About The Harding Test
The Harding Flash and Pattern Analyser is based on
research by
Graham
Harding and was developed by
Cambridge Research
Systems to analyse video for flashing patterns which can cause seizures
in epilepsy sufferers. Programmes in various countries
including the UK and Japan now have to pass this test prior to being
broadcast in order to comply with
Ofcom (ITC) guidelines. Should
material fail, it needs to be edited to correct these failures before a
'Passed' certificate can be issued.
Photosensitive epilepsy affects approximately one in four thousand
people and is a form of epilepsy in which seizures are triggered by
visual stimuli that form patterns in time or space, such as flashing
lights, bold regular patterns, or regular moving patterns. In 1993, an advert for 'Pot Noodles' induced seizures
in 3 people, leading to the ITC introducing these
guidelines. Similarly,
in Japan during 1997, an episode of the children's cartoon 'Pokemon'
triggered over 150 admissions to hospital leading to the episode being
banned from television worldwide.
Many broadcasters now require a certificate with video
submission. If you need your video to be tested, or have a video that
has
failed the test and would like us to correct it for you please call us
or fill out the form below. Sample certificates can be seen by clicking
the thumbnails on the left of the page.
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Please click here to download a PDF document with more
detailed information about the Harding Test. |
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