IC CARD READER WITH SYNTESIZED VOICE OUTPUT

An IC card reader that can output data in an audio form. The IC card reader includes a small portable case in which an IC card can be inserted. A microcontroller powered by a battery within the case reads the stored data from the IC card and encodes the read data into a series of voice commands. A voice synthesizer circuit produces a synthetic speech signal from the encoded data. Thus, in use of the IC card reader, when a button is depressed to close a switch, the microcontroller is caused to interrogate the card so that the data stored on the card is read into the microcontroller. The microcomputer produces a synthetic speech signal that is amplified by the amplifier and output by the speaker as synthetic speech which can be heard by the user by holding the card reader with the speaker against the user's ear.