkBack on the above-mentioned path
-
Turn on-off TalkBack
To enable TalkBack you need to follow the following steps
-
You can directly turn on/off TalkBack by pressing the Volume
Up + Volume Down- keys together. If you are not able to use these keys then you need to activate TalkBack from Android settings, please perform the following steps:- Go to Settings
- Tap on Accessibility
- In some device you can directly see TalkBack, if you cannot find TalkBack in Accessibility, then tap on the option ‘Installed services/Additional settings’ option from the Accessibility
- Tap on TalkBack will ask you to turn on/off TalkBack
How to use
The first step is to establish an Internet connection between the student’s
tablet and the teacher’s tablet. Because the Orbit Teacher app does not
include voice communication capabilities, the teacher and student must be able
to speak over a normal phone call or platform such as Zoom or Skype for
effective interaction.
Next, the student selects “Student Profile” from the menu in the app, and will log in to the app using a valid email ID. The app automatically generates a user ID and password that are displayed to the student. The student must then share his user ID and password with the teacher over the phone, text, email, etc., allowing the teacher to initiate the connection.
Next, the teacher selects “Teacher Profile” from the app’s menu and signs in using a valid email ID. Fields will appear that requires the teacher to enter the user ID and password given by the student. After entering this information, the teacher will choose the “Connect” button on the screen.
This login and sign-up is a one-time process.
When the teacher’s app is connecting to the student’s app, the student will receive a notification regarding the incoming connection request, along with the name of the person requesting the connection. They will then either accept or reject the connection request.
Both sides will receive a notification once the student accepts or rejects the connection request.
Getting Familiar with Android phones and TalkBack
If you are unfamiliar with the use of Android phones and TalkBack, please
refer to the “Operating Android Phone- Beginner’s Guide” document supplied
with the package before proceeding further.
Downloading and Installing the application
Download the application
You can download the application from our website at
http://www.orbitresearch.com/support/orbit-teacher-remote-support/. You can
either download directly to your Android device, or you can first download the
file to your computer and then transfer it to your Android device.
Copy the application to the Android device from a PC
If you have downloaded the Orbit Teacher Remote APK file directly to your
Android device, you may skip this section.
Transfer APK file from a Windows PC to Android Phone
- Save Orbit Teacher vX.X.X package from the mail/server to your windows PC.
- Connect the Android device with the Windows PC via a USB cable.
- As you connect the Android device with the PC, enable the “Connect as Media device (MTP)” that appears in the notification bar.
- Copy the Android application “Orbit Teacher_X.X.X.apk” from the folder named “Orbit Teacher – Android Application vX.X.X” within the Orbit Teacher vX.X.X package saved on your Windows PC and paste it into the internal storage of your Android device.
Transfer APK file from a Mac to Android Phone
- Save Orbit Teacher vX.X.X package from the mail/server to your Mac.
- Download and install “Android File Transfer” to your computer.
- Unlock your Android device and connect it with the Mac via a USB cable.
- As you connect the Android device with the Mac, enable the “Connect as Media device (MTP)” that appears in the notification bar.
- Once you connect the Android device with the Mac “Android File Transfer” will open automatically.
- Drag the Android application “Orbit Teacher_vX.X.X.apk” from the folder named “Orbit Teacher – Android Application vX.X.X” within the Orbit Teacher vX.X.X package saved on your Mac and drop it in the internal storage of the Android device.
Install
Open the File Manager application on your Android device and navigate to the
location where you had copied the Orbit Teacher_vX.X.X.apk and tap on the
“Orbit Teacher_vX.X.X.apk” file to install the app.
Note: If there is no File Manager installed in your Fire Tablet/Android phone, then install the “ES File Explorer” File Manager from the Default App store. Amazon App store is the default App Store for the Fire Tablet and Google Play store is the default App store for android phones.
By default, Android prevents users from installing applications from sources other than the Google Play store. To allow installation from non-marketplace sources, you need to enable the “Unknown Sources” setting on the device before attempting to install the application. The actual location of this setting may vary between different phone models but usually, it is found at “Settings→Security & Privacy”.
Permissions
While installing the Orbit Teacher, the Android system will ask you to grant
permission to the application to access various capabilities. Orbit Teacher
needs the following permissions to run:
- Access Bluetooth Settings: This permission is required so that if the Bluetooth is turned off at the time of using the Orbit Teacher, it can request the user to turn Bluetooth back on.
- Approximate Location: This permission is required because Android relies upon location services to retrieve the identity of the nearby Bluetooth devices. It is only required while pairing. The location can be turned off once the app is paired with OR-20.
- Storage: The application needs permission to let it read a text/BRF file from the storage. The application will not modify or delete any storage contents.
Note: On denying any of the above permissions, the application will not work properly.
Launching the application
Now that the application is downloaded and installed on the device, you can
now launch the application.
This will land you on a welcome screen you will see two options. “Orbit
Teacher Tutorial” and “Take me to app”.
Orbit Teacher Remote – Teacher User Guide
Figure-3: Welcome Screen
If you are a new user and wish to learn about how to use this application, you
can select “Orbit Teacher Tutorial” to open the tutorial.
Otherwise, you can select the “Take me to app” option which will redirect you
to a screen from where you can select your role and further use the
application.
Orbit Teacher Remote – Teacher User Guide
Orbit Teacher Tutorials
Figure-4: Tutorial Screen
This Tutorial has the following options using which you can learn about the
Orbit Teacher and also about Orbit Reader.
Tour of the Application
This page gives you a tour of different features in the form of slides. You
can press “next” to switch from one slide to another.
Orbit Teacher Remote – Teacher User Guide
Quick Start Guide
This page gives you a list of useful shortcut commands to operate your Orbit
Reader. This page is accessible using TalkBack.
Orbit Teacher Remote – Teacher User Guide
Figure-6: Quick Start Guide Screen
Manual
This page opens the application manual using which you can learn about how to
use the Orbit Teacher application step by step in detail. This page is
accessible using TalkBack.
Orbit Teacher Remote – Teacher User Guide
Figure-7: Manual Screen
Go to App
This option redirects you to the main application.
Feedback
This redirects you to the compose email option of the Gmail application and
you can share your feedback with us.
Main Application
Once you launch the main application using the “Go to App” option, it
redirects you to the screen asking you to choose your role between a teacher
or a student. If you are a teacher or a person helping a visually impaired
student remotely, choose “I am a teacher”. If you are a student receiving help
from the teacher, choose “I am a student”.
Orbit Teacher Remote – Teacher User Guide
Figure-8: Select Your Role Screen
The application will launch the respective home screen depending on the role
chosen, teacher, or student. The home screen and available controls are
slightly different between the two roles.
12 I am a Teacher
If you selected the “I am a Teacher” option, it takes you to the home screen
for the Teacher’s role.
Orbit Teacher Remote – Teacher User Guide
Figure-9: Home screen for teacher’s role
Connect with the Orbit Reader 20
For a teacher, it is optional to connect with OR-20. If you connect, you can
use your OR-20 display to view the student’s display and use the OR-20 keypad
to control the student’s OR-20. However, all these features are available with
the application as well otherwise.
To connect to an OR-20 for the first time, tap on the “Connect OR-20” button. It opens a page showing a list of already paired OR-20 available for connection. If your OR-20’s serial number appears on the listed devices, tap on it to initiate the connection.
Orbit Teacher Remote – Teacher User Guide
If your OR-20 is not already paired with your phone, it will not be shown on the list. You can tap on the “Scan for devices” button to initiate the first- time pairing. It will show all the OR-20 in the range to be paired.
Orbit Teacher Remote – Teacher User Guide
Figure-11: Scan devices button
Tap on the serial number of the OR-20 you wish to connect to. If that unit is
not paired already, the Orbit Teacher will generate a pop-up message asking to
pair with the new OR-20. Tap on the “Pair” button on the pop-up message to
establish the connection.
Once connected, it displays the serial number of the connected device at the bottom of the screen and mirrors the display on the display area of the application showing the display in the translated visual fonts as well as Braille fonts.
Orbit Teacher Remote – Teacher User Guide
Figure-12: Home screen for teacher’s role
Once the connection is established, the “Connect to OR-20” button turns into the “Disconnect OR-20” button. To disconnect the OR-20, tap the same. To manually disconnect from the OR-20 keypad, press SPACE + D (Dots 1 4 5 7).
The connection is closed automatically when you put the OR-20 to sleep or turn it off. The connection is also closed automatically when you close the application. Note that the application and the OR-20 remain connected when you put the phone/tablet on standby (screen lock).
OR-20 reconnects to the last connected host when you wake it up from sleep or turn it on provided the phone/tablet’s Bluetooth is ON and the Orbit Teacher application is running. If you had locked the phone screen, while the application was still running, any activity on the OR-20 wakes the phone/tablet and re-connects.
To connect manually, follow the same process as you followed for the first- time connection except that you don’t have to pair it again.
Login
If you are using the application for the very first time, then you must sign-
up and login using your authentic email ID. It is required so that the
application server can create a unique identity for you which will be then
used by the student to identify your connection request and allow the
connection. You can still connect to OR-20 without login. It is required only
when you wish to connect to another application over the internet.
You can tap on the “Login to get remote ID” button to open the sign-up/login page.
Login is a one-time process. The login information remains with the application on the phone. Unless the application data is cleared/deleted from the phone settings, or you log out, you are not required to do the login again.
There is an option for sign-up for an account for first-time users. For the
sign-up, you will be required to provide Full name, the username (alias),
email id, and the password of your choice.
Orbit Teacher Remote – Teacher User Guide
Figure-13: sing up page
Once you have an account, you can use your ID and password on different
phones, but not at the same time. You should log out from one phone before you
log in to the other phone using the same account.
In case you lose your password, you will be able to retrieve it using the
“Forgot password” option from the sign-up/log in page.
Once you log in successfully, it will take you back to the home screen.
Orbit Teacher Remote – Teacher User Guide
Figure-15: Home screen for teacher’s role
Connection to Student
To connect to a student, tap on the “Connect Student” button. It opens up a
page where you can enter the user id and password of the student you wish to
connect to and press the “connect” button to send the connection request.
Alternatively, if you had connected to the same student in the past, their names are displayed in the history section. You can simply tap on the name from the history list to initiate the connection process. In this case, you are not required to enter the connection credentials again.
Orbit Teacher Remote – Teacher User Guide
Figure-16: Connect to the student page
Once the student initiates, accepts, or rejects the request, you will receive
a notification message saying the connection request is accepted/rejected or
the error with details.
Viewing Student’s OR-20 Display
Once connected, it will switch to the mirrored screen page where you can see
the mirrored data of the Student’s OR-20 on the Text display window as well as
on the display screen of your OR-20 if it is connected. Any changes happening
on the Student’s OR-20 display are reflected in real-time on your phone screen
as well as on your OR-20 display.
If you wish to use normal functionalities of your OR-20 you can disable teacher mode on your OR-20 by pressing the hotkey Space + T (Dot 2 3 4 5) + Dot 7. You can return to teacher mode by pressing the same hotkeys again.
Orbit Teacher Remote – Teacher User Guide
Remotely Navigating and editing files on Student’s OR-20
You can access and control the student’s OR–20 using:
- On-Screen keyboards
- Physical keyboards
Using these keyboards, you can entirely control and operate the student’s OR-20. For example, you can open, read, or edit files and change the menu configurations.
You cannot put the student’s OR-20 to sleep or turn it off remotely. You cannot perform the hard reset and putting the device into firmware upgrade mode.
On-screen Keyboards
The following on-screen keyboards are available for you to use.
- The Virtual Perkins keypad
- Third-party keyboard applications
The default is the Virtual Perkins keypad, but you can switch between the two by tapping on the edit button available in the top right corner of the text display area.
It offers the same functionality as the OR-20 keypad. (i.e. you can use the pan keys of the virtual Perkins keypad to perform the file navigation or press the hot key to open the menu on the student’s OR-20).
Orbit Teacher Remote – Teacher User Guide
Figure-17: Mirrored text page with the on-screen virtual keypad
For phones, with small screen sizes, if it is not possible or convenient to
use multiple key presses, then you can use “one-handed mode”. When a one-
handed mode is enabled, you can press the multiple keys in sequence and then
press the “submit” button to trigger the key input. The keys will turn green
as you press them. If you pressed the wrong key sequence, then you can press
the same key again to deregister the key. Pressing the key again
(deregistering) shall return to its default color.
For example, if you wish to press select + Up to open the menu, you can first press “select”, and then “up”, and then choose the “Submit” button, so that OR-20 will receive it as simultaneous keypress and it will open the menu on student’s OR-20.
Third-party keyboard applications
You can use the third-party keyboard applications installed on your phone
for typing but note that they usually don’t have the navigation keys. If you
are using
Orbit Teacher Remote – Teacher User Guide
these applications to perform navigation, you need to switch to the virtual Perkins keyboard. These applications will be used only for the editable fields for the OR-20 screen, such as file editor or find command.
External physical keyboards
You can use the following external physical keyboards:
- If connected, using the Teacher’s OR-20 Perkins style keypad
- Orbit Writer paired with the phone (It does not have panning keys)
- External Qwerty keypad (Does not support navigation functionality)
Orbit Teacher Remote – Teacher User Guide
Context Menu
The context menu is available at the top right corner of the screen for both
Teachers and Student. It offers the following options
- Change your Role: This allows you to be able to switch between student and teacher Roles
- Select language table: This lets you choose the translation table to be used for Braille to text conversion when you are working with a BRF file
- Activate License: This lets you to activate the license
- Check License Info: This options gives an information about current activated license
- Set Font Size: This Lets you adjust the size of the fonts being displayed
- Read a file from phone: Opens up an offline reading mode where you can read the files form the phone
- Show/Hide braille font: This Lets you show/hide braille fonts on the screen of the application
- Do not speak/Speak braille display text: This will not announce the braille display text of the application
- Show/Hide Braille Keyboard: This lets you show/hide the braille keyboard in teacher mode of the application
- Go to tutorial: Opens up a tutorial screen to guide you about the application
- Enable logging: Enables debug logging for developers
- About: Displays the version number of the application installed