Flex VRA Now Works With the Madsen Astera Control Panel
If your clinic tests with a Madsen Astera² audiometer from Natus, you can now run your Flex VRA reinforcers straight from the buttons on the Astera control panel. No mouse, no keyboard shortcuts, and no reaching across the desk: the same panel you already use for testing now controls Flex VRA, too.
The update is part of the latest Flex PC, and setup is automatic. If Flex PC finds OTOsuite on your computer when you install it, it connects to the control panel for you.
Why it matters
Visual reinforcement works best when the reward lands the instant a child turns toward the sound. Every glance away from the booth to find a mouse or a hotkey costs you that moment.
With the Astera integration, your hands stay on the control panel and your eyes stay on the child. Present the tone, see the head turn, press the button: the video or toy comes on right away.
How it works
Flex PC uses the three VRA keys on the Astera control panel:
Panel key | Flex VRA reinforcer |
Tracking | Left |
Reset | Center |
Stim Lock | Right |
The panel keys aren't labeled for left and right, so you can swap Tracking and Stim Lock in Flex PC's Settings to match your booth.
Hold to activate. Outside OTOsuite's Pediatric screen, these keys also do their normal audiometer jobs. To keep the two apart, a quick tap works the audiometer as usual, and holding a key for half a second turns on Flex VRA. You can change the hold time, or set it to any press, in Settings.
Stim Lock and Tracking stay the way you left them. OTOsuite switches Stim Lock or Tracking as soon as you press those keys. When you let go after holding one for Flex VRA, Flex PC switches it back for you. Holding Reset for Center doesn't change anything on the Tone screen.
It feels like part of OTOsuite
You don't need to remember to open Flex PC. On a computer with OTOsuite, Flex PC waits quietly in the background and follows OTOsuite:
OTOsuite opens: Flex PC opens with it, minimized in the taskbar, ready to go.
OTOsuite is minimized: Flex PC minimizes with it, and comes back when OTOsuite is maximized.
OTOsuite closes: Flex PC closes too, and waits for your next test.
You can still open Flex PC from the Start menu any time. Its window can also be dragged anywhere and resized, and it remembers where you put it.
Getting set up
Everything comes in one file, FlexPC-Setup.exe. There are no extra programs to download.
Run FlexPC-Setup.exe on the computer that runs OTOsuite.
When Windows asks for administrator permission, choose Yes. This one-time step installs the USB driver Flex PC uses to see the control panel's keys.
Restart the computer when asked.
Open OTOsuite. Flex PC appears in the taskbar, and the panel keys are ready.
Installed OTOsuite after Flex PC? The next time you open Flex PC, it notices and asks whether you'd like to integrate it with OTOsuite. Choose Yes and it sets everything up for you.
On computers without OTOsuite, Flex PC installs just as before, with no Astera options to get in the way.
What you need
A Madsen Astera² audiometer with its USB control panel, running OTOsuite
A Windows 10 or 11 PC
Administrator permission once, during setup
The latest Flex PC and your Flex VRA system
Try it
The Astera integration is included in the latest Flex PC at no extra cost. To get the update or see a demo, contact us at sales@flexvra.com or 512-671-0089.
Madsen, Astera and OTOsuite are trademarks of Natus Medical Incorporated. Flex VRA is not affiliated with or endorsed by Natus.
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