It's a combination of "canned" translations of important phrases coupled with speech recognition, but it may prove to be the groundwork for a universal translator.

Ace Sarich is Vice President of Marine Acoustics and he's showing me the Phraselator, a portable translating device. Its speech recognition software hears a command given in English and finds the appropriate recorded translation linked to that command and puts it out through a speaker. There is even a confirm mode used after you speak a phrase, that confirms the phrase it intends to translate.

It's being used in Afghanistan now, when U.S. Troops have to give instructions to people in lines or at checkpoints. It's useful for one-way communications. Sarich says it really helps in areas where human translators are at a premium. "If you just need to do basic communications, again, at a military checkpoint, case in point. It's very good for providing the information, as I mentioned, a military checkpoint, we must inspect your vehicles, give me directions or orders, standup, sit down, get out of the car, open your bag."

The Phraselator uses plug-in modules, covers about 40 languages, with hundreds of commands to cover a lot of situations.

The Phraselator is ruggedized, has a good microphone and large speaker, as well as a high capacity battery. It accepts CompactFlash memory, so quick additions to the list of phrases translated can be made. "We have a tool kit that allow us to sit down with a native speaker and just quickly add on the fly within an evening or so, 200, 300 phrases. In fact I did that in Afghanistan," says Sarich.

The Phaselator is being used in the military, but perhaps also will be useful in emergency rooms, Customs, Coast Guard boardings - even museums. Anywhere language has been a barrier.