How Relay
Works
Each
state government is required by law to provide a Relay Service which
facilitates telephone communications between people using TTYs (TDDs)
and people using voice telephones. The service is provided
using a relay operator, who "translates" between text
communication (on a TDD) and voice communication. There are several ways
of using the relay, and the operator's role depends on which relay mode
is being used.
Standard
Relay Call
A
standard relay call takes place between a person using a TDD and a
person using a voice phone. The deaf person (TDD user) types her message
to the relay operator, who voices the typed message to the hearing
person (voice phone user). The hearing person voices his message to the
operator, who then types the message to the deaf person using the TDD.
When a person finishes their "turn", they type or say
"GA", which means "go ahead". That's the signal that
they are finished, and it is now the other person's turn.
Voice
Carry Over (VCO) Call
A
deaf person may choose to place a Voice Carry Over (VCO) call instead of
a standard relay call. In a VCO call, the deaf person voices, instead of
typing on a TDD. This increases the speed of a call, because voicing is
faster than typing, and also because no "translation" is
necessary for the deaf person's messages.
In
a VCO call, the hearing person still voices to the operator, who still
types the voiced message to the deaf person using the TDD. The
difference is that the deaf person voices her message directly to the
hearing person, and the relay operator is inactive during this time.
The
use of "GA" to signify the end of a turn is still required.
2
Line Voice Carry Over (2LVCO) Call
Everything
that happens in a standard VCO happens in a 2 Line Voice Carry Over
(2LVCO) call. The hearing person voices to the operator, who types the
voiced message to the deaf person using the TDD. The deaf person voices
her message directly to the hearing person, and the relay operator is
inactive during this time.
So
what's different about a 2LVCO call? The difference is that the deaf
person gets the hearing person's voice directly, in addition to getting
the text translation of the voice from the operator. This system is
useful if the deaf person is able to understand parts of the spoken
conversation, but needs to rely on the text translation for other parts.
2LVCO
has the advantage of proceeding faster that a standard VCO call when the
deaf person is able to understand the spoken message. Other advantages
are that is seems much more normal to the hearing person and the use of
"GA" is not required. A deaf person who is able to understand
most of a spoken conversation does not even need to announce to the
hearing person that the call is a relay call. It can proceed like a
normal phone call until the deaf person misses something. Then she waits
for the text translation to fill in what she was unable to understand.
The
only real disadvantage of 2LVCO is the additional expense of having
three way calling on one line and a second phone line. (Two lines and
three way calling on one of them are required to get the hearing
person's voice and the operator's text translation at the same time.)
