iPhone, iPad or iPod Touch - Switch Control

To start your Tecla Shield should be in Switch Access / Switch Control mode (blinking purplish white). If you are not sure how to change modes check here: Mode Change Instructions.

With the Tecla Shield ready for connection – the status indicator light should be blinking white and the switches should be connected to it - follow the steps below to set up your iOS device with Switch Control:

1.Go to Settings > Bluetooth. With Bluetooth enabled, you should see the Tecla Shield DOS listed under Devices as TeclaShieldDOS-XXXX (where XXXX is a random sequence). Click on it. TeclaShieldDOS-XXXX   should be under MY DEVICES and the status should change to Connected.

  

2. Go to Settings > General > Accessibility, then scroll down to Switch Control, and click on Switch Control to go to its settings.

3. Click on Switches. 

4. Click on Add New Switch…, and select External as the source. Press a switch connected to the Tecla Shield. In the New Switch pop-up window press Save, and the switch will be assigned the name Switch # (where # is a consecutive number, starting with 1 for the first switch). If you want to assign the switch a different name, type it in the text box before pressing Save.

  

  

5.In Actions assign the switch an action from the list. If you are using a single switch (or you are using more than one switch, but this is your main selection switch), choose the “Select Item” action.  See the “Available Actions” description on the Notes section below for a brief description of other possible switch actions that you can assign to optional additional switches besides your main selection switch. The “Recommended Configurations” table on Notes section below may also be helpful for assigning switch actions. 

   

6. Repeat steps 4 and 5 for all of your switches.

7. Go back to Switch Control, and activate Switch Control by clicking on the on/off control. At this point, you should be able to control iOS9 using the Switch Control through the Tecla Shield.

Notes:

• If you are using single-switch access you need to select Auto Scanning. Go to Switch Control > Auto Scanning Style and select Auto Scanning.

• When using a single switch, you can access the Scanner Menu in two different ways, depending on whether you turn the Auto Tap option on or off. If it is off, the Scanner Menu will come up every time you activate your switch.  If Auto Tap is on, a switch activation will do the equivalent of a tap, and you can bring up the Scanner Menu by double tapping your switch.
• You can learn more about Switch Control and its features by visiting this website: http://support.apple.com/kb/HT5886

Available Actions

Scanner

• Select Item – Selects the highlighted item. If you are using a single switch, you should assign it to this action.
• Scanner Menu – Opens the Scanner Menu to access the Switch Control advanced functions and settings.
• Resume Auto Scanning – Restarts auto scanning of actionable items.
• Move To Next Item – Highlights the next actionable item.
• Move To Previous Item – Highlights the previous actionable item.
• Stop Scanning – Stops automatic scanning.

System

• Tap – Taps the highlighted item.
• App Switcher – Opens the App Switcher.
• Home Button – Sends a Home Button event.
• Notification Center – Opens the Notification Centre.
• Decrease Volume – Decreases the device volume.
• Increase Volume – Increases the device volume.
• Siri – Calls Siri for voice control of the device.

Press and Hold:

If you used the Tecla Shield before iOS7, you may have become used to the ability to call certain functions by pressing and holding the switches.

In iOS7 mode, this feature is disabled by default to avoid possible confusion for new users. Press-and-hold functions can be activated easily by pressing the + button on the Tecla Shield, although you may need to press it a few times to find the right hold time for you. A press-and-hold on any switch will toggle the keyboard, while a longer hold on SP1 will also send a Home button event and (longer still) bring up Siri.

Recommended Configurations

Single & Dual Switches

Number of Switches	Auto Scanning	SP-1	SP-2	Auto Tap
Single	On	Select Item	-	Off
Single (user can double click)	On	Select Item	-	On
Dual	Off	Select Item	Resume Auto Scanning	Off
Dual	Off	Select Item	Move to Next Item	On or Off
Dual (to avoid having to double click)	On	Select Item	Scanner Menu	On

Multiple Switches (Auto Scanning Off)

Number of Switches	ECU1 (Forward)	ECU2 (Back)	ECU3 (Left)	ECU4 (Right)
3 Switches	Tap		Scanner Menu	Move to Next Item
4 Switches	Select Item	Scanner Menu	Move to Previous Item	Move to Next Item
5 Switches	Select Item	Scanner Menu	Move to Previous Item	Move to Next Item

Further Customization

In addition, switch control can be highly customized to suit the specific needs of many individuals. Additional settings include:  

• Auto Scanning Time: Adjusts the rate at which the screen items are being scanned.
• Pause on First Item: Adds a pause for the first item in a cycle
• Loops: Sets the number of scanning cycles Switch Control will perform before turning off.
• Long Press: Enables a 2^nd function in each switch after pressing and holding a set time. The Long Press option will be available in the Switches settings when Long Press is enabled.
• Tap Behavior: You can select from Default (the Scanner Menu is shown after each selection, then you need to select Tap), Auto Tap (tap occurs automatically after a set time if no 2^nd switch click is received. If a 2^nd switch click is received, the Scanner Menu appears) and Always Tap (Switch Control taps the item with no delay, the Scanner Menu is always available at the end of the scanning cycle)
• Always Tap Keyboard Keys: When enabled, keyboard keys are automatically tapped when selected.
• Hold Duration: Set a hold time before performing an action (For users with poor movement control where unintentional short clicks are common – the device would then wait until a longer click is registered to eliminated these false positives)
• Ignore Repeat: Set to ignore repeated inputs (useful for users with poor movement controls (like tremors) where multiple clicks are common for each intended “Select” action)
• Gliding Cursor Speed: Adjust the scanning speed in Point Mode (the “selection bar” can scan very quickly in the default settings and many users may want this slowed down)
• Sounds Effects: Switch Control will provide auditory feedback when scanning.
• Speech: Switch Control will read names of elements being scanned.
• Menu Items: Enables customization of the items that appear in the Scanner Menu
• Group Items: When enabled Items will be grouped (i.e. rows) when scanned.
• Large Cursor: Enables a thicker scanner frame.
• Cursor color: Allows selection of scanning frame colour.
• Saved Gestured: Create and saved custom gestures that can be access through this menu item.