While it is expected that people would know the correct spellings of commonly used words, it is actually quite uncommon to find people who can spell all commonly used words correctly all the time. More people make spelling mistakes than those getting it right. One can blame the autocorrect features that people have got used to. But the truth is that spelling mistakes are as common and natural as is difficulty in solving a high school math problem. Computers and laptops have also affected another ability of humans: writing. Most of us don’t use a pen at all. There are many who struggle to sign checks because of the widespread use of credit or debit cards and most people have very poor penmanship because typing has become the norm.
Lernstift Digital Pen aims to address both of these problems. It aims at improving the sense of spelling and penmanship. The digital pen will vibrate whenever there is a spelling mistake. It will also vibrate if the writing is illegible. Right now, the pen is confined to spellings and penmanship. The developers intend to upgrade the software which will also allow the pen to identify grammatical mistakes. Now, the pen can only correct spellings of a word at a time. In future, the pen may be able to recognize grammatical errors in entire sentences.
The pen can be used with a pencil, fountain pen or a ball pen. It is aimed at kids who want to perfect their spelling skills but the pen can be used by anyone who wants to ensure correct spelling when they write something. The Lernstift Digital Pen contains a mini computer, a motion sensor, memory, processor, vibration module and Wi-Fi. The pen can be hooked to smart phone apps and an open forum may be set up for developers to upgrade the features or bring in new settings and functions to the pen. The pen looks bulky but the developers claim that it would be ergonomic enough for kids and adults. The pen would presently be able to identify spelling mistakes in German and English. More languages would be added later as the product gets tested and rolls into production.
The Orthography Mode of the pen can recognize spelling mistakes but it doesn’t prompt someone to get the spelling right. The pen doesn’t talk or display the right spelling. The Calligraphy Mode indicates flaws in penmanship or when some writing is illegible but it doesn’t tell you how to better the form of writing. These are two major shortcomings of the pen that should be looked at.
