Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE: Do you have "T" coil compatibility for hearing impaired customers?

This is topic Do you have "T" coil compatibility for hearing impaired customers? in forum Ground Level at Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE.

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Posted by Scott Jentsch (Member # 1681) on 03-04-2010, 11:59 AM:

I received a feedback message recently asking us to note which theaters have installed equipment that "will directly communicate with the "T" coil in most modern hearing aids."

I did some looking around at the web sites for the major movie chains and couldn't find anything that mentioned such compatibility.

From what I've seen in the research I've done, it seems like a nice feature to offer.

Is this common in theaters?

Is there another term to look for that this might be referenced as?

Posted by Louis Bornwasser (Member # 3063) on 03-04-2010, 01:41 PM:

Wiliams Sound calls this a "neck loop".

European folks know this as a "Telecoil." This should have been done here. There is nothing to hand out since each hearing aid, by statute, has a telecoil reciver. and each auditorium has a coil wound around the room. Perfection! Louis

Posted by Caleb Johnstone-Cowan (Member # 3710) on 03-04-2010, 07:50 PM:

We have an induction loop/T compatibility at our tills , the user switches their hearing aid to the 'T' position and hopefully our voice is amplified for them.

We also have DTS Access in several screens and it's very common across the UK. It covers subtitling and audio-description, but the headsets for the audio-described soundtrack also provide a louder standard soundtrack by flicking a switch. Someone might be able to correct me but I think this is a more reliable and inclusive method than a T Loop.

Posted by Tom Inglis (Member # 5181) on 03-05-2010, 01:07 AM:

we didn't until very recently, only utilising headsets. A customer complained, and head office sped to our rescue... only took a couple of days.

Posted by Manny Montes (Member # 5639) on 03-05-2010, 11:32 AM:

Tcoil seems interesting, right now we are using IR headsets which really have way too much static and depending on your spot in the auditorium its flaky at best.

Posted by Frank Angel (Member # 248) on 03-06-2010, 09:46 PM:

Try covering the area of a 2500 seat auditorium with an infrared singal! We've found it nearly impossible to cover the center of the room without very large IR transmitters all over the place to the point where they actually become a detriment to the clean lines of the architecture. Plus, we never get more than one or two people each season asking for a headset, so we are lucky. Yet the law requires ALL seats to be available with hearing-assist service and that the number of headseats be equal to 10% of the seating capacity(!) That's 200+ freakin headsets.

I'm sorry, but that's just idiotic. And the way we deal with it....we simply don't comply. The only way we would be called on it is if someone were to complain, which would have to be the 201th person who couldn't get a headset because we ran out, which of course will never happen. As for coverage, so far, no one who has actually gotten a headset has complained that a certain seat isn't getting the signal. So we are pretty safe on that too. Sometimes well meaning laws wind up nonfunctional and not accomplishing what they indended to do.

I wonder if the ADA changes the percent of headsets required if you also have TCoil service. Seems like that requirement for 10% of seating cap should take into consideration that a good number of people who need hearing assist will be able to use the TCoil system instead of needing the IR headsets.

Posted by Chris Slycord (Member # 4239) on 03-07-2010, 01:59 AM:

quote: Frank Angel
201th

Is that similar to having the 83st of something? [Razz]

Posted by Steve Guttag (Member # 268) on 03-07-2010, 02:01 AM:

ADA isn't 10% but 4%...perhaps NYC laws are more stringent. For Large singles...we always use RF since we get 100% coverage without line of sight.

Steve

Posted by Cody Martin (Member # 2523) on 03-07-2010, 08:17 AM:

To add my two cents in here for theatres that aren't ADA compliant. When I was working at my previous job someone filed an ADA complaint because our IR system wasn't working. It turned out that the IR leds had burned out since they had been on every day for the past 7-8 years. To remedy the situation at a fraction of re-ledding, I picked up a few of the IR transmitters used in cars and the associated headsets. By installing 2 or 3 of these small units we were able to cover most of the auditorium space (minus the area right in front of the screen). If you get the IR transmitters that have an a/b channel you can also broadcast an even more amplified signal. I think we spent less than $50/screen for the transmitters/headsets/and 12v power supply.

Cody