June 17, 2005—Sonare Technologies, a Herman Miller company, won a Gold award in the Workplace Technologies category for its technology that provides voice confidentiality and security of information in open plan work environments.
Called Babble, the technology can be used either as a stand-alone solution or as part of a layered approach to sound management. Sound masking, or “white noise” technology, complements the new technology by diluting overall interior sound, while Babble provides voice privacy in the area immediately surrounding the user, according to Sonare.
Babble provides true voice confidentiality by rearranging the phonemes of voice and transmitting, in real time, with the spoken voice. The result is that others outside a workspace cannot understand the actual spoken words.
The desktop device connects to the telephone and sends the user’s voice out in multiplied and “babbled” form through proprietary speakers arranged in the work area. It achieves confidentiality without distracting the user of the device, and those in the user’s immediate area hear what sounds like an indiscernible, low-volume group conversation.
The product will be offered at a retail price of $395 for the desktop device and two sets of speakers. For more information, visit the Web site.
