The Randall Reader Development Diary

Randall Reader Owner’s instruction manual

Randall Reader Owner’s instruction manual

V 0.1 Drafted July 2025.

This is an entirely aspirational instruction manual. It has been written for the end user to understand how the machine will work, but also for me to understand what I have to program, and then what to tell the designers and printers who will turn the prototype into a physical product. Before I even start working on the product, I am seeking any feedback and input from anyone interested, so we can make the best device possible. The Randall Reader does not yet exist. I also don’t really like the name… Please advise.

About this guide

Welcome to the Randall Reader!

Thank you for purchasing a Randall Reader. This is an exciting, community-backed book reading machine, and your support has not only gained you a fantastic piece of speech synthesis history but a quality machine that I hope will last you for years to come. This product isn’t made by a corporate giant with millions in the bank, nor is it a design from a company with a proven track record in the accessibility industry. It is a personal dream of mine, made manifest through my time, energy and determination, and your financial support and willingness to take a risk on an unproven but exciting piece of equipment.

The centrepiece of the Randall Reader is the RC Systems V-Stamp voice synthesizer. This Gives the Reader the classic trademark Doubletalk voice, widespread and popular within the blind community for decades. The use of this type of synthesizer decreased dramatically when it became economical to produce voices entirely through software. Yet the hardware remains available, and the power requirements are such that we can have extremely competitive battery life, a high rate of speech if we so wish, and an authentic voice familiar to thousands of us from “the olden days”, which we’ve not been able to use for quite some time using modern technologies.

In buying a Randall Reader, you’re also buying into an ethos of replaceability and reusability. Each of the physical components inside the case of your Reader is your property, as is the source code of the software running on the microcontroller inside the device. You are at liberty to unscrew the case, pull out its brain and reprogram it. If someone has added a feature in an online community before it becomes an official update, nobody will censure you for installing it. And if you ever need to reset to what you had out-of-the-box, the code it came with will always be available to you. Similarly, the designs for all the accessories where they have been 3d printed are also available. If you suddenly need to stand your unit on a desk for a prolonged period rather than using the pocket clip and I’ve stopped selling them, you can get a different mount printed without needing to design one. If your battery has worn down through years of use, you can just go in and replace it with a new one. if a button on your keypad breaks (perhaps because you’ve been reading books for a decade and the play/pause key has given up), you can just open up the case, unplug the keypad from the circuit board, and slip a new one in. Finally, if you decide that you want to move the v-stamp synthesizer into a new housing, such as for a desktop device, it’s entirely your call. You have bought a working (and possibly assembled) product, but also the right to use and reuse all its parts for your own reasons in your own way. Without your payment, the device you might be holding in your hands this very minute would not exist, and that is something I am amazed and humbled by. So thank you for your support. Thank you for sharing in my wonder at this amazing voice technology, designed decades ago and still with life to live. And thank you for being a part of the journey with me. Welcome to the randall Reader. Read on to know how to use it.

Quick start guide

Introduction

The Randall reader is designed to read textual content you place onto its memory card using a computer, phone or tablet. It ships with a copy of this user guide preinstalled and the battery will have some charge due to testing before it is sent to you.

It is important you understand what the Reader won’t support from the outset. This includes:

Note: if you have ordered the self-assembly version of the reader, your battery may be empty as you assemble the device. Before proceeding with the instructions in this subsection, either connect the USB-C cable to a power source after assembly or operate the unit whilst it’s sat on a charging stand if you have the wireless charging “Qi” case.

physical overview

Note: if you have ordered the self-assembly version of the reader, you will need to carefully follow the detailed instructions in appendix 1 of the owner’s guide, before ending up with a product as described in this subsection.

The face of the case

The Randall Reader’s front face is its telephone-style keypad. It has, as you might have gathered, 12 keys, in a familiar layout with 1 on the top left, and the hash or pound key on the bottom right. Pressing these keys, or sometimes pressing and holding them for secondary functions, is how you will control the reader. The keypad is set into the upper portion of the front of the Reader, with a speaker grill beneath the buttons. There is nothing else on the front of the unit.

The top edge

The top edge is where all the connectors and ports live. From left to right with the keypad facing you or pointing upward, they are:

The headphone jack will cut-out the speaker when you have inserted headphones. This is a mechanical process, so it’s not recommended to do so while playing in case you should miss something in your book. Inline control of playback and volume is a future planned upgrade with supported headphones like the Apple ear pods. You can absolutely choose to use a cable to connect this to another speaker output as well if you prefer.

The lock switch is designed both to stop inadvertent keypresses draining your Reader’s battery when it’s not in use, and to allow you to keep reading without interruption if the keypad is accidentally pressed. It will arrive in the left, locked position, and needs to be slid to the right before you can make use of any of the reader’s controls. Remember to reverse the polarity if you are using the Reader attached to your clothing, i.e. locking it will then mean pushing the switch to your right.

The Micro SD card slot is intended for FAT32 formatted cards up to 32 GB in size. This is enough for thousands of text files but there are options for extending support to higher capacity cards in the future if necessary. As with most of these designs, the slot is spring loaded. Push the card firmly into place until it clicks, and push and release the card until the spring mechanism is triggered to allow you to remove it. attempting to remove a card while the reader is speaking or still awake is discouraged and could corrupt the data on the card. In all cases it is recommended to remove or replace the card only when the Reader is in its sleeping state, and specifically not reading, paused, connected to a power source or a wireless network.

The USB-C port has 3 distinct functions: providing power to charge the batteries, displaying the contents of the SD card to a connected computer, phone or tablet, and allowing access to the V-Stamp through an emulated serial port interface. The USB host function is the default setting, so attaching the Reader to your computer will present a familiar drive where you can copy and paste files, make folders and so forth. The serial port is a feature for more technically-minded users. You can also of course connect to a wall outlet, USB hub or portable power bank to top-up the Reader’s internal battery.

The back of the case

There are 2 flavours of “back” available for your Randall Reader. Both come with pocket clips, designed to let you attach the Reader to your clothing or other convenient points. There is no other physical feature on either back, but the Qi version of the back has a wireless charging coil inside, allowing you to place the Reader on a charging pad as an additional method of recharging the battery.

Note: wireless charging uses magnetic fields that are not safe to come into close contact with pacemakers and some other internal medical devices. If you are using a Qi-compatible version of the Reader, please ensure you fully understand the safe distances you need to maintain for your health. Nobody will be sent a Qi-compatible model of the Reader without explicitly asking for one.

Note: The pocket clip is attached with a couple of small screws. You can remove this and replace the clip with a variety of other accessories, such as a weighted base to stand the Reader on a desktop, a suction mount to connect the Reader to a vertical surface, a neck lanyard, a gooseneck arm or a VESA mountpoint.

The remaining edges of the Reader

The left, right and bottom edges of the Reader have no ports or switches. There is a pinhole reset, details to follow.

Note: Although the battery is user removable, it is not seated in a door. The case needs to be unscrewed to gain access to the battery. All internal components operate on safe, low voltage, so there is no risk of electrical shock when handling the electronics inside, although you are advised to ensure the Reader is not connected to a power source and the lock switch is enabled before unscrewing the case.

Playback and voice adjustment

To start reading a file, simply unlock the Reader by sliding the lock switch on the top edge to the right, then press the play key, which is the number 5 on the telephone-style keypad. If this is the first time you’ve done so, this user guide will start to play. Pressing the 5 key again will pause playback.

To lower the volume, either while playing or paused, press the 1 key. To raise the volume, press 3. If you do so whilst a device is playing, the content you are hearing will change volume without interruption. If you are paused, the Reader will announce the volume level. By default, you will hear a beep if the volume cannot go any higher or lower. If you prefer you can turn on wrapping in the settings, to allow 1 and 3 keys to cycle through all the volume options.

Note: with wrapping on, the Reader will move from very quiet to very loud with a single keypress, as well as the opposite. Please keep this in mind if you should choose to enable the wrapping feature. You can change this behaviour by setting the “wrapping” option to “off”.

By default, the Reader stores separate volume levels for the internal loudspeaker and connected headphones. If you set these differently, the volume will adjust automatically to the previous setting. For example, if you are using volume 12 with the built-in speaker and then plug in headphones, you might turn them down to volume 6. If you then unplug the headphones, the volume will automatically revert to level 12 until you change it again, and if you plug your headphones back in, the Reader will reset the volume back to 6 until you adjust it while they are connected. You can change this behaviour by setting the “volume mode” option to “unified”.

To decrease the speed or rate of speech, either while playing or paused, press and hold the 1 key. To increase the rate, press and hold 3. If you do so whilst a device is playing, the content you are hearing will change speed without interruption. If you are paused, the Reader will announce the new level.

By default, you will hear a beep if the speed cannot go any faster or slower. If you prefer you can turn on wrapping in the settings, to allow holding the 1 or 3 keys to cycle through all the rate options.

Note: with wrapping on, the Reader will move from very slow to a very fast rate of speech with a single keypress, as well as the opposite. Please keep this in mind if you should choose to enable the wrapping feature. You can change this behaviour by setting the “wrapping” option to “off”.

To navigate through the active file, you can use the 4 and 6 keys to go backward and forward. By default, 4 will read the previous sentence, and 6 will read the next one. TO change what the 4 and 6 keys read, you can press 2 or 8 to move through the various “reading modes”.

Options always available for the reading mode include characters, words, sentences, lines and paragraphs. That means that while 4 and 6 typically read sentences, if you press 2 you will hear “words”, then 4 and 6 will read the previous or next word instead. You can decide if your navigation choice is retained on a global or per-file basis in the system menu.

Some file types may support additional types of navigation, such as page, heading or chapter. You may have placed bookmarks in any given file, which will also be an option for the navigation mode selector, or you might have been performing a text-based search within a file, where 4 and 6 are used to move to the previous or next search result.

don’t be alarmed if as you become more accustomed to the Reader, your 2 and 8 mode list expands or changes over time.

To read a different file, you have 2 options.

  1. Hold down 4 or 6. 4 Will move to the previous file in the current folder, and 6 will move to the next file. You’ll hear the name of the file spoken. Pressing 5 will play the file, either from the beginning if you’ve not started it yet, or resuming from where you last left off.
  2. Press 7. The 7 key moves you to the list of files and folders on the Reader, called your library. In this mode, 4 and 6 move between files. You can press 2 (up), or 7(bak) again, to move “up” or “Out” of the current folder, if you are in one. You can press 8 (down) or 5 (play) to move “Into” a folder, where you’ll hear the name of the first file or folder inside the one you have entered.

By default, files are listed alphabetically. You can change this in the system menu.

TO summarise: holding 4 and 6 moves through the files in the active folder. For a new product, this will be the quick start guide, the full owner’s manual, the assembly instructions and the development diary. To navigate a more complex structure you can open the library by pressing 7, which is navigated using the 2, 4, 6 and 8 keys in a square around your play key. You’ll find some classic out-of-copyright content in a folder called Books, just to get you used to the idea. You’re free to replace all the content on the card whenever you like, and the initial version, or indeed updated versions, will be on the project’s website.

Adding content

Connect your Randall Reader to a computer, phone or tablet, or remove its Micro sD card and use a slot or card reader, to transfer content. The first version of the Randall reader accepts only plain text files. You are free to create folders and organise the content on the card in any way you wish. There’s no processing of the files or use of special folders needed, other than everything that is not a text file being ignored.

You can also choose to ad content wirelessly if you prefer. Randall Reader will need to know about your home wifi network for this to work and that’s beyond the scope of this quick start guide, but do check out the full owner’s instruction manual if you are interested.

Note: having the wireless radio receiver enabled will dramatically reduce your battery life. The Reader’s default mode will only enable wifi on power, and then only if it knows about any wifi networks to begin with. This means that, after you’ve performed the wireless setup for the first time, you can easily add content to your Reader via the USB cable directly, or plug it into charge either through the cable or the Qi wireless charging option to connect it to your home network. If running on battery power you will have to turn the wifi on manually.

Checking the battery level

The star key is used for status information. Press it while reading to hear the remaining battery percentage. Repeated presses of the key cycle through different information.

Turning the reader off.

You don’t need to turn the reader off. If you don’t touch it for a little while and it’s not talking, it’ll put itself into a standby mode. From here, pressing any button or unlocking the slide switch will wake it back up. The battery will trickle down very slowly in this mode and it should last for several weeks. If it is left for longer than this or you need to charge it from absolute 0, you’ll have to reconnect to wifi or manually set the date and time for reliable time, date and alarm functionality. Power handling is managed by a safe and specific chip inside the system, the battery will not overcharge, so it’s perfectly safe to leave it plugged in or standing on a Qi charger when you’re not using it if you prefer.

Note: If the slide switch is placed in the lock position when the Reader is not talking, it’ll be placed in sleep mode immediately unless there is an active wifi or cable connection. The Reader will never go into sleep mode if the wifi is enabled or the USB cable is connected. Manually enabling wifi means the sleep function is disabled, reducing the runtime of a full charge to roughly 48 hours at standby. This time is further reduced if you are actively working with content stored on your Reader over the network. For optimal battery life, I recommend only using wifi when on power, because you are then assured that the Reader sleeps when you’re not using it.

Enjoy!

That’s the end of the quick start guide. You now know how to start and stop your books, go back to reread parts of them, change the speed and volume of the voice and put new content onto the player.

For detailed operating instructions, please see the owner’s instruction manual (or next chapter if that’s what you’re reading) included both on the device and as a separate download. It includes this guide, but also full and detailed explanations of every feature on your unit.

Chapter 2. Using the Randall Reader

This chapter contains:

2.1, The File Playback screen.

Randall Reader’s primary job is to play text files. Playback is started, paused, and resumed with the 5 key. Here’s what the rest of the buttons do on the playback screen.

  1. Buttons 1 and 3 lower or raise the volume or, when held, decrease or increase the speech rate.
  2. Buttons 2 and 8 select an appropriate navigation mode,such as characters, words, sentences, lines or paragraphs.
  3. Buttons 4 and 6 navigate using the chosen mode. When held, 4 moves to the previous book in the folder, and 6 moves to the next.
  4. Button 5 plays and pauses the file. When held, it reports your progress through the file as a percentage.
  5. Button 7 leaves the current file and accesses the library. Pressing this during playback doesn’t do anything, you need to pause first.
  6. Button 9 sets a bookmark at the current marked place in the text. If your file is paused and 9 is held, it prompts for a sleep timer duration. You can enter a value in minutes using the number keys and confirm with the hash, or use star to cancel. The last sleep timer value you used is saved here, so hold 9 and press hash to turn on your old sleep timer.
  7. Star provides status information. The details each press gives you might include things like the battery level, current date or time, free space on your SD card, approximate listening time remaining in the current file, and so on. You can continue to press this during playback.
  8. The 0 key is the help key. Pressing it followed by another key will describe what that key does. This only works whilst paused.
  9. The hash (or pound) key is the system menu. Here you will find all the settings, modes and options to control the Reader. Again, this only works whilst paused.

2.2, The library

All the content on your Reader is stored on the included Micro sD card. When you connect to a computer it is this card that appears as a drive on your computer or that appears when you connect to the reader via Wifi. You can access the library by pressing 7 on your keypad. Here is what each button does whilst inside the library.

  1. 4 and 6 now move between files in the current folder.
  2. 2 and 8 leave the current folder, or enter the folder you are focused on.
  3. 5 plays the file you are focused on. If you are focused on a folder it opens it, like 8.
  4. 7 acts like 2 in that repeated presses leaves the folder. If you press 7 repeatedly you will end up at the root of your SD card.
  5. 9 lets you do things to the file. Press 9 to cycle through options like delete, lock, clear bookmarks, clear reading position or re-index the file. If you have chosen any of the above options, press hash to confirm, or any other key to abort.
  6. star is again the status key but,this time, provides the file size, date, progress through the file so far, and so on.
  7. 0, 1 and 3 behave as in the reading view, that is to provide help or adjust voice volume and speed.
  8. the hash key opens the system menu as before unless you’ve chosen a 9 option first. Tapping any other key cancels a 9 selection, reverting hash to its primary settings mode.

2.3, the system menu.

The system menu allows you to set device options or choose specific modes.

In this screen:

For example, the first set of options are the speech volume, rate and pitch. Use 8 to move down through the options, and 4 and 6 to set each of the values accordingly. If you don’t want to scroll through the speech options, 9 will take you to the first of the miscellaneous settings. A second press of 9 will move you to the system actions, and so on.

Speech settings

miscellaneous settings

System actions

2.4, The babel file.

The Randall Reader needs to keep information about the files you play. Data such as how far through the file you are, any bookmarks you’ve set and any navigable structure the file has are stored. We call this the Babel file.

You can opt to store the file in the Reader’s internal memory or on the SD card, both of which have their own advantages.

If you choose to keep the file on the Reader’s internal memory, you’re limited in how many books you can keep track of. Conservatively you’ll be able to store roughly 200 bookmarks and file positions. The Reader will remove the oldest stored data to keep the file under a manageable size. This will mean that, if you revisit a book you were in hundreds of books ago, your last read position and bookmark data is not retained. However, this storage method means that the Reader never has to write to the SD card whilst reading a file to you. Reading from SD cards is a far less distructive process than writing, so this should increase the lifetime of your removable media.

Choosing to store the Babel file on the SD card means you don’t need to worry about how big it is. You’ll be able to set as many bookmarks in as many files as you like. It also keeps the bookmarks and reading positions with the files they apply to. The slight downside is the continued writing to the card, which could shorten its lifespan and decrease the runtime between charging of the Reader.

Sensible advice would be to use the internal storage to start with, which will maximise both the battery life of the Reader and longevity of your SD cards. If you find yourself moving between many books, consider changing the storage location so you can increase how many bookmarks you can keep.

2.5, Wifi connectivity

The Randall Reader can connect to your home’s wireless network. This allows you to transfer files to the unit without a physical cable and is an excellent feature, when paired with the default setup of connecting when plugged in. The wireless radio eats up battery power quite quickly, so out of the box, the Randall Reader will only connect to a wireless network if you’ve plugged it in or put it onto a wireless charging pad. A wireless connection also allows the Reader to set the date and time, and check for updates of the Reader’s internal software.

Note: if you’ve set the Wireless radio option to manual, you’ll need to manually disconnect from the network as well. If you prefer to leave your Reader connected to wifi at all times, you will see significantly poorer battery life than choosing to only connect when you want to update the files stored on the card. The Reader will keep time without needing to check in with a network, so you can safely disconnect from Wifi once you’ve got a time signal and have files to listen to on your card.

To connect the Reader to your home’s network, you need to provide your network name, or SSID, and password, also called a security key. When you go to the system menu and choose the wireless radio option for the first time, the Reader looks for a file on the SD card called wifi or wifi.txt. You’ll need to create this file either on the card before inserting it into your Reader, or by plugging the Reader into your computer and using a file manager and text editor.

Note: you’ll need to trigger the wireless radio option in the system menu at least once for the Reader to retrieve these wifi credentials even if the Wireless mode is set to when plugged in. in the future, the wifi connection will start and stop in line with power supplied to your Reader.

Note: If you’re buying the assembled version of the reader and are happy transmitting your Wifi credentials over the Internet, it’s a simple matter to have the card pre-loaded with the file. Just pop a note on the order form.

The wifi configuration file simply needs to have both of the pieces of data the Reader needs, 1 per line. The first line of your text file should be the network name, and the second line the password.

If you need the Reader to work on multiple networks, simply add more to the file. Lines 1, 3 and 5 are your network names, then lines 2, 4 and 6 are your passwords.

Note: the Reader will only need this file the first time it connects to a network. Thereafter, the passwords are stored internally, so you can delete the wifi file if you like. The Reader does expose the file to local devices or the USB connection for you to replace or update it, so you’ll want to delete it if you’re at all concerned about the key for your network being available in plain text. If you have added multiple networks to the file, the Reader will only store the password after a successful connection attempt to each network, so don’t delete the file if you’ve stored a home and hotspot network but only connected to the home one.

The Randall Reader does not work with captive portals or wireless networks requiring specific certificates or corporate identification. You’ll need to be using a 2.4GHz connection, protected with WPA2 Personal/ WPA2-PSK, or WPA3 encryption. This covers most home wireless setups in use at the moment and includes the personal hotspot feature of most mobile devices you might be using.

2.6, Using the Reader as a speech synthesizer

One of the best parts of the Reader is it’s internal voice, powered by the V-Stamp chip from RC systems. By turning on speech synthesizer mode from the system menu, you can give access to this chip through a cable connected to your computer. Screen readers can open a port to send and receive data directly to the speech synthesizer in this mode.

The digital audio option in the system menu might be of use here. With this mode on, the Reader appears as a microphone to your host computer. This allows you to listen to the voice of the Reader on your computer rather than needing to use separate headphones or use one device out-loud. The Reader has to be a microphone because, if it showed up as a sound card, you would only hear the reader and not your computers audio. By being a microphone, you can direct your computer’s sound card or other audio equipment to mix the sound into your existing workflow.

if I can’t produce files to make the serial synthesizer work anew with modern screen readers, I will work closely with those who want such a feature to set up emulation to the best of my ability so we can maximise compatibility across the screen reading ecosystem. This feature will be in beta during the 1.0 release of the firmware.

To go back to the Reader’s regular interface after turning this mode on, simply unplug the USB cable. If this feature becomes widely used we can discuss options for retaining the synthesizer mode more extensively, such as using the synthesizer wirelessly or acting as an NVDA Remote client.

2.7, Software updates.

As with all portable book players for the blind, new features and bug fixes are a given. More importantly, given that the design of the Reader was paid-for by the backers and early buyers, their input and feature suggestions mean updates don’t just need to come from me but can appear from other community contributors.

The system menus software version section lets you go online and see if there are any updates available for the Reader from the official repository. You can elect to wait for an official tested release, or download a beta version of the software. if there are any “branches” available to test specific features, you’ll be able to pull those down as well.

It is important you make yourself familiar with the pinhole reset options on the Reader’s case before choosing to install beta software. If for whatever reason an update is unsuccessful, you’ll need to use a paper clip, SIM-tray tool or similar to press these buttons to get your Reader back into a usable condition. Details about these will be affirmed when we have hardware to talk about.

If you prefer, you can download a firmware file to your SD card and install it offline, or indeed produce your own copy of the firmware and send it straight down the wire to your Reader. It is a key feature of the Reader to be expandible by the community. Official firmware versions will always be available online and, should I be unable to supply or support the reader in the future, will be archived where possible or sent to all previous buyers.

Chapter 3. Post-sales support and hardware specifications

3.1, About After-Sales Support

The Randall Reader is not quite a product like your phone or laptop, because each bit of it, although well-connected and tested to do its job, is also removable and replaceable by you. Generally speaking, we buy equipment that is designed and manufactured to be repaired and opened only by authorized service personnel, usually at great (and sometimes ongoing) cost to both the supplier and the customer. The Reader is something we’ve built together, not only something you’ve bought as a unit.

I’ve been very upfront about the fact that I couldn’t have met my manufacturing and design costs without a public Kickstarter, and I believe that means you have the right not only to a fantastic product but also to use everything that’s gone into it in the way that best works for you. So in this chapter of the owner’s manual, I’ll tell you a bit about each of the things that have gone into the case, why they’re there, and what they do. All the components in your Reader are sourced from high-quality, reputable manufacturers. My promise to you is simple: I personally test every single component module before it goes into a kit. The final assembled units are also fully tested using a procedure you can read about in my development diary. This ensures that what you receive is ready to work.

So, the upshot of all this is, if there’s a problem with your Reader, please reply to any of my emails about your order in the first instance. We’ll talk through the problem, and if the issue is a hardware one, we’ll work together to identify the faulty module. Thanks to the Reader’s modular design, we can then get a replacement part sent out to you straightaway. The contingency fund from the Kickstarter is set aside for exactly these kinds of emergencies. You’ll never get an email from me with a no-reply address, so you can always get in touch. Instant message and other social media are fine for general chat, but for support issues, please use email so we can keep track of our conversation. I don’t offer phone support in the first instance. I have a family and a day job, and I’ve built this Reader as a passion project. I’m blessed to be able to share it with you, but I’m not able to offer formal office hours of support as you’d get if you were buying from a big company. There are larger providers out there, like Humanware and Orbit Research, who will be glad to take your money and provide that level of customer service. From me, you’re getting my best efforts and a machine built by our community. I am committed to supporting my backers and helping you get the most out of your Reader. However, please understand that outside of replacing faulty hardware, this support is provided on a best-effort basis as and when my time allows. Your patience and participation in our mailing list are what will help this project thrive.

3.2, the components inside the Reader.

The case of your Reader is secured by 4 small screws. The pocket-clip is attached to the back of this case by a further set of slightly larger screws. Inside the case, you’ll find the following components.

  1. A 10,000 mAh LiPo battery.
  2. A 12-key keypad.
  3. An internal speaker.
  4. a custom-designed PCB (printed circuit board), connected to 1, 2 and 3 above.
  5. If you’ve bought it, the backplate of the case will have a small wire for wireless charging also connected to item 3.
  6. On the surface of the PCB sit an ESP32 microcontroller and the v-stamp speech synthesizer. The top edge contains a switched 3.5mm TRRS headphone jack, Micro SD card slot, USB-C port and lock switch.

These components work together to make your Reader do its job. The ESP Microcontroller is where the source code sits, waiting for button presses from the keypad or data to be received over a network or cable. Most things trigger speech, which is generated by the V-Stamp and sent through to the speaker or headphone socket. The battery keeps things running, of course, and the Qi-compatible back of the case is what let’s you charge the Reader without physically plugging it in. it is a fairly simple design for a bit of technology that hopefully does its one job very well.