A user connects to a machine by plugging and unplugging the cables. It became clear that a system that connects wirelessly was more desirable. A technology allowing seamless access to a workroom of devices to control was desired, but was not practical due to expense and lack of clear options in the technology. It is therefore a quick task to configure and add a new device to the network of adaptive aids and controlled devices. Networks can range in size from two to 32,000 devices.
Nodes communicate with one another using a common protocol.
Internally, nodes contain several chips for network processing and for interfacing with a device. Several common design principles are shared between the TAS and the TASCloud. The design goal of portability was intended, but has been frustrated until recently by the poor audio performance of smaller systems. Portability became more important when it was found during usability testing for the MSD Study that a smaller, more portable unit was desirable. Three of the seven users wanted to take the accessor portion of the TAS home with them, either to control a home computer, or to catch up on work in their own environment.