Access For Sight Impaired Consumers

Operating The Canadian Banknote Reader

The Bank of Canada provides a Canadian Banknote Reader at no charge to Canadian citizens who meet the medical definition of "legal blindness". They are designed to assist people who are blind, sight impaired or deafblind. Banknote Readers are provided by the Bank of Canada through your nearest CNIB office.

NOTE: The Banknote Readers are programmed to identify Canadian banknote denominations ranging from five dollars through one hundred dollars. It cannot identify American banknoetes or other foreign currencies nor can it distinguish counterfeit Canadian banknotes.

Description

The Banknote Reader measures approximately 7.5 cm (wide) by 9.5 cm (high) by 3 cm (thick). The top surface houses the banknote slot; the bottom surface offers a recessed manufacturer/serial number sticker, the battery cover and three rubber pads to protect table or desk surfaces. On the left edge, near the top edge is a 3.5 mm headphone jack. The top edge has two slide switches; the left switch controls the volume while the right switch controls the output format. Between these two switches is where one can connect a lanyard or carrying strap. There is no power on/off switch as the Banknote Reader turns on or off automatically when a banknote is inserted or removed from the banknote slot.

Operating Instructions

Operating instructions for the Canadian Banknote Reader are available in various formats including:

• On line
• Text file download
• Large Print PDF
• Streaming Audio

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This page was last modified on Tuesday, 24-Aug-2010 09:50:11 PDT

The Banknote Reader uses a 9 volt rectangular battery. To install a new battery:

1. Turn the Banknote Reader over (with the banknote slot facing down) and then rotate it 180 degrees.
2. Gently press down with a slight forward motion on the serrated portion of the battery cover until it pops open.
3. With the cover wide open, insert the battery with its terminals pointing left. Polarity will determine whether the Banknote Reader speaks in English or French (see the heading entitled "Changing The Language).

Changing The Language

To change the language of the Banknote Reader from English to French (or visa versa), simply open the battery cover and insert the battery with its terminals reversed.

Adjusting The Volume

Along the top edge of your Banknote Reader are two slide switches, the one on the left will adjust the volume. This slide switch has three settings. From left to right, they provide loud, medium or quiter options. Fully insert a Canadian banknote into the reader slot to review the settings.

Changing The Output Format

The Banknote Reader is capable of providing information about Canadian paper currency in one of three formats. Using the slide switch on the top right edge of your Banknote Reader, simply position the switch (from right to left) to acquire verbal, tactile or audio tone outputs.

Verbal Format

Tactile Format

Audio Tone Format